Tesla May Boost Japan Maintenance Centers To 8, From 1

Tesla Motors Inc TSLA will expand the number of its maintenance centers in Japan to eight within a year, according to a report Thursday.

Tesla currently operates only a single maintenance center in Japan, located in Yokohama, according to the unsourced report by the Japanese news service Nikkei.

The company expects to open centers other major cities in Aichi, Osaka and other prefectures in the current year.

The new centers won't provide government-mandated safety inspections.

Instead they will offer light body work and routine maintenance, according to Nikkei.

Tesla operates a single dealership in Japan, in Tokyo, and began selling its Model S sedans there about a year ago.

Sales are growing in Japan, according to Nikkei, although it didn't offer figures.

Nikkei said in April that Tesla would increase the number of free, rapid-charging stations for its electric vehicles in Japan to about 30 this year, from six.

The company, which has said it expects to begin deliveries of its Model X crossover vehicle late in the third quarter, will begin selling the new model in Japan "as early as 2016," according to the Nikkei report.

Tesla's Elon Musk earlier this year said he was unhappy with sales in China, where the company shook up its staff.

The company failed to meet its goal for worldwide deliveries last year, and has said boosting international sales is a key part of its long-term plan.