US electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla Motors saw its shares shoot up by more than 40% on its first day of trading on NASDAQ. The company priced its shares at $17 each, raising $226 million, but they ended 29 June (the day of its IPO) at $23.89 after having hit $25 earlier in the day.
Founded just seven years ago, today Silicon Valley-based Tesla boasts that it makes the best electric cars and electric powertrains in the world.
The company’s flagship product is its ‘Roadster’ sports car, the first version of which was launched into the market in 2008. Since then, Tesla has sold more than 1,000 Roadsters in over 25 countries.
Tesla sells the vehicle as an environmentally-friendly form of transport. But another key selling point is the hassle-free nature of electric vehicles. While vehicles that rely on the internal combustion engine require trips to the petrol station, routine oil changes and other frequent maintenance connected to the petrol engine, the Roadster driver simply has to charge his vehicle at home overnight. The car has a driving range of 250 miles on a full charge, and the charging cycle can be as little as 3.5 hours depending upon the power connection.
Since the Roadster retails for more than $100,000, the market for the car is limited. So, Tesla is launching the lower-priced Model S, an electrically-driven sedan that has a range of up to 300 miles, a top speed of 120mph and can go from 0-60mph in 5.6 seconds. The Model S can be fully charged using Tesla’s 45-minute QuickCharge technology, and its battery can be swapped in just one minute.
Tesla’s IPO is the first major cleantech flotation in the US since A123Systems, which makes batteries for electric vehicles, joined NASDAQ in September last year.
Market: NASDAQ
Symbol: TSLA
Price: $21.94
Market cap: $2bn
12 month high/low: $30.42/$17.54
| < Prev | Next > |
|---|
