Tesla Motors has recently made public its financial results for the year 2011, and officials were available for questions from the public. During the Q&A session, Elon Musk, Tesla CEO, made quite a few statements, many of them being extremely interesting.

But the one thing that takes the cake is the claim that Tesla will never again need any extra capital, in the near future at least. Elon Musk: “Tesla does not need to ever raise another funding round.” This was the response when asked about the company’s financial situation. He further said that “We may want to do so, but we are in a strong cash position, and we don't need to.”

This is good news as it shows that electric car manufacturers can prosper. Furthermore, Elon Musk said the relations with the Department of Energy are “very good.” This is important to note, because Tesla was the receiver of a 465 million dollar loan from the DoE. Apparently, every deadline and other terms specified in the contract have been respected to the letter by Tesla. Again, this is a very good thing, especially considering the difficulties other beneficiaries of these loans encountered.

Fisker was another automaker interested in electric vehicles, one that also contracted a loan from the DoE totaling 529 million dollars. Unlike Tesla, however, it has not managed to meet the contracted deadlines, with the natural consequence of further payments by DoE being cut off. Negotiations continue between Fisker and the DoE concerning this subject. Let’s hope Tesla’s example is followed more closely in the future.

Back to Tesla and the conference, more information regarding the Model S was released, more or less already public knowledge. For example, the Model S will compete in the premium segment along with the Audi A6, Porsche Panamera, or BMW’s 5 and 7 Series. Some 5000 units are expected to be delivered in the second half of the 2012. Also, Tesla believes it has good reasons the Model S will receive 5 star ratings in all categories in the safety tests. Plus, they hope that the Model S will see 10,000-15,000 dollars in earnings from options.

Referring to the Model X, the fears that this car will cannibalize sales of the Model S have been dealt with. Apparently, reservations of the Model S have gone up after the X was unveiled. Even if the Model X is still far from production, it has already accumulated 40 million dollars in reservations in just a week after its release. Lastly, it would seem the Model X will go on sale in China besides the US. Tesla believes the market there is perfect for this car.

Another noteworthy announcement was that a third model in the price range of 30,000 dollars is in the making. This will be a large volume car, and the decision was taken due to the significant progress registered with the battery technology. Thus, we will have to wait until 2015 for the next Tesla Roadster.

Finally, Tesla has announced that it will provide Mercedes-Benz with a complete powertrain for a future program.