Another timely data drop about
why $TSLA ain't getting beat by the legacies, and probably never will:
• Tesla’s advantage stems not only from the scale of its operations, but also from Elon Musk’s relentless pursuit of lower battery costs, according to Cairn Energy Research Advisors.
• Battery packs are the biggest expense in manufacturing electric vehicles.
• Tesla pays an average of $142 per kWh for battery cells versus $169 per kWh for GM and an industry average of $186 per kWh.
Jaffe says Tesla’s battery packs are 10% less expensive than GM’s and 24% less than the rest of the auto industry because Musk and his team have aggressively pushed to cut costs over the last decade. “Everything is focused on cost. The lower the cost, the more affordable the cars become,” he said.
The big challenge for many automakers will be catching up to Tesla and GM on EV costs. Jaffe says some automakers like Volkswagen are making the investments needed to close the gap, but many others have not.
Tesla has other huge cost advantages as well:
• No legacy costs: factories, pensions, etc
• No advertising costs
• No dealer network and associated fees
• No shipping / import fees (in Europe as GigaBerlin comes online)
And Tesla clearly has products people are buying ... even if someone doesn't like a Tesla, will they pay a premium for another car with a worse charger network, worse technology, fewer bundled services, and lower resale?
