SHANGHAI, May 3 (Xinhua) -- The production rate of Tesla's Model 3 sedans in its Shanghai gigafactory will top 4,000 units per week by mid-2020, the U.S. electric carmaker said on Thursday.

The Shanghai gigafactory was producing 280 vehicles every day at the end of last year.

Photo taken on Jan. 7, 2020 shows China-produced sedans at Tesla's gigafactory in Shanghai, east China. (Xinhua/Ding Ting)

Tesla's product line in Shanghai only contained the Standard Range Plus version of Model 3 in the first quarter. The company has launched an online configurator for a Long Range version and a Performance version since April.

The carmaker said it will continue to ramp up production of Model 3 in Shanghai in the second quarter, with more efficient assembly lines of the Shanghai-built Model Y SUVs, which will start deliveries in 2021.

Tesla reduced the price of the Standard Range Plus version of Model 3 made in China to from 303,550 yuan (about 43,000 U.S. dollars) to 271,550 yuan on Friday to meet the government's new eligibility requirements for subsidies.