Musk says he may form holding company for Tesla, SpaceX
 | Musk on possibly forming a holding company: "Gets unwieldy to have lots of companies with me as the only connection." |
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LOS ANGELES (Bloomberg) -- Elon Musk, co-founder of Tesla Motors Inc. and founder of Space Exploration Technologies Corp., said he’s interested in creating a holding company for shares of his electric car and rocket launch businesses.
“Am starting to consider whether it would make sense to create a parent corporation that would own the stock,” Musk said today in a Web chat on jalopnik.com. “Not sure if that is feasible or sensible, but am thinking about it.”
Musk, 41, who is California-based Tesla’s CEO and biggest investor, has said an initial public offering of his aerospace company, known as SpaceX, may happen next year.
SpaceX, also based in California, in May became the first private company to send a spacecraft to supply the International Space Station, and this month won a $440 million U.S. government contract to develop spacecraft for future cargo missions. Musk has said Tesla, which sold shares to the public for the first time in 2010, may be profitable as early as 2013 from sales of battery-powered Model S sedans.
There’s not yet any formal plan to create a parent entity for the two companies, Musk said in an e-mail today.
“No actual plans under way,” he said. “Gets unwieldy to have lots of companies with me as the only connection.”
'Supercar' plans
Musk also said on the Web chat that Tesla is studying the addition of an electric “supercar.” That category of vehicles currently includes racing-style models from brands such as Ferrari SpA and Volkswagen AG’s Lamborghini that can cost more than $200,000.
“We will do an electric supercar at some point,” Musk said. Initially, Tesla considered adding such a vehicle to its lineup after the introduction in 2013 of the battery-powered Model X sport-utility vehicle, he said.
“It was going to happen right after the Model X, but it is more important to the world that we do a more affordable electric car,” Musk said. “Hopefully, we will get to an electric supercar in four to five years.”
The Model S, which began production in June at Tesla’s plant in Fremont, Calif., has a starting price of $57,400 and can cost more than $100,000, depending on battery pack size and other options. The vehicle qualifies for a $7,500 federal tax credit.
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