Hey, everybody Rob Maower here and today we have quite a bit to go through. We've got news from sort of all over the world for Tesla today so we'll get right into it and we'll start off in Germany where we actually have a few stories to go through the first of which was first reported by the European and has since been covered by a multitude of other publications,

which have reported that Tesla has found its latest acquisition.

That acquisition is for a German branch of the Canadian Automation Company, ATS, automation tooling systems, specifically for the branch known

as ATW, which ATS on their website describes by saying A.T.W. quote, has extensive experience

overcoming the challenges, that battery module and

pack assembly and test for electric mobility can present.

Having partnered with nearly every major automobile manufacturer internationally, ATW has completed more than 20 battery production lines.

With this portfolio of projects, ATW customers have come to expect short lead times and

project flexibility that is crucial to remain competitive in the dynamic electric mobility industry.

A.T.W. is a trusted name in automation to the world's leading OEMs and 2-1 suppliers responsible

for building the critical components that bring vehicles to life."

So it's not exactly clear if Tesla has done much work with ATW in the past, but ATW does count BMW and

Daimler among their current clients.

I would expect this situation to be relatively similar to the acquisition of Gromin by Tesla a few years

back, where they served as a partner and a supplier to other OEMs, but once Tesla acquired them, obviously those relationships

ended with Tesla redirecting their efforts internally.

From the reports from the European, it does sound like their orders had dried up in the midst

of the coronavirus situation. They report, quote,

the company was considered highly profitable. A decline in orders, which is reportedly

also due to Corona, forced short-time work and ultimately maneuvered the company into the abyss until the deal

with Tesla saved from bankruptcy.

The Californians, on the other hand, need well-trained engineers and skilled workers in Germany.

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