Elon Musk’s electric car maker Tesla has been given a tax break by the Chinese state just days after the tech mogul was criticized by Beijing after he said Taiwan should become a “special administrative zone” ruled by the Chinese Communist Party.
China’s Ministry of Industry and Information Technology has revealed its latest list of electric vehicles that will not be taxed upon purchase.
The list includes the latest Tesla Model S and Model X units with 100 kWh batteries.
It is reported that two Model S variants – the MSP2P and MSP2LR – as well as the Model X variants MXP2P and MXP2LR were on the list of excluded vehicles. Their inclusion on the list suggests that Tesla may soon begin shipping cars to China.
Last Friday, Musk created headlines and controversy around the world after an interview, where he declared that Taiwan, the self-governing island and US ally that China views as part of its country, should hand over control of Beijing to avoid a wider conflict that would have global economic consequences.
“My recommendation … would be to find a special administrative zone for Taiwan that’s nice enough, maybe not to make everyone happy,” Musk said.
“And it’s possible, and I think maybe, in fact, they could have a deal that’s more lenient than Hong Kong,” Musk added.
Musk predicted that a military conflict between China and Taiwan would likely shrink the global economy by 30 percent.
He noted that Tesla and other large companies with supply chains that pass through the region would be severely affected, and stated that “Apple would be in very deep trouble.”
Musk’s comments drew the ire of Taiwanese officials while prompting praise from China.