(Bloomberg) -- California Governor Gavin Newsom wrapped up his China tour with a visit to Tesla Inc.’s Shanghai factory, taking in the carmaker’s general assembly line and a battery-pack facility, according to a statement from his office. 

Newsom was accompanied by his delegation and China-based Tesla executives. The Shanghai plant, which started rolling out electric vehicles in late 2019, accounts for more than half of Tesla’s global production. The company is also building a battery-making factory in the city, with plans to start production in the second quarter next year. 

The governor also met with local officials including Shanghai’s mayor, Gong Zheng, and signed a memorandum of understanding on matters including environmental protection and combating climate change.

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“California is proud to build on this tremendous partnership with Shanghai to accelerate climate action – cleaning up our ports, cutting emissions from shipping and speeding up our transition to electric vehicles,” Newsom said.  

Newsom’s weeklong trip to China started with a climate-themed discussion at the University of Hong Kong, followed by stops in Beijing, Guangdong, and Jiangsu, before ending in Shanghai. He met President Xi Jinping in the Chinese capital and discussed issues including climate change, fentanyl and trade. He reiterated on several occasions that California wants to drive green partnerships and innovation with China. 

The trip took place against a backdrop of a US-China tensions, which appear to have eased in recent weeks with several visits between senior officials of both countries. Newsom said he’s “very hopeful” that Xi will attend the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation summit next month, although officials in China haven’t signed off on a trip and the Ministry of Foreign Affairs hasn’t given any updates.

Earlier this year, Newsom and Elon Musk met at Tesla’s engineering headquarters in Silicon Valley, where Newsom said it was “a point of pride” that Tesla started in California. 

Newsom also visited Tesla rival BYD Co. in Shenzhen last week, taking the luxury Yangwang U8 extended-range EV on a test ride, local media reported. And he held talks with automakers and suppliers at a forum organized by China’s Great Wall Motor Co. 

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