Tesla plans on entering the UK market as an electricity supplier

According to The Telegraph’s report on Saturday, Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ: TSLA) wishes to enter the UK market as an electricity supplier. The company has already applied to the energy regulator for a license.

The move, as per an anonymous company source, is targeted at introducing Tesla’s Autobidder platform in the United Kingdom. The application to the regulator, however, did not specify the reason why the company is seeking a license to sell electricity in the UK.  

Tesla’s Autobidder lowered energy prices in South Australia

Autobidder is a real-time trading platform that is currently operating successfully in South Australia at the company’s Hornsdale Power Reserve (HPR). Power producers use this platform to monetize their battery assets.

Industry sources further added that Tesla has established a world-renowned battery business in the past few years. The U.S electric car manufacturer now plans on introducing its technology in the UK market.

Tesla refrained from divulging any more information regarding the recent news at this stage.

In South Australia, Tesla manufactured the largest ever Li-ion battery in 2017 aimed at avoiding the rising power blackouts in the region. The company also claims that the added competition helped lower energy prices in South Australia.

Tesla also plans on aggregating roughly 50K rooftop solar systems in South Australia to build a virtual power plant.

In separate news, CEO Elon Musk of Tesla Inc. took the stock market by surprise on Friday as he commented on Twitter that the company’s shares are priced too high. The controversial comment wasn’t well-received as share prices dropped more than 10% later in the day.

Analyst Colin Rusch’s comments on Musk’s statement

Analyst Colin Rusch of Oppenheimer responded to Musk’s comments in a statement on Friday:

“We continue to believe Musk’s leadership is central to investor confidence in TSLA shares and expect this issue to be a modest overhang on the stock until any potential SEC risk is clarified.”

Rusch has a price target of £775 per share on Tesla’s stock.

Tesla closed around 18% down on Friday as compared to its weekly high. At £566 per share, the company is still trading roughly 65% up year to date in the stock market. In March, it dropped to £289 per share that was over 15% lower than its opening level in January 2020.

Tesla performed fairly upbeat in 2019 with an annual gain of a little under 30%. The company is currently valued at £103.28 billion.