• Home
  • Latest
  • Fortune 500
  • Finance
  • Tech
  • Leadership
  • Lifestyle
  • Rankings
  • Multimedia
Tech

Elon Musk Tries to Sell the Tesla, SolarCity Deal

By
Katie Fehrenbacher
Katie Fehrenbacher
Down Arrow Button Icon
By
Katie Fehrenbacher
Katie Fehrenbacher
Down Arrow Button Icon
November 1, 2016, 7:27 PM ET
Tesla CEO Elon Musk
Tesla CEO Elon MuskPhotograph by Bloomberg via Getty Images

In a blog post and a lengthy phone call with analysts on Tuesday afternoon, representatives from SolarCity and Tesla, including the electric car company’s billionaire entrepreneur leader Elon Musk, laid out the financial argument for why the automaker should buy the energy firm.

The companies offered the details just over two weeks before the Nov. 17 vote by company shareholders on the acquisition.

This summer, Musk shocked industry-watchers by announcing that Tesla planned to buy SolarCity, a solar company run by his cousins of which he’s also the largest shareholder, for billions of dollars. A couple months later, the companies agreed to a price of $2.6 billion.

However, analysts concerned about SolarCity’s (SCTY) debt and spending dubbed the deal a bailout for the solar firm. Both companies are taking big risks, and Tesla’s own massive spending and ambitions could be compromised by SolarCity’s.

For more on the pros and cons of the Tesla deal watch our video.

In the filing posted Tuesday, Tesla (TSLA) said that it expects SolarCity to add more than a half billion dollars in cash to Tesla’s balance sheet over the next three years. Even in the fourth quarter of 2016, Tesla said it expects SolarCity to “add to Tesla’s cash position.”

Tesla also said that it expects SolarCity to contribute over $1 billion in revenue in 2017 and to immediately account for 40% of the assets of the combined company “on a historical cost basis.” Previously Musk has said there could be $150 million in savings from combing the two firms.

Musk, and his cousins Lyndon and Peter Rive, used the time on the Q&A to reposition SolarCity’s business.

Get Data Sheet, Fortune’s technology newsletter.

SolarCity has built a business off of raising project financing and offering home owners deals to finance solar panels over the course of 20 or so years. The idea is that a customer doesn’t have to put much money upfront, but pays SolarCity the cost of solar energy from the solar panels every month. Using this model, SolarCity has built up a customer base of about 300,000 solar roofs.

However in recent years SolarCity decided to transition into making its own solar cells, and also into offering different kinds of solar financing deals. Musk said on the call that “competing on price alone is not a good business.”

Tesla said in the new financial information that almost a third of SolarCity’s home solar deals in September were purchases (instead of leases or power purchase agreements). That means that SolarCity can recognize the revenue from selling an entire system more quickly, instead of across a 20-year leasing or power purchase agreement deal.

The companies also pointed out that more than half of SolarCity’s debt is project financing, which the companies say is readily offset by the cash flows from customers paying for solar energy.

Wall Street seemed unimpressed with the presentation. SolarCity’s stock dropped 2.47% in after hours trading. Tesla’s dropped 1.12% in after hours trading.

About the Author
By Katie Fehrenbacher
See full bioRight Arrow Button Icon

Latest in Tech

robots
InnovationRobots
‘The question is really just how long it will take’: Over 2,000 gather at Humanoids Summit to meet the robots who may take their jobs someday
By Matt O'Brien and The Associated PressDecember 12, 2025
2 hours ago
Man about to go into police vehicle
CryptoCryptocurrency
Judge tells notorious crypto scammer ‘you have been bitten by the crypto bug’ in handing down 15 year sentence 
By Carlos GarciaDecember 12, 2025
3 hours ago
three men in suits, one gesturing
AIBrainstorm AI
The fastest athletes in the world can botch a baton pass if trust isn’t there—and the same is true of AI, Blackbaud exec says
By Amanda GerutDecember 12, 2025
3 hours ago
Brainstorm AI panel
AIBrainstorm AI
Creative workers won’t be replaced by AI—but their roles will change to become ‘directors’ managing AI agents, executives say
By Beatrice NolanDecember 12, 2025
4 hours ago
Fei-Fei Li, the "Godmother of AI," says she values AI skills more than college degrees when hiring software engineers for her tech startup.
AITech
‘Godmother of AI’ says degrees are less important in hiring than ‘how quickly can you superpower yourself’ with new tools
By Nino PaoliDecember 12, 2025
6 hours ago
C-SuiteFortune 500 Power Moves
Fortune 500 Power Moves: Which executives gained and lost power this week
By Fortune EditorsDecember 12, 2025
6 hours ago

Most Popular

placeholder alt text
Economy
Tariffs are taxes and they were used to finance the federal government until the 1913 income tax. A top economist breaks it down
By Kent JonesDecember 12, 2025
12 hours ago
placeholder alt text
Success
At 18, doctors gave him three hours to live. He played video games from his hospital bed—and now, he’s built a $10 million-a-year video game studio
By Preston ForeDecember 10, 2025
3 days ago
placeholder alt text
Success
Palantir cofounder calls elite college undergrads a ‘loser generation’ as data reveals rise in students seeking support for disabilities, like ADHD
By Preston ForeDecember 11, 2025
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Arts & Entertainment
'We're not just going to want to be fed AI slop for 16 hours a day': Analyst sees Disney/OpenAI deal as a dividing line in entertainment history
By Nick LichtenbergDecember 11, 2025
1 day ago
placeholder alt text
Uncategorized
Transforming customer support through intelligent AI operations
By Lauren ChomiukNovember 26, 2025
16 days ago
placeholder alt text
Economy
‘We have not seen this rosy picture’: ADP’s chief economist warns the real economy is pretty different from Wall Street’s bullish outlook
By Eleanor PringleDecember 11, 2025
1 day ago
Rankings
  • 100 Best Companies
  • Fortune 500
  • Global 500
  • Fortune 500 Europe
  • Most Powerful Women
  • Future 50
  • World’s Most Admired Companies
  • See All Rankings
Sections
  • Finance
  • Leadership
  • Success
  • Tech
  • Asia
  • Europe
  • Environment
  • Fortune Crypto
  • Health
  • Retail
  • Lifestyle
  • Politics
  • Newsletters
  • Magazine
  • Features
  • Commentary
  • Mpw
  • CEO Initiative
  • Conferences
  • Personal Finance
  • Education
Customer Support
  • Frequently Asked Questions
  • Customer Service Portal
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms Of Use
  • Single Issues For Purchase
  • International Print
Commercial Services
  • Advertising
  • Fortune Brand Studio
  • Fortune Analytics
  • Fortune Conferences
  • Business Development
About Us
  • About Us
  • Editorial Calendar
  • Press Center
  • Work At Fortune
  • Diversity And Inclusion
  • Terms And Conditions
  • Site Map

© 2025 Fortune Media IP Limited. All Rights Reserved. Use of this site constitutes acceptance of our Terms of Use and Privacy Policy | CA Notice at Collection and Privacy Notice | Do Not Sell/Share My Personal Information
FORTUNE is a trademark of Fortune Media IP Limited, registered in the U.S. and other countries. FORTUNE may receive compensation for some links to products and services on this website. Offers may be subject to change without notice.