(By Balaseshan) Tesla Motors Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) said it will begin operations this month at its new European Distribution Center in Tilburg, Netherlands as a key step towards beginning worldwide distribution of Model S.
This new facility will serve as Tesla's European service and parts headquarters, as well as the final assembly and distribution point for Model S vehicles sold in Europe. General production of European left-hand drive Model S is planned to begin in March 2013.
Tesla's new 18,900 square meter facility is centrally located to enable efficient, timely and cost effective operations throughout Europe. Starting this month, the new distribution center will begin stocking parts for both the Tesla Roadster and Model S.
In addition to parts warehousing, Tesla plans to utilize this facility for vehicle importing operations, final vehicle assembly and distribution, service headquarters, technical training operations, parts remanufacturing, collision repair and more.
The new Tesla European Distribution Center will lead to the creation of about 50 jobs in the next few years. Tesla's goal is to accelerate the world's transition to electric mobility with a full range of increasingly affordable electric cars.
Tesla's decision to locate the new European Distribution Center in Tilburg is the result of almost two years of on-going cooperation between Tesla, BOM Foreign Investments, NFIA (Netherlands Foreign Investment Agency), CBRE Group Inc. and the City of Tilburg.
With a rigid body structure, nearly 50/50 weight distribution and a remarkably low center of gravity, Model S offers the responsiveness and agility expected from the world's best sports cars while providing the ride quality of a luxury performance sedan.
Model S, the world's first premium sedan to be engineered from the ground up as an electric vehicle, began deliveries to U.S. customers in June of this year. Tesla has already received more than 13,000 reservations worldwide for Model S.
TSLA is trading up 0.65% at $35.51 on Wednesday. The stock has been trading between $22.64 and $39.95 for the past 52 weeks.