Elon Musk has lengthy relished trolling those that’ve doubted him and Tesla.
In 2018, he vowed to ship “brief shorts” to hedge fund supervisor David Einhorn, who’d been betting towards Tesla’s inventory. A couple years later, the corporate truly listed satin trunks as a gag present on the market on its web site.
Musk heard “varied types of ‘you’re a fraud,’” he informed the gang at Tesla’s Model Y unveiling in 2019. His defiant retort: “You may drive that fraud!”
The Tesla chief government officer’s newest reveling had to do with the Semi, the heavy-duty truck that took 5 years to go from prototype to manufacturing. “Some individuals have stated this was not possible,” Musk stated throughout a Semi manufacturing occasion in Nevada final month. “However, uh, you possibly can drive it.”
The causes for this proverbial victory lap have been clear. Weeks earlier, Tesla handed off its first Semis to PepsiCo, which took supply of 15 of the large rigs for its large Frito-Lay facility in Modesto, California. The aim of the late January occasion in Nevada was to announce a $3.6 billion funding to develop the usage of Tesla’s present manufacturing facility close to Reno to construct extra battery cells, in addition to Semi trucks.
Whereas these have been causes for celebration — one thing Musk can afford to do once more, the way in which Tesla shares have soared this yr — there’s nonetheless a number of uncertainty as to only how significant the Semi will likely be to Tesla’s enterprise. I had a number of questions for the corporate once I drove out to Modesto to see the vans in particular person final month. Whereas I used to be capable of climb into the Semi’s spacious cab and its centered driver’s seat, check drives have been off limits.
Tesla staffers on web site did not remark. PepsiCo representatives confirmed they’d taken supply of all 15 vans ordered as a part of a $30.8 million mission I wrote about in November — the one for which California’s Air Assets Board picked up half the verify — however had little else to share concerning the product.
It stays unclear how a lot the Semi prices, or whether or not every other prospects who ordered vans from Tesla a half decade in the past have managed to get their fingers on them. Tesla didn’t point out the mannequin in its quarterly manufacturing and deliveries launch final month, then referred to the Semi being in pilot manufacturing in its earnings deck. Whereas Musk provided an replace through the earnings name on when he expects Tesla to be making Cybertrucks in quantity — not till subsequent yr — he didn’t have something to say concerning the Semi.
Sightings of Semis on the facet of the highway in Sacramento and getting towed from a Nevada freeway have lit up the message boards and social media networks the place pro- and anti-Tesla flame wars have been fought for years.
Even earlier than these incidents, there have been nonetheless vestiges of doubt concerning the Semi that Musk had but to conquer. Analysts at RBC Capital Markets who’ve the equal of a purchase score on Tesla inventory cautioned in December that the CEO could also be getting forward of himself in aiming to make 50,000 vans in 2024. RBC was modeling for extra like 4,000.
This a lot is for sure: there’s an pressing want for Tesla and different producers to impress huge vans. The town of Modesto has lengthy struggled with poor air high quality and excessive bronchial asthma charges. PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay facility spans 500,000 sq. ft, and the meals big’s ambition is for it to be a showcase in sustainable manufacturing, warehousing and distribution.
We should always hear extra about how Tesla plans to assist corporations like PepsiCo and cities past Modesto decarbonize on March 1. Musk has stated the grasp plan he’ll ship will chart “the trail to a completely sustainable vitality future for Earth.”
