Tesla shows 55pc growth last fiscal

Tesla showroom in New Jersey

Tesla has registered a 55 percent growth rate year on year by selling 31,655 of its sedan Model S in 2014. It is reportedly 500 more cars sold than the target set.

Tesla reported that it has delivered 10,030 of its luxury electric cars in the first quarter of 2015.

Elon Musk, the chairman of the board, CEO and product architect at Tesla has set the sales target for the ongoing year to 50,000 and in another five years hopes to increase deliveries to 500,000.

However, experts are unsure if Tesla will be able to achieve the target.

Musk has fallen short of his estimates on previous occasions. The company recently reported that it was performing badly in China, which is the second largest auto market of the world. It even had to opt for austerity measures, including layoffs and resignation by executives.

At the same time, the company is also facing some heat at home as West Virginia became the fifth state in the US to impose a ban on its direct sales model.

On Friday last West Virginia Governor Earl Ray Tomblin signed the bill which was championed by West Virginia’s Senate president, Bill Cole, who is an auto dealer in Kentucky.

Last month, the American carmaker had received some support for its business model after New Jersey passed a bill that allowed manufacturers of zero-emissions vehicles to sell their products directly to customers.

Automotive experts believes Tesla will have to launch its “futuristic, gull-winged, sports utility vehicle Model X” to meet targets.

Tesla went into commercial production of electric cars about three years back. The company is now also branching into sectors other than electric vehicles.

It recently announced plans to launch a new Tesla product line on April 30. The new product could be in the home battery segment targeted at domestic users.

Ajith Kumar S

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