Dane Butswinkas is stepping down to resume his legal practice, which he had discontinued before joining Tesla
In January, long-term Chief Financial Officer Deepak Ahuja stepped down, joining the dozens of executives who parted ways with the tech firm in the last three years. Like Ahuja, Butswinkas will also serve as a consultant from outside, after leaving the company. Jonathan Chang, VP of legal affairs, will take up the additional role of general counsel effective immediately, succeeding Butswinkas. He will be reporting to Musk.
Related: A mixed bag awaits Tesla this year
While no specific reason can be attributed to the back-to-back departures of key executives, it could be a reflection of the underlying weakness in Tesla’s operations. Even after stepping up capacity, the company is still struggling to meet the production goals for its Model 3 cars. Also, margins have come under pressure after prices were slashed to tackle the growing competition from new players in the electric car market.
Meanwhile, Elon Musk posted a Twitter message about this year’s production target, only to correct it soon to bring more clarity on the numbers. While the original post said Tesla was on track to make 50,000 units, Musk tweaked it later clarifying that the ‘annualized production rate at the end of 2019 would probably be around 500,000.’
Despite starting 2019 on a positive note, Tesla shares lost momentum after the initial rally and dropped about 2% since the beginning of the year. The stock, which witnessed heavy volatility in recent months, slipped modestly Wednesday.