Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) reported a loss of $61.9 million, or $0.50 per share, compared with a loss of $30.5 million, or $0.26 per share, in the same quarter a year ago. But these are losses that are necessary in order to nearly triple its production from an expected 35,000 cars this year to 100,000 in 2015. The company is also nearly finished building its new final assembly line that will allow the automaker to build both its wildly successful Model S and the SUV Model X from the same plant in Freemont, California.
Tesla: Big spending in Q2
Additionally, Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) is planning on closing the aforementioned plant for two weeks in the third quarter to finalize the retooling though CEO Elon Musk has stated that this wanted affect customer deliveries. It’s Musk’s hopes that next year’s 100,000 cars produced will be evenly split between the two models.
Tesla Motors Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) has begun work on its proposed $5 billion “gigafactory” on a site outside of Reno, Nevada but is still considering sites in California, Texas, Arizona, and New Mexico. It’s also possible that multiple sites will be selected.
“Before we go to the next stage of pouring a lot of concrete, we want incentives there that make sense and are fair to the state and Tesla,” Musk said.
[drizzle]While Tesla’s current battery supply in partnership with Panasonic Corporation (ADR) (OTCMKTS:PCRFY) (TYO:6752) could produce 200,000 vehicles annually, the company wants more and needs its own battery manufacturing capabilities to achieve this. Tesla also opened 50 new “supercharger” stations in the second quarter bringing the number up to 156.
Some delays but the company remains positive
Though Tesla’s Model X, a crossover SUV/minivan, has experienced some delays, the company remains positive and believes that the Alpha prototypes will be ready next week. Those Alphas will be used for the tweaking of electronics, deciding on final design decisions, and may even smash a few up in order to make the production models safer.
According to Musk, the Alpha prototypes of the Model X are considerably more advanced than those of the Model S which bodes will for the automaker. It’s expected that the final prototype the Beta will go into production three months from now with the expectation that final Model X production will happen at a much quicker rate that the Model S occurred.
The powertrain design in the Model X is almost identical to that of the Model S making it easier for the company though there are a number of final decisions regarding the production model of the Model X that delays could still occur as the company looks to deliver 100,000 cars next year.
[/drizzle]
