Tesla hails its second profitable year as a ‘breakthrough’

Tesla’s fourth quarter brought in a record windfall, as the company announced Wednesday that it turned a $2.3 billion profit. The automaker produced 305,840 vehicles in the fourth quarter, a 70 percent increase over the previous year. It also recorded its second annual profitable year but still faces supply chain issues with factories that have been “running below capacity for several quarters,” the carmaker said.

The company delivered 936,172 vehicles in 2021, just shy of the promised 1 million vehicles but still an increase of 87 percent over the previous year.

“2021 was a breakthrough year for Tesla,” the company declared. “There should no longer be doubt about the viability and profitability of electric vehicles.”

In its earnings release, the carmaker cautioned that the pace of production at its new Texas and Germany factories may be limited by supply chain problems and “regional permitting.” Still, Tesla says it is “making progress on the industrialization of Cybertruck.”

Developing