Source: Tesla
Tesla delivered 310,048 electric cars in the first quarter of 2022, hitting more than one million cars delivered in a trailing 12 months period for the first time even as it gears up to churn out even more EVs from its latest gigafactory in Berlin.
The latest delivery figure only barely missed analyst expectations of 312,000 to 317,000, and it was a new record for the company, beating the Q4 2021 delivery of 308,600 cars and was 68% more than in the same period in 2021.
Predicatbly, Tesla’s Model 3 and Model Y, accounted for 95% of sales. But the breakdown of the two models was not revealed.
It is thought that the delivery figure would have been some 20,000-25,000 higher if it were not for global logistics issues. Tesla produced a total of 305,407 vehicles in the period, pressing home this was “despite ongoing supply chain challenges and factory shutdowns.”
Wedbush analyst Dan Ives went so far as to underline the enormous change that the auto industry is now forced to reckon with as an “EV arms race.”
Tesla’s $US1.12 billion market cap alone, which places it as the most valuable carmaker globally, compared to its production rate is an indication of the impact it has had on the auto industry.
Although it produces just one-tenth of that made by the next two largest automakers globally – Toyota and Volkswagen – it is valued at four times that of Toyota and ten times that of Volkswagen.
While most legacy carmakers now have some sort of electric strategy and models, Tesla remains the only automaker that has a completely zero-emissions fleet on offer.
This means that it alone does not need to prioritise inventory for markets with vehicle emissions limits, and in markets where other carmakers are forced to reduce their fleet emissions averages, Tesla has an economic advantage.
This has seen it pool with other carmakers in Europe, selling credits to add to its bottom line, and in the US it also looks set for a win as fuel efficiency requirements rolled back in the Trump period are reintroduced, increasing penalties for carmakers that don’t meet the rules and creating another opportunity for Tesla to sell credits.
And there is another headache coming for automakers: those that have not nailed down long term contracts for materials needed to make lithium-ion batteries to satisfy growing demand for EVs may have to “pay through the nose” to stay in the EV race, outgoing Pilbara Minerals chief Ken Brinsden warned on Saturday.
Tesla is also dealing with the headache of an extended shutdown in Shanghai amid the ongoing pandemic. It was expected to reopen on Monday after the financial hub took measures to restrict movement and test the population in two tranches, but Reuters reports that Monday’s production reopening has now been cancelled according to sources.
Nevertheless, the future still looks bright for Tesla which in March opened its Brandenburg factory near Berlin in Germany, where it will make the Model Y and is also looking to start producing its new format 4680 batteries which are designed to reduce manufacturing costs and increase energy density per pack size.
Tesla’s production ramp up in Berlin is expected to take less time than it did for the Model 3 in Fremont also, which was beset with numerous troubles that Tesla boss Elon Musk described as “production hell“.
With a bank of massive “Giga press” machines, Tesla plans to manufacture the Model Y using giant rear and front cast pieces, reducing cost and complexity thanks to fewer numbers of parts.
The company plans to manufacture 500,000 cars a year from its Berlin plant, and Reuters reported that it plans to double production capacity at its existing facility in Shanghai to 1 million cars by the end of 2022, and has plans to build another facility with similar capacity there also.
There is also the possibility of another stock split on the horizon, after Tesla filed documents last Monday announcing shareholders will vote on this at the upcoming annual shareholders meeting. In September 2020, Tesla underwent its first stock split, becoming the seventh most valuable company in the world.
Tesla will announce its latest earnings for the quarter on April 20, 2022.
Keyword: EV arms race: Tesla breaks another delivery record despite supply chain hurdles