Tesla has received approval to start selling the Model 3 in Europe

Hollis Johnson/Business Insider

Tesla can start selling the Model 3 in Europe.

• Tesla has received approval from the Dutch regulator RDW to begin selling the Model 3 sedan in Europe, a Tesla representative confirmed to Business Insider.
• Deliveries of the long-range versions of the Model 3 are expected to begin for European customers in February, the representative added.
• The European and Chinese markets are expected to be important sources of growth for Model 3 sales.

Tesla has received approval from the Dutch regulator RDW to begin selling the Model 3 sedan in Europe, a Tesla representative confirmed to Business Insider.

Deliveries of the long-range versions of the Model 3 are expected to begin for European customers in February, the representative added.

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The European and Chinese markets are expected to be important sources of growth for Model 3 sales. During Tesla's third-quarter earnings call in October, the automaker's CEO, Elon Musk, cited the prospect of European and Chinese deliveries as a reason why he did not anticipate the gradual expiration of a federal tax credit for electric vehicles to have a significant impact on Model 3 sales.

Musk has said that he expects Model 3 deliveries to China to begin in March or April.

Tesla cut the price of each of its vehicles by $2,000 after a $7,500 federal tax credit for US customers was reduced to $3,750 on January 1. The credit will be cut to $1,875 in July and expire in 2020. The reduction was set in motion when Tesla sold its 200,000th vehicle in 2018.

Musk cited the goal to begin delivering lower-priced versions of the Model 3, which starts at $44,000 before federal and state incentives, as one of the reasons Tesla laid off 7% of its employees.

"We face an extremely difficult challenge: making our cars, batteries and solar products cost-competitive with fossil fuels. While we have made great progress, our products are still too expensive for most people," Musk said in an email to employees on Friday that was posted to Tesla's website.

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