After being delayed for almost four years since it was launched, Tesla’s (Nasdaq: TSLA) Cybertruck is intended to begin full production by the end of 2023, according to people familiar with the matter.
“We’re in the final lap for Cybertruck,” CEO Elon Musk said in Tesla conference call with financial analysts.
Tesla announced last month that it was preparing its Austin, Texas plant to construct the new model, with “early production” scheduled to begin in the middle of 2023.
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This would mean that the carmaker would not generate revenue for the model until early 2024 for a full-quarter of production and it would probably be another year of waiting for the customers who paid $100 to reserve a unit.
IDRA Group, the Italian business that manufactures the Giga Press used for die casting parts for the Cybertruck, said last week on LinkedIn that the 9,000-ton equipment for truck part production was packed and ready to delivery.
However, Tesla was not mentioned in the post. Tesla has used the Giga Press to reduce the cost and complexity of Model Y production, an invention that other manufacturers, including Toyota, have investigated.
Musk unveiled Cybertruck in a 2019 reveal in which the vehicle’s designed cracked the apparently indestructible “armor glass” windows. Since then, the business has pushed back the production timeline three times: from late 2021 to late 2022, then to early 2023, and finally to mid-2023.
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Tesla stopped collecting orders for the Cybertruck outside of North America in May. Musk stated at the time that the company had “more orders of the first Cybertrucks than we could possibly fulfill for three years after the start of production.”
Since its launch, the Cybertruck prototype has been making rounds online but the anticipated production has yet to start.
But some keen observers of the Cybertruck story are taking the latest news with a grain of salt, as the much talked-about Tesla model has been delayed multiple times before.
Amid this, the company is facing some bumps on the road. According to Reuters which cited individuals familiar with the matter, the Department of Justice has been investigating Tesla since last year after it was discovered that Autopilot was engaged during a number of high-profile fatal crashes involving the automaker’s EVs. Specifically, the DOJ is looking into the unsupported marketing claims made by Tesla and Musk about the capabilities of the self-driving system, which may have misled consumers, regulators, and investors.
But Musk is projecting confidence for Tesla, most recently in the Q3 2022 financials conference call by saying the electric vehicle maker could be worth more than the combined market cap of Apple and Saudi Aramco.
“I’m of the opinion that we can far exceed Apple’s current market cap. In fact I see a potential path for Tesla to be worth more than Apple and Saudi Aramco combined,” Musk said.
Recently, Tesla reportedly held talks with Swiss mining firm Glencore for a potential 10-20% stake in the latter. The dialogue began sometime in 2021 and continued up until March of this year, during when Glencore CEO Gary Nagle was visiting the Fremont manufacturing facility in California. However, the talks did not come to close, as Musk expressed concern over the commodity company’s coal mining business running counterproductive to Tesla’s strongly-held convictions on ESG goals.
Tesla last traded at US$230.08 on the Nasdaq.
Information for this briefing was found via Reuters and the sources mentioned. The author has no securities or affiliations related to this organization. Not a recommendation to buy or sell. Always do additional research and consult a professional before purchasing a security. The author holds no licenses.
