UPI en Español  |   UPI Asia  |   About UPI  |   My Account
Search:
Go

Tesla to repay federal loan early

|
 
The Tesla Motors, Inc. logo is displayed at the 2013 North American International Auto Show in Detroit on January 14, 2013. UPI/Brian Kersey
The Tesla Motors, Inc. logo is displayed at the 2013 North American International Auto Show in Detroit on January 14, 2013. UPI/Brian Kersey 
License photo
Published: March. 9, 2013 at 10:41 AM

PALO ALTO, Calif., March 9 (UPI) -- Niche U.S. auto company Tesla Motors Inc. said it would pay off its $465 million government loan five years earlier than originally planned.

In its annual report, the California electric car maker said it had been given permission to repay the Department of Energy's loans early, completing payment by the end of 2017, rather than the end of 2022, the Los Angeles Times reported Saturday.

The loans were intended to help Tesla build alternative-energy vehicles, which is the company's specialty.

The company makes only top-end, electrically powered vehicles and power train components.

In its annual report, Tesla said production of its Model X crossover sport utility vehicle had been pushed back a year with an expectation of starting production in late 2014.

Instead, the company will concentrate on production of its Model S sedan, for which the company forecasts sales of 20,000 units, Tesla spokeswoman Shanna Hendriks said.

Recommended Stories
© 2013 United Press International, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Any reproduction, republication, redistribution and/or modification of any UPI content is expressly prohibited without UPI's prior written consent.

Order reprints
Join the conversation
Most Popular Collections
'Star Trek Into Darkness' screening NBC upfronts Met Ball 2013
'Great Gatsby' premieres in New York Spire raised on top of One WTC 2013: Celebrity break ups and divorces
Additional Business News Stories
1 of 16
Flags-In Ceremony at Arlington National Cemetery
View Caption
Staff Sgt. Jeffrey Roskos with the 3rd U.S. Infantry Regiment, "The Old Guard," participates in the annual Flags-In ceremony, May 23, 2013, at Arlington National Cemetery in Arlington, Virginia. Soldiers place American flags in front of more than 260,000 gravestones in the cemetery in honor of Memorial Day. UPI/Kevin Dietsch
fark
Caption what Chris Christie is saying to Snookie
Photoshop this shadowy cove
Try not to flame your fellow citizens, but there's this, just in time for the long holiday weekend....
12 people get unhappy ending at Baghdad brothel
Meanwhile, in Wisconsin: Thong Cape Scooter Man
Lesbian teen arrested for sex with underage girlfriend refuses to take plea deal. Says she's not...