Tesla’s results for the first quarter of 2024 were underwhelming. The company produced over 433,000 vehicles and delivered approximately 387,000 vehicles, marking an 8.5% year-over-year decline in deliveries. Despite this, Tesla continued to procure batteries aggressively from suppliers.
According to a report, Tesla significantly increased its battery purchases from LG Energy Solution in Q1, resulting in a 30% quarter-over-quarter sales surge for the South Korean supplier. Analysts Kwon Jun-su and Joo Min-woo noted that Tesla’s inventory restocking drove the sales increase. Furthermore, they anticipated inventory accumulation not only by Tesla but also by other customers like GM, Hyundai Motors, and Renault in the following quarter.
There is speculation that the accumulation of batteries may be related to the production of the Robotaxi, a high-volume car prototype. It is suggested that having a stockpile of batteries for the vehicle’s prototypes and trial production would be beneficial for the company. Additionally, it was mentioned that CATL’s lithium iron phosphate (LFP) cells are used for Giga Shanghai’s base Model 3 and Model Y Rear Wheel Drive (RWD).