A day after launching one of its cars into space, Tesla[1] moved Wednesday to ease concerns on Earth over production delays for its Model 3[2], the key to future growth for the star electric carmaker.
In its quarterly earnings update, the carmaker led by entrepreneur Elon Musk[3] said it is moving ahead toward its goal of producing 5,000 Model 3 vehicles per week by the end of the second quarter.
In a letter to shareholders, Musk said it has been difficult to get accurate forecasts for the car, a more affordable model for the automaker known for expensive vehicles.
"What we can say with confidence is that we are taking many actions to systematically address bottlenecks... and these actions should result in our production rate significantly increasing during the rest of Q1 and through Q2."
Tesla reported a record loss for the quarter of $675 million (roughly Rs. 4,300 crores) on revenues of $3.3 billion (roughly Rs. 21,200 crores).
But Tesla shares rose 1.7 percent in after-hours trade, on the upbeat assessment of production efforts.
In the quarter, Tesla delivered 29,967 vehicles including 1,542 Model 3 vehicles.
The Model 3, priced starting at $35,000 (roughly Rs. 22.51 lakhs), is key to Tesla's effort to becoming a mass producer and reshaping the automotive market. Its other cars sell for around twice that price.
On Tuesday, Musk's other major company SpaceX[4] launched[5] a Tesla Roadster[6] into space aboard a Falcon Heavy[7] rocket.
At Tesla, Musk has announced plans for an electric semi-truck[8], boosted production of batteries for its electric cars and for other uses and has expanded...