Tesla recently laid off key employees from its electric vehicle charging division. Just a few days after the incident, Elon Musk announced that the company would spend over $500 million this year to expand its fast-charging network.
The electric car manufacturer, Tesla, is set to invest over $500 million to expand its Supercharger fast-charging network. According to a report by Reuters, this significant announcement was made by the company’s CEO, Elon Musk.
In a post on his personal Twitter account, Musk stated, “To reiterate: Tesla will spend over $500M to build new charging units & expand Supercharger network this year.” He clarified that this investment would be solely for establishing new stations and expanding existing ones, rather than covering higher operational costs.
What’s particularly intriguing is the timing of this announcement.
Received Substantial Funding from the Government Tesla recently laid off key employees from its electric vehicle charging division. The plans to expand the charging network followed this move closely. Musk commented after the layoffs, stating that Tesla planned to expand its Supercharger network, albeit at a slower pace.
Moreover, experts speculate that Tesla’s plans to expand its fast-charging stations may have been disrupted by these layoffs, potentially delaying President Joe Biden’s efforts to electrify US highways.
Under the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Program, the Biden administration allocated $5 billion to states over five years to build 500,000 electric vehicle charging stations. Tesla is noted as one of the companies benefiting the most from these federal funds so far.
