Tesla gets huge government funding

Let's face it. A $465 million for a few years of work is a heckuva payday.
In yesterday's announcement, the U.S. Department of Energy specifically gave Tesla a $465 million loan to finance a manufacturing facility for the Tesla Model S sedan, expected to be roughly $50,000 cheaper than the Roadster.


The all-electric sedan consumes no gasoline and runs entirely on electricity from any conventional 120V or 220V outlet, getting the equivalent of more than 250 miles per gallon, far exceeding the 32.7 mpg minimum efficiency required for large sedans.
Production of the Model S will begin in 2011 and ramp up to 20,000 vehicles per year by the end of 2013. This integrated facility expects to create 1,000 jobs in Southern California.
Tesla will also build a facility to manufacture battery packs and electric drive trains to be used in Teslas and in other automakers' vehicles, including Daimler's Smart For Two.
The new facility expects to employ 650 people in the Bay Area with early pilot battery pack production to begin in 2011, reaching about 10,000 by 2012 and 30,000 packs in 2013.
This announcement assures that large numbers of electric vehicles will be available to U.S. customers starting late next year and that tens of thousands of jobs will be created.
So congratulations Mr. Musk (and by proxy, Mr. Eberhard) for your success.
Now build it. And we will come.