Tesla Semi Update
A surprising bit of news coming from an unlikely source is giving us an update on the planned production numbers of the new Tesla Semi electric truck.
It looks like Tesla is anticipating 100 Semis produced this year, which is way higher than previous estimates.
The updated numbers come from Robin Denholm, chair of Tesla's board, as she testified on November 15th for the trial over CEO Elon Musk's compensation plan.
And while that's a pretty solid source, the direct quote is:
““Tesla, for example, might produce 100 semitrailer trucks this year, Ms. Denholm said, [...]””
So that's a "might produce" rather than anything more solid. But it is certainly more than we expected back in October when Tesla announced they'd be shipping 15 trucks to Pepsi-co’s Frito-Lay plant in Modesto, California.
At that point, the only solid numbers we had were that Tesla's Semi production line in Nevada was trying to hit the goal of 5 trucks per week.
And in late October, some numbers were thrown around during Tesla's Q3 2022 shareholder presentation. In the call, Musk mentions he wanted to aim for the goal of 50,000 units produced by 2024, which is a hell of a ramp-up.
So it makes sense that increased production efforts are already underway - but going from 15 units delivered to Pepsi-co this December, to testimony reporting that Tesla would maybe hit 100 produced by around the same time is quite the jump.
Mind you, just because Pepsi is going to be getting at least 15 Semis doesn't mean Tesla wasn't producing more. And Pepsi-co has ordered 100 trucks.
And that's not to mention Pride Group Enterprises, Walmart Canada, UPS, and others ordering their own Semis. That's around 800 orders that we could find at the beginning of November.
Tesla's 500 mile-range electric Semi has the potential to be a real game-changer for the transportation industry, and a lot of big names clearly think the same.
So Tesla is probably trying to sprint to that 50,000 unit goal, or at least satisfy the orders they have on the books - but it will be very interesting to see the production reports and get some hard data on just how many they've finished in such a short time.