The board's huge package for Tesla CEO, major owner and founder Elon Musk is highly controversial.
Chairman of the board Robyn Denholm has warned owners who intend to vote no that Elon Musk may eventually leave the company if he is not properly rewarded.
And "without Elon, Tesla could lose significant value when our company will no longer be valued for what we aim to become," she wrote in a letter to shareholders ahead of the annual general meeting.
Vote no
In the other camp are large shareholders such as the Norwegian Oil Fund, which holds one percent of the votes in the company and thinks the size of the bonus raises questions. They also voted no to a similar package the other year. The advisory firm ISS, which helps institutional owners make decisions at general meetings, also intends to press the no button.
The payment to Musk will be made in Tesla shares, which if the bonus is fully paid will increase his ownership in the electric car giant from 13 to 25 percent.
Difficult to reach
Now it should be said that the conditions of the bonus will not be easy to achieve, quite the opposite. For full payment, profits must rise significantly, and not least, the market capitalization of the entire Tesla must reach $8.5 trillion, from today's approximately $1.5 trillion.
But the bonus is designed as a step-by-step model, where payment is made depending on how well Tesla succeeds.
After Elon Musk as the largest owner, the investment companies Vanguard and Blackrock come with 6–7 percent of the shares each.
Good for 4.4 trillion
54-year-old Elon Musk already tops the Bloomberg Billionaires Index with an estimated net worth of $477 billion (approximately SEK 4.4 trillion) – well ahead of number two: Oracle founder Larry Ellison at $319 billion.
It's not just his incredible wealth that's making headlines. His connections with far-right European politicians and his collaboration with US President Donald Trump have created two camps.
