Thread by @WR4NYGov

Thread: The Next @Tesla Factory Will Be In Japan

1. Tesla has a long-time partnership with Panasonic パナソニック株式会社 (formerly Matsushita - 松下電器産業株式会社).

Panasonic is based in Osaka, Japan.

Tesla's relationship with Panasonic is growing.

2. Tesla added Hiromichi Mizuno (水野 弘道) to its board this year.

Mizuno was Chief Investment Officer of the Japan Government Pension Investment Fund.

Mizuno went to Osaka City University(大阪市立大学 aka 市大).

3. @elonmusk made a deal with Yusaku Maezawa -@yousuck2020 - to do a commercial passenger flyby of the Moon on @SpaceX #Starship.

Maezawa is a Japanese billionaire.

4. While Japan can be a very difficult place for foreign companies to do business, there are notable exceptions. @CocaCola and @McDonalds are sector leaders in Japan.

Japan's economy has been stagnant for decades. The country is full of bright, hard working engineers.

5. Japan is the world's fourth largest auto market. It is a key market for Tesla to continue its growth and accelerate the world's transition to sustainable energy.

Japan has also embraced solar energy, long eager to get off of foreign oil and now fearful of nuclear.

6. There is a tremendous opportunity for Tesla to work with Panasonic to develop grid storage for Japan.

Panasonic could build a Terafactory in or near Osaka for iron phosphate batteries.

This would support a Tesla factory producing Powerwall, Powerpack and Megapack.

7. Japan is also a perfect market for the upcoming Tesla compact vehicle, perhaps a Japan-design version of a global platform that will underpin the China, Berlin and other designs.

8. The influence of Mizuno and Panasonic, along with the popularity of @yousuck2020 and @elonmusk himself, and Japan's need for jobs, renewable energy and innovation in general should be enough to clear the bureaucratic hurdles.