EV owners freaked out over the news
of ConsumerAffairs
Tesla CEO Elon Musk has laid off most of the teamresponsible for building and maintaining electric vehicle (EV) charging stations, taking the industry and current EV owners by surprise.
According to the Wall Street Journal, work has stopped on construction of nearly a dozen Supercharger stations across Texas. The newspaper also reports some New York property owners who were negotiating with Tesla about putting chargers in at the properties have been told the deal is off.
Musk has been busy trimming his work force over the last few weeks but terminating the people whose job is to dot the landscape with chargers has been a bit of a surprise. But mixed with surprise is concern. The move comes at a time when EV sales have declined and consumer surveys have failed to detect much EV enthusiasm.
Its also bad news for other EV manufacturers who have adopted Teslas charging infrastructrure. Many EV owners and enthusiasts have taken to X to vent their frustration.
'Disaster'
This is a ********* disaster, wrote the Cybertruck Guy. Superchargers need to be Tesla's second top growing sector outside of FSD. Long-range travel that's EASY to any location is fundamental to the adoption of EVs in North America. I can't easily visit my in-laws in Kansas without very specific planning.
As for Musk, who owns X, the Tesla CEO sought to calm fears, posting Tesla still plans to grow the Supercharger network, just at a slower pace for new locations and more focus on 100% uptime and expansion of existing locations.
Tesla has encountered a bumpy financial road so far in 2024. When it reported its first-quarter earnings last month, profits were down 48% along with the companys stock prices. At the same time, Tesla announced a new, lower-priced model that will roll out in 2025.
Photo Credit: Consumer Affairs News Department Images
Posted: 2024-05-01 19:57:51
