Tesla – Page 2717 – I wish I had more to offer

SEC faces unique challenge in face of Musk’s goading

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Former Tesla VP Spins Up New Energy Company To Accelerate Solar Plus Storage

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Batteries Published on February 23rd, 2019 | by Kyle Field
Former Tesla VP Spins Up New Energy Company To Accelerate Solar Plus StorageTwitterLinkedInFacebookFebruary 23rd, 2019 by Kyle Field

My kids play with LEGOs and work together to assemble puzzles, which is pretty normal stuff, but as far back as he can remember, clean energy enthusiast Ben Hill grew up playing with solar cells. His father was one of the founding fathers of today’s photovoltaic industry, Robert Hill, so that shouldn’t be surprising, but those early years set the trajectory for the rest of his life.
CleanTechnica caught up with Ben on the 2019 Electric Vehicle Road Trip Middle East and learned about how Ben has helped grow global solar companies around the world, including a stint at Tesla as its Vice President of Tesla’s operations in Europe, Africa and the Middle East, where he oversaw the launch of Tesla’s Powerwall and Tesla Energy.
A New CompanyTo truly tap into his passion for renewables and to maximize the opportunity he saw in the integration of solar and energy storage intelligence, Ben left Tesla in 2017 to build a new company from the ground up. And so it was that B3 New Energy was born.
Ben said that B3 New Energy was created to provide his decades of experience in the solar, energy storage, and virtual power plant industries to companies ranging from global behemoths to small startups to financial institutions as they work to maximize the benefits of the new energy transition. In the year since he launched his consultancy, he has made significant progress in realizing that goal and is working to scale up in the year ahead.

B3 New Energy is providing consultancy services for investment banks on solar, energy storage, and EV charging and infrastructure, in addition to serving as a specialist consultant for other consultancies. These services are critical to helping the industry move forward, but what Ben is really passionate about, and what he loves doing at B3 New Energy, is helping startups get their ideas into the market. “I consult for or I’m in several different companies that are in energy storage or virtual power plants right now,” Ben said.
Virtual Power Plants Solve Problems At ScaleVirtual Power Plants (VPP) leverage the power of centralized intelligence to control distributed energy generation, energy storage, and demand response resources to meet the needs of grid operators. During the peak solar production each day, the grid operator may need all that excess energy sucked up and might activate some energy storage units to store the power. As the evening demand peak surges, the operator might call on a block of EV chargers to throttle back their usage in order to keep things humming along nicely.

The whole VPP is orchestrated by a central intelligence that responds to the operation of its individual units and leverages them en masse to maximize the benefits they provide to the grid. In the new world of distributed renewable generation and energy storage, VPPs are the conductors that keep everyone playing nicely together.
Solving The Right ProblemHis passion to create and build comes along with the inevitable need to deconstruct teams and organizations. That’s never fun, Ben said, but it is necessary at times, before rebuilding the right team that can take on the challenges of today.
It took several decades for photovoltaic solar to achieve the scale necessary to challenge incumbent electricity generation technologies, and less than a decade for lithium-ion energy storage to become a serious player. In the last few years, the falling costs and technology improvements with batteries have changed the game for stationary energy storage, which has revealed the secret sauce that holds solar and energy storage together — that is the intelligence that powers the energy storage. This is true for both grid-connected and off-grid applications.

Ben explained that it is not a simple matter of wiring a battery into the grid that solves problems and adds value, but rather, it is the ability to intelligently dispatch the battery to store up power at exactly the right time or to dispatch its stored power to fill a gap that makes the difference. Depending on its size, that battery can be in your home, factory or nearby field, including tapping into the battery of your EV with vehicle-to-grid technologies.
Most recently, Ben joined forces with Solo Energy, in September of last year, as its commercial and technical advisor, where he will work to accelerate the company’s move into the “virtual power plant” space. “I’m incredibly excited to be working with Solo Energy,” Ben said. “The team has a strong vision for the future, and its peer-to-peer trading concept using the latest blockchain technology is cutting edge.”

The future of renewables and energy storage is being built right before our eyes thanks to experts, team builders, and passionate leaders like Ben Hill. Stay tuned to CleanTechnica as we continue to dig and explore the emerging world of smart energy storage solutions, among other topics of interest.

About the AuthorKyle Field I'm a tech geek passionately in search of actionable ways to reduce the negative impact my life has on the planet, save money and reduce stress. Live intentionally, make conscious decisions, love more, act responsibly, play. The more you know, the less you need. TSLA investor.

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Elon Musk lashes out: ‘Something is broken with SEC oversight’

SEC wants Elon Musk to be held in contempt of court for allegedly violating December agreement
8 Hours Ago | 02:56

Tesla CEO Elon Musk lashed out at the Securities and Exchange Commission on Tuesday, one day after the agency asked a judge to hold him in contempt for allegedly violating the terms of a settlement made last year.

“Something is broken with SEC oversight,” Musk tweeted.

The SEC's latest complaint said a Feb. 19 tweet by Musk about Tesla production was inaccurate.

At first, Musk had said Tesla would make “around” 500,000 vehicles in 2019, but then revised the tweet hours later.

“Meant to say annualized production rate at end of 2019 probably around 500k, ie 10k cars/week,” he said. “Deliveries for year still estimated to be about 400k.”

After reports surfaced that the agency was seeking an injunction against him, Musk said Monday night that he had already mentioned these numbers in an earnings call.

“SEC forgot to read Tesla earnings transcript, which clearly states 350k to 500k,” Musk said. “How embarrassing …”

Shares of Tesla were down nearly 2.5 percent in premarket trading Tuesday. They had fallen by as much as 5 percent on Monday night.

Tesla's share price has given the electric car maker a $51 billion market value, which is almost as high as the $56 billion market value of General Motors, the largest U.S. automaker, and larger than Ford's $34 billion market capitalization.

But Tesla shares have fallen more than 10 percent this year and 15 percent over the last 12 months.

Musk and the SEC have battled a number of times over the last several months. The two parties settled a dispute in October over some tweets Musk had made earlier in 2018 saying he was considering taking Tesla private and that he had already secured the funding. One of the conditions of that deal is that someone is required to oversee and approve anything Musk intends to say to the public about the company.

Investors had hoped that the settlement would allow Tesla to put the whole affair behind it and focus on its ambitious plans for ramping production, building new factories and developing new vehicles.

“With Tesla/Musk settling with the SEC in October this black cloud was in the rear view mirror for the company (and investors) and now this latest tweet (which most investors shrugged off at the time) represents a wild card that could potentially bring this tornado of uncertainty back into the Tesla story until resolved,” Wedbush analyst Dan Ives said in a note sent Tuesday morning. “At this point we are more concerned around this issue being another distraction for Musk & Co. as the company navigates one of its most challenging periods in its history and certainty did not need this news.”

Also concerning is the continued turnover in the company. Most recently, general counsel Dane Butswinkas left the company one day after Musk tweeted his 2019 projections for vehicle production. Butswinkas had only been on the job for two months.

Chief Financial Officer Deepak Ahuja announced his retirement when Tesla reported fourth-quarter earnings in January.

“Certainly, we don't like to see the turnover that we've seen with senior management with Deepak Ahuja leaving and the general counsel,” Oppenheimer analyst Colin Rusch said Tuesday on CNBC's “Squawk Box.” “That is not a great sign for the stability of the organization. We do think that there's enough management depth to keep this thing going, and certainly a big enough window in terms of the competitive environment for them to continue to take share of the market. But the volatility in the staff and the news flow is certainly a concern for us.”

Canada’s cut-price answer to Tesla just officially opened its factory in China

The “SOLO EV” has a 100-mile range and a retail price of $15,500.

Vancouver-based Electra Meccanica has confirmed that larger-scale production of its single-seat budget electric car is underway at a facility in central China.

The “SOLO EV” has a 100-mile range and a retail price of $15,500. The three-wheeler can be charged at a regular household socket in under 6 hours.

Deliveries began in May 2018, with components supplied by Zongshen Industrial Group and assembled in British Columbia, Canada. Now the firm is looking to ramp up production by building in China itself and has officially opened the Zongshen facility in the province of Chongqing.

Electra said in a statement Monday that it expects to produce approximately 50 SOLO EVs in the quarter ended March 31, 2019 before accelerating to a total of 5,000 cars by year-end.

“I am proud of our strategic partners at Zongshen, who have provided us with a state-of-the-art production facility and a highly-skilled production team to make the Electra Meccanica SOLO EV a reality,” said Jerry Kroll, CEO of Electra Meccanica.

The company is also developing the Tofino, a two-seater electric roadster sports car and in November 2018, the company said total vehicle pre-orders exceeded 64,000 units, representing $2.4 billion in potential sales. The majority of these orders were for the as-yet unbuilt Torfino.

The company's first U.S. dealership opened in Los Angeles in 2018 as the firm looks to target California's early adoption of electric cars.

With a market cap of just $126 million, shares in the firm now trade on the NASDAQ. They have been highly volatile over the last 52-weeks, hitting a low of 90 cents and a high of $8.25. As at Tuesday morning, the latest price was $3.89.

WATCH:Elon Musk's big ambitions may be killing Tesla

Tesla's earnings were better than expected, but Elon Musk still has a lot on his plate
8:48 PM ET Wed, 2 May 2018 | 05:31

Elon Musk has until March 11 to respond to SEC contempt motion

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has until March 11 to explain why he should not be held in contempt for violating a settlement agreement with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission. The SEC asked a judge Monday to hold Musk in contempt for violating the settlement agreement reached with the agency last year. Reuters was the… Continue reading Elon Musk has until March 11 to respond to SEC contempt motion

SEC asks U.S. judge to hold Tesla’s Musk in contempt of violating deal

SAN FRANCISCO (Reuters) – The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday said a federal court should hold Tesla Inc Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk in contempt for violating last year’s settlement with the federal regulatory agency due to new statements made on Twitter, sending shares of the electric carmaker down 5 percent in extended… Continue reading SEC asks U.S. judge to hold Tesla’s Musk in contempt of violating deal

Tesla shares fall after SEC asks judge to hold Elon Musk in contempt for violating deal

Robyn Beck | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Elon Musk, co-founder and chief executive officer of Tesla Inc., speaks during an unveiling event for the Boring Co. Hawthorne test tunnel in Hawthorne, California, U.S., on Tuesday, Dec. 18, 2018.

Shares of Tesla fell 5 percent after the SEC has asked a judge to hold Elon Musk in contempt for violating its deal. The SEC cited an “inaccurate” February 19 tweet about production, Bloomberg first reported.

On that date, Elon Musk tweeted — then revised — projections for full-year Tesla manufacturing numbers.

The CEO said that Tesla would make “around” 500,000 vehicles this year, clarifying about four hours later that he “meant to say” the company's annualized production rate at the end of 2019 could be around 500,000 vehicles — or a production rate of 10,000 cars per week. Total deliveries for the year are still estimated at 400,000, Musk said.

“Musk did not seek or receive pre-approval prior to publishing this tweet, which was inaccurate and disseminated to over 24 million people,” the SEC wrote in the court filing.

The Securities and Exchange Commission settled charges with Musk and Tesla over the CEO's aborted bid to take the company private last fall, with the billionaire remaining at the helm of the company but relinquishing his chairman title and getting slapped with a $20 million fine. As part of the settlement, Musk was supposed to get pre-approval for future tweets.

However, the SEC writes, “in response to the SEC's February 20 request for information, Musk and Tesla state that, since Tesla's Policy was implemented in December 2018, Musk's tweets have been reviewed after their publication, but there is no suggestion that Musk has sought or obtained pre-approval of any tweet prior to publishing it.”

The agency concludes, “For all the reasons stated, the SEC respectfully requests that the Court enter an
order to show cause why Defendant Elon Musk should not be held in contempt of the Court's October 16, 2018 Final Judgment.”

The SEC's enforcement action is the next step in a saga which began in early August, when Musk announced via Twitter that he had secured enough funding for a massive private buyout of Tesla. The SEC complaint alleged that in doing so, Musk issued “false and misleading” statements, and failed to properly notify regulators of material company events.

“This matter reaffirms an important principle embodied in our disclosure-based federal securities laws,” SEC chairman Jay Clayton said in a statement in September.

“Specifically, when companies and corporate insiders make statements, they must act responsibly, including endeavoring to ensure the statements are not false or misleading and do not omit information a reasonable investor would consider important in making an investment decision,” Clayton added.

Read the full court filing here:

Elon Musk is ‘almost unethical,’ says outgoing AutoNation CEO

Musk is over-promising on autonomous vehicles, says AutoNation CEO Mike Jackson
10:45 AM ET Fri, 22 Feb 2019 | 00:57

Tesla CEO Elon Musk acts in an “almost unethical” way, the outgoing CEO of the largest U.S. auto dealer chain told CNBC on Friday.

Musk recently said he expects Tesla to have all the features needed for fully self-driving cars by the end of the year. That seems like an almost impossible goal, Cox Automotive executive publisher Karl Brauer said Wednesday on CNBC's “The Exchange.” Other companies working on autonomous driving technology, such as Waymo, are not making such bold predictions.

“I think he is overpromising on autonomous vehicles in an almost unethical way,” AutoNation CEO Mike Jackson said on “Squawk Box,” referring to Musk.

Jackson has long been a Tesla critic and has accused Musk of using “bait-and-switch” tactics on consumers, making commitments he cannot keep, and has said the electric car maker's business will not be sustainable over the long term.

In the interview Friday, Jackson once again criticized Tesla's practice of taking orders on the midsize Tesla Model 3 sedan, saying the cars Tesla has been building are different from the ones the company had said it planned to build. Tesla initially advertised its Model 3 at a price of $35,000 but has so far sold only more expensive versions.

“There's not another retailer in America that could get away with that bait and switch,” Jackson said. Currently the cheapest Model 3 starts at $42,900. Musk has said that despite the originally advertised price, Tesla has had to prioritize the production of more expensive versions to keep margins high. At one point, Tesla had more than 400,000 reservations for the the Model 3.

Tesla has faced political and legal battles in several states over its decision to eschew the traditional dealership model in favor of a direct model that sells to customers.

AutoNation reported earnings of $1.10 on Friday, missing a consensus estimate by 4 cents. The dealership chain also said Jackson will end his long tenure in the top job in March, and Carl Liebert will succeed him on March 11. Liebert was formerly chief operating officer at financial services company USAA. He was also executive vice president of stores at home improvement retailer Home Depot.

AutoNation shares sank 6 percent in early trading Friday. Tesla's stock was up 1.2 percent.

“It was a challenging quarter, no question,” Jackson said. New vehicle sales across the industry were down 10 percent in California, and environments in Texas and Florida were also problems.

“But even beyond those two explanations, I think retail automotive is getting more difficult,” he said, attributing the challenges in part to the cyclical nature of the business.

Jackson said he expects a gradual downturn across the industry. He expects sales in 2019 to be about 16.8 million vehicles, down from 17.2 million in 2018.

Tesla did not immediately respond to CNBC's request for comment about Jackson's remarks.

5 Ways to Choose a Winter-Ready EV Charging Station

Would-be Tesla buyers say deposit refunds take months

Original Article