OSLO -- Tesla doubled service staff in Norway last year, seeking to address customer frustration at service delays in one of its top markets before delivering the new Model 3.
Tesla's operations in Norway are closely watched, as the country has the world’s highest number of electric cars per inhabitant thanks to generous government incentives for low-emission vehicles. The Nordic country has become the California-based carmaker’s third-biggest market. But capacity shortages resulting in long service queues have frustrated customers.
Tesla's Norwegian unit hired more than 360 service employees in 2018, doubling headcount in the department, Tesla spokesman Even Sandvold Roland said.
Tesla has 13 service centers in Norway and is working to get two more running as soon as possible, he said. The company also got approval for mobile service units last year, allowing it to test three of them through June.
The launch of the Model 3 in Europe is viewed as a key event this year for Tesla, which announced earlier this month it was cutting jobs to navigate what CEO Elon Musk called a “very difficult” road ahead. Tesla is expecting to send its first Model 3 cars to Norway in February, Roland said.
