Hani Joudi 
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Electric-vehicle pioneer Tesla no longer has the road to itself.
German automakers Daimler, BMW and Volkswagen Group are closing in and may pass their U.S. rival by 2021, based on a consultancy’s ranking of electric automakers that factors strategy, battery technology, culture, supplier networks, partnerships and financial performance into an overall score.
Tesla will remain No. 1 in 2019, according to the forecast by PA Consulting Group. But by 2021, when traditional rivals flood the road with a variety of models, Elon Musk’s company will fall to seventh place.
By then, Daimler will be in the lead, followed by BMW, the Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance and VW Group.
Production issues with the Model 3 and an uncertain profit outlook were factors in the lower ranking for Tesla, PA Consulting said.
“Achieving CO2 targets and improving e-mobility performance go hand in hand,” Thomas Gottle, head of PA Consulting’s automotive business, said in a statement. “For the manufacturers, however, this also involves great need for action in terms of organization and personnel.”
