Suppliers question Tesla’s ambitious production expansion plans

Electric carmaker looking at a 10-fold jump in production capacity to 500,000 units by 2018, two years ahead of original schedule

Tesla’s ambitious production expansion plans to reach annual production capacity of 500,000 units in 2018, two years ahead of the original schedule, have surprised suppliers. The US-based electric carmaker has revised its production plans in light of overwhelming response from customers for its latest model, the Model 3, which was unveiled in March this year. The company has received 373,000 orders for Model 3, which has a starting price of USD35,000. Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk said, at the time of Model 3 launch, that delivery would begin in late 2017.