Pressure mounts on Tesla to reinvigorate its solar and storage division

Tesla’s Solar Energy Business Faces Challenges Despite Record Quarter

Despite a record fourth quarter for its solar energy and storage systems business, Tesla’s energy revenue declined by over $24 million in 2019. This comes after several rounds of layoffs that started the prior year, putting pressure on the company to revitalize its solar business.

In its annual financial report, Tesla announced plans to ramp up solar photovoltaic production at its plant in Buffalo, New York. The company has started manufacturing solar panels at the facility in collaboration with Panasonic.

CEO Elon Musk faces a deadline to increase headcount at the Buffalo plant, known as Gigafactory 2. If Tesla fails to employ 1,460 people there by April, it will face a $41.2 million penalty from the state of New York. Currently, there are around 1,100 workers at the plant.

Taxpayers in New York contributed $959 million to build Tesla’s factory, exceeding the original budget by $209 million. Additionally, Musk is facing a legal battle with Tesla shareholders over the company’s $2.6 billion acquisition of SolarCity in 2017.

Despite Musk’s optimism about 2019 being the “year of the solar roof,” solar energy and storage only accounted for 6.2% of Tesla’s total revenue last year. The company has faced challenges in manufacturing and development delays in its solar business.

As Tesla works to overcome these obstacles and meet its production goals, all eyes are on Musk and the future of the company’s solar energy endeavors.