The USA take the business relationships of the electric car manufacturer Tesla with China more closely under the magnifying glass. “Tesla seems totally dependent on the generosity of the US government in the form of tax breaks and access to the Chinese market,” said Mike Gallagher, 39, Republican chairman of the House of Representatives’ special committee on the Chinese Communist Party.
When asked by the Reuters news agency about a new Tesla battery factory in Shanghai, the CEO Elon Musk (51) announced on Sunday, Gallagher said, “I’m concerned about that.” The manufacturing facility is intended to complement the production of the so-called “megapack” batteries in California. “The kind of deals they’ve done there seem very questionable.” In contrast, Musk’s all-American space company SpaceX is a “massive success story”. Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Tesla’s main business is selling electric cars. According to Musk, the business with solar energy and batteries should be expanded to a similar size. Tesla generated $18.15 billion in China last year, accounting for more than a fifth of total sales.
China-US relations have not least because of the controversial military maneuvers by the Chinese army around Taiwan reached a low point. Over Easter, China had tested the sealing off and conquest of Taiwan with a massive military presence. The US sent a warship to the region. The communist leadership in Beijing regards the independently governed Taiwan as part of the People’s Republic and threatens to conquer it.
Apple, Alphabet and Disney also focus on China business relationships
Gallagher also met with tech companies and entertainment giants last week — including Apple, Alphabet and Disney – to talks about their business relations with the People’s Republic. He hinted that he could demand testimony from company executives if his investigations stalled. US companies are concerned that their executives could be subpoenaed to answer questions about products made using forced labor, for example, three people familiar with the matter told Reuters.
In recent years, there have been repeated reports of forced labor and re-education camps used to repress the Uyghur Muslim minority in China’s Xinjiang province. China denies this. Last month, the United Nations asked the government in Beijing to ban the coercive measures by law and release forced laborers.