Tesla delivers record number of cars in 1st quarter

Beijing: American carmaker Tesla’s Chinese subsidiary today said it has delivered 25,000 electric cars globally in the first quarter. From January to March, Tesla produced 25,418 new cars, another quarterly record, the company said.

Of the cars delivered, 13,450 were Model S electric sedans and the remaining were model X utility vehicles. These two models are the main existing models of the company.

The quarterly delivery marks a 69 per cent increase over the same period last year, state-run Xinhua news agency reported. The California-based car-maker plans to mass-produce Model 3, an affordable, entry-level model in September, the company said.

In March, Jon Mcneil, Tesla’s head of global sales, said in Beijing that the company’s Chinese market will continue to expand. In 2016, Tesla took in USD 1 billion from the Chinese market, about 15 per cent of its global revenue.

China’s internet company Tencent bought a 5 per cent stake in Tesla for 1.8 billion US dollars. Mcneil had said Tesla will continue to increase investment into Chinese market, boost sales, service and build more charging stations.

AFP