Tesla Production

Tesla Inc will begin around-the-clock production at its California assembly plant to boost Model 3 output, chief executive officer Elon Musk told employees.

The electric-car maker will try to build 6000 of the sedans a week by the end of June, Musk wrote in an email on Tuesday first obtained by the blog Electrek. A Tesla spokesman declined to comment. The company's shares rose as much as 2.7 per cent in after-hours trading.

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"As part of the drive towards 6k, all Model 3 production at Fremont will move to 24/7 operations," Musk wrote. "This means that we will be adding another shift to general assembly, body and paint."

The goal Musk describes in the email is higher than the 5000-a-week Model 3 target Tesla has set for the end of the second quarter, a potentially positive development that comes with some caveats. The CEO also signaled Tesla is planning another pause in Model 3 output next month after stopping for three to five days this week to make updates to its factories in California and Nevada.

The upgrades Tesla is making while idling the plants this week "should set us up for Model 3 production of 3000 to 4000 per week next month," he wrote.

Model 3's importance
Tesla's fortunes ride on boosting Model 3 output. The company needs revenue from delivering more cars to customers after spending billions of dollars to boost manufacturing capacity. Musk, who has said his automaker will be profitable and cash-flow positive in the third and fourth quarters and won't need another capital raise this year, also outlined cost-saving measures in his email.


Musk said that going forward, workers should walk out of meetings or drop off of a call "as soon as it is obvious you aren't adding value" and avoid using "acronyms or nonsense words for objects, software or processes at Tesla" to boost their productivity. He thanked his team for "accomplishing miracles every day."

"We are burning the midnight oil to burn the midnight oil," he said.

Article from SMH today. IMO the more the merrier, the faster the better for lithium demand. Go GXY!