Abu Dhabi National Energy (TAQA), a state-owned oil explorer and power supplier, has sold its 7 percent stake in Tesla Motors Inc, cashing out from the US electric carmaker's steady stock rally. TAQA, which is 75-percent owned by the government of Abu Dhabi, said it made a profit of $113 million on the sale, which was effected through the stock market and at Tesla's last closing price would have fetched $250 million.
Tesla, founded in 2003 by a group of Silicon Valley engineers, is best known for the Tesla Roadster, a car launched in 2008 and now sold in 32 countries.
Carmakers Daimler and Toyota also own stakes in the company, which expects to turn profitable in 2013 and sees revenues this year nearly tripling, spurred by deliveries of its premium electric sedan, the Model S, set to begin in July.
Tesla shares have risen 21 percent year-to-date and have doubled from its 2010 listing price of $17 on bullish investor sentiment towards the electric car industry at a time of rising oil prices.