Tesla is included in the Chinese government's automobile procurement for the first time

According to Chinese media, China was the first to add the Tesla model to the list of cars that the government and party can use as service cars.

China's official media “The Paper” reports that Tesla's Model Y is a new batch of new energy vehicle (NEV) procurement, and that it is now possible for the government, party, and public institutions to purchase it.

The Jiangsu provincial government in eastern China has already announced the procurement of 56 batches of NEVs to be used as service cars. In addition to Tesla's Model Y manufactured at the Shanghai plant, the provincial government will procure vehicles from Volvo, where China's Zhejiang Geely Holding Group owns a majority, and will procure them from 54 other batches, all of which are electric cars and hybrid cars made in China.

Until recently, Tesla vehicles were prohibited from being used at Chinese government and military facilities due to concerns about data collection and security.

In 2021, China banned Tesla parking at military facilities and the use of Tesla by people engaged in national agencies and classified industries due to concerns that sensors and built-in cameras mounted on Tesla may collect confidential data about China.

Since Tesla obtained approval from a major Chinese automobile manufacturer group in April that Tesla's Model 3 and Model Y are in compliance with data security regulations, these restrictions were lifted.

China is a very important market for Tesla. Tesla has built its first gigafactory outside of the US in Shanghai and is trying to flatten the competitive Chinese EV market with electric vehicles made in China.

Elon Musk made an unannounced visit to China in late April, and progress was made on Tesla's efforts related to the deployment of fully automated driving (FSD) software and data transfer permits.

A source familiar with the plan told Reuters that Tesla also reached an agreement with China's Baidu by using a map license from Chinese tech giant Baidu to collect data on Chinese public roads. This agreement may be a step for Tesla to deploy FSD in China.