EDINBURGH investment house Baillie Gifford has declared it remains a “strong supporter” of electric vehicle and battery storage systems pioneer Tesla, following an “enforced” reduction of its holding in the Californian company.

Baillie Gifford said in a statement: “Baillie Gifford’s shareholding in Tesla has dropped below five per cent at the end of August, therefore it is required to disclose this information to the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). It submitted this filing earlier today.”

Explaining the development, Baillie Gifford partner James Anderson said: “The substantial increase in Tesla’s share price means that we needed to reduce our holding in order to reflect concentration guidelines which restrict the weight of a single stock in clients’ portfolios. However, we intend to remain significant shareholders for many years ahead. We remain very optimistic about the future of the company. Tesla no longer faces any difficulty in raising capital at scale from outside sources but should there be serious setbacks in the share price we would welcome the opportunity to once again increase our shareholding.

“We are privileged to have been Tesla’s largest external shareholder over a critical period for the development of the company. We are immensely grateful for the extraordinary efforts and achievements of Tesla in driving forward a transportation and energy revolution in the face of persistent scepticism and often downright hostility. Without Tesla’s efforts the possibility of averting climate disaster would have been significantly reduced.”