Tesla Wins Tariff Exclusion On Aluminum Import, May Help Company Bottom Line

Tesla has recently won their tariff exclusion case for their aluminum imports. This victory will help the company cut down on their production costs, and right now, Tesla needs all the help it can get to keep its bottom line healthy.

The U.S Commerce Department agreed to lift the 10 percent tariff on Tesla’s aluminum import, according to Reuters. The aluminum Tesla orders from Japan is used to make their electric cars’ battery cells. The aluminum will come from Nippon Light Metal Co. Ltd, and the tariff exemption is for 10,000 tons of the metal per year. This tariff lift will last for a year.

The Reuters report revealed that Tesla didn’t comment when asked for a statement. Even though this exemption was a victory, two requests for tariff exemptions for its Chinese-made parts, such as the Model 3 car computer and Autopilot “brain,” were rejected.

The tariff exemption will help Tesla save a lot of money as they sell more of their vehicles. So far, reports confirmed that demand for Tesla's vehicles isn’t the problem but its delivery. While the tariff exemption doesn’t automatically speed up Tesla’s production, it’ll definitely provide some budget to slowly improve their production.

On the financial side, Tesla isn’t looking so great. CEO Elon Musk confirmed that the company may become bankrupt if it doesn’t recover and maintain a healthy bottom line in 10 years' time. While the demand is high, Tesla can’t keep up with the orders, which prevent them from fully cashing in on their vehicles. Even its fans are already helping the company out by support it during Tesla's time of need.

Aside from the company’s vehicle lineup right now, Tesla is preparing to release the Model Y crossover SUV in late 2019. The SUV is set to be marketed as an affordable Tesla vehicle, which could help the company reach a wider audience.

Potentially, the tariff lift can help cut down on the costs of making this affordable SUV and help Tesla steer itself back to continuous profitability.