Musk says Tesla’s new car factories ‘losing billions of dollars’

By Hyunjoo Jin

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) -Tesla Inc’s new car or truck factories in Texas and Berlin are “losing billions of pounds” as they battle to enhance creation for the reason that of a shortage of batteries and China port difficulties, Main Govt Elon Musk stated in an job interview published on Wednesday.

“Both of those Berlin and Austin factories are gigantic dollars furnaces correct now. Alright? It truly is definitely like a huge roaring sound, which is the audio of money on hearth,” Musk explained in an interview with Tesla Owners of Silicon Valley, an official Tesla-recognized club, in Austin, Texas, on Might 31.

The club divided its interview with Musk into three pieces, the final of which was launched on Wednesday.

Musk said Tesla’s Texas manufacturing unit creates a “little” range of cars since of issues in boosting generation of its new “4680” batteries and as resources to make its typical 2170 batteries are “caught in port in China.” “This is all heading to get preset real rapidly, but it requires a good deal of notice,” he said.

He mentioned its Berlin manufacturing unit is in a “marginally greater placement” because it began with working with the conventional 2170 batteries for cars crafted there.

Trying to get TO ‘NOT GO BANKRUPT’

He claimed the COVID-19-connected shutdowns in Shanghai “were very, extremely tough.” The shutdown afflicted auto generation not only at Tesla’s Shanghai manufacturing unit, but also at its California plant, which makes use of some auto areas designed in China, he said.

Tesla options to suspend most production at its Shanghai plant in the 1st two months of July to perform on an up grade of the web site to improve output, in accordance to an inner memo found by Reuters.

“The previous two years have been an absolute nightmare of offer chain interruptions, one particular issue following a further, and we are not out of it however,” Musk mentioned.

Tesla’s overwhelming concern, he reported, is “How do we keep the factories functioning so we can spend persons and not go bankrupt?”

Tale continues

Musk mentioned early this month he experienced a “tremendous negative feeling” about the economy and that the business desired to reduce staff by about 10% and “pause all selecting all over the world.” Earlier this 7 days, he explained a 10% lower in salaried personnel at Tesla will come about around three months.

Tesla previously this yr started off creation at the factories in Berlin and Texas, both of which are essential to the expansion ambitions of the best electrical car maker.

Musk explained he envisioned Tesla would start off production of its Cybertruck electrical pickup vans, which has been delayed, in mid-2023.

(Reporting by Hyunjoo Jin in San Francisco and Joe White in DetroitEditing by Leslie Adler and Matthew Lewis)