Tesla said Monday it was increasing spending by about $1 billion to ramp up its factories, develop new batteries and finance other projects.
In a securities filing, Tesla said it expected capital expenditures to be $6 billion-$8 billion in 2022, up from an April forecast of $5 billion-$7 billion.
The spending increase was one of several new disclosures in Tesla’s quarterly report filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The automaker also said it was under increased scrutiny from the commission and it lost $170 million on its investment in bitcoin.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has recently complained of startup problems at new factories near Berlin and Austin, Texas, describing them as “money furnaces” that were draining resources without producing enough cars.
Amid what Musk described as “supply-chain hell,” Tesla’s profit and deliveries declined in the second quarter compared with the first three months of the year, an unusual setback for a company that dominates the fast-growing electric car market. The increase in capital spending suggests getting the new factories going in Germany and Texas was more expensive than expected.
In the quarterly report, Tesla also disclosed it had received a subpoena from the SEC seeking information about the company’s compliance with a 2018 agreement to settle accusations of securities fraud.
The subpoena is a twist in a long-running dispute between Musk and the SEC. In 2018, he was accused of misleading investors by saying, on Twitter, that he had financing in place to buy the company back from shareholders. The transaction never took place.
To settle the accusations of securities fraud, Musk agreed to run certain social media posts by a company lawyer. In April, a federal judge in New York rejected an attempt by Musk to get out of the agreement.
The filing also revealed Musk’s fascination with cryptocurrencies cost Tesla money. In addition to its $170 million loss, the automaker said it earned $64 million by selling some bitcoin, whose value has fluctuated wildly. Tesla said last week it had lost money after selling most of its holdings of bitcoin.
Musk said last week he still believed in cryptocurrencies, and the decision to sell some “should not be taken as some verdict on bitcoin.” Tesla wanted the cash, he said.
The filing was made public around the same time Musk was defending his conduct on Twitter. The Wall Street Journal reported the chief executive had an affair with the wife of Google co-founder Sergey Brin, which ruined the two men’s friendship. Musk said the story was wrong, adding that he works so much that “there just isn’t much time for shenanigans.”
