Satellite photos reportedly show parking lots full of Tesla electric vehicles as the troubled auto maker struggles to sell off its stockpile of inventory.
Images and analysis from the SkyFi data company revealed a dramatic increase in the number of battery powered cars stored outside Telsa's factory near Austin, Texas, the Sherwood news website said Tuesday.
The photos, shot in October 2023 and March 2024, showed one small parking lot skyrocketed from 17% to 97% of capacity, while another, larger lot went from zero to 34%, according to Sherwood.
The biggest lot was 100% full, up from 99%, and a medium-size lot was 92% full, down slightly from 98%.
The parking areas in question hold finished Teslas before they're shipped off to dealers, Sherwood said.
A May 2024 image also reportedly showed 465 Tesla vehicles stored in a parking lot at the Chesterfield Mall near St. Louis.
Last month, local TV station Fox 2 reported that Tesla was renting space there before the planned Aug. 31 closure of the shopping center for demolition and redevelopment.
Tesla didn't respond to request for comment, Sherwood said.
The report came two days before CNBC reported that Hertz was offering to sell about 20,000 Tesla models from its fleet of rental cars for "no haggle" prices of about $25,000 each.
Although EV sales in the U.S. increased by more than 400% from 2020 to 2023, the pace has slowed and automakers are now more focused on selling hybrid models, CNBC said.
In March, the automotive research company iSeeCars said prices for used EVs fell 31.8%, from an average of $43,694 to $30,904, over the past year.
ISeeCars executive analyst said the dramatic decline was "largely driven" by billionaire Tesla CEO Elon Musk's "aggressive price cuts on new Teslas."
In April, Tesla said its first-quarter revenues fell by 9%, the steepest drop since 2012, with Musk blaming "several unforeseen challenges," including what he called pressure on the global "EV adoption rate" and other manufacturers "pulling back on EVs and pursuing plug-in hybrids instead."
"We believe this is not the right strategy and electric vehicles will ultimately dominate the market," he said during an earnings call with investors, according to a transcript posted online by the Motley Fool website.
Last week, Musk was accused in a shareholder lawsuit of reaping about $3 billion in illegal profits through insider trading of the company's stock late last year.
