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Musk says cell supply shortage makes it difficult to scale up Tesla Semi production

Tesla Inc Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk said in a tweet on Tuesday the near-term cell supply shortage makes it difficult to scale the production of Tesla Semi commercial truck.

FILE PHOTO: Tesla CEO Musk shows off the Tesla Semi during an presentation in Hawthorne
FILE PHOTO: Tesla CEO Elon Musk shows off the Tesla Semi as he unveils the company's new electric semi truck during an presentation in Hawthorne, California, U.S., November 16, 2017. REUTERS/Alexandria Sage /File Photo
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REUTERS -Tesla Inc Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk tweeted on Tuesday that a cell supply shortage is making it difficult to scale up production of its long-delayed Tesla Semi commercial truck.

"Demand is no problem, but near-term cell supply makes it hard to scale Semi. This limitation will be less onerous next year," the billionaire entrepreneur said https://twitter.com/elonmusk/status/1376843024303583236.

Musk's statement was in response to a tweet which referred to a news report about the electric carmaker receiving an order for ten Semi trucks from MHX Leasing LLC.

Major automakers such as Ford Motor, Honda Motor, General Motors and Volkswagen were caught off guard by the chip shortage, forcing many to hold back production even as car demand picked up during the COVID-19 pandemic.

The shortage has cost the global auto industry 130,000 vehicles in lost production, research firm AutoForecast Solutions estimates.

Musk even said last month that the Tesla Fremont, California plant was shut down for two days due to "parts shortages".

(Reporting by Akanksha Rana in Bengaluru; Editing by Maju Samuel)

Source: Reuters