Tesla Inc. says that production plans for its new electric semi-heavy-duty truck remain in low gear as large rigs in need of specialized battery cells are in short supply.
This week the Silicon Valley carmaker said it planned to deliver “our first Tesla Semi” by the end of the year. Tesla’s TSLA will be tested to meet that goal to complete production,
The ability to scale and pledge to meet fleet owners in an industry focused more on cost and performance than the typical Tesla buyer.
“Production is very tough,” said chief executive Elon Musk in Wednesday’s earnings call. “A big part of the reason – the main reason we haven’t accelerated new products – like, for example, Tesla Semi – is that we don’t have enough cells for that.”
Unveiled in 2017, Ardhi was initially promised to be in the hands of the customer in 2019. Its arrival has been pushed back two years, with Musk repeatedly blamed for the lack of battery-cell supplies.
Musk said Tesla is “extremely confident” about its ability to produce long-range trucks with batteries. The company has stated that the Semi will have a range of up to 500 miles, and will use about five times more battery cells than Tesla’s passenger cars.
An expanded version of this report appears on WSJ.com.
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