By Samuel Indyk
Investing.com – A visit to the UK by Tesla CEO Elon Musk has sparked speculation that Tesla could start building its electric vehicles or producing batteries in the country. Musk reportedly arrived in the UK on his private jet on Friday before jetting off to Germany on Sunday.
The Telegraph reported that the government’s new Office for Investment has called on regional agencies to urgently submit potential locations for a new factory, which would be a welcome win for the government and auto industry in the post-Brexit world.
“We only had 48 hours to put it together,” an insider told the Telegraph. “We usually get much more time and engagement with the potential investor.”
That the potential investor was unnamed, and the timing coincides with Musk’s UK visit, some have put two and two together to reach five.
However, it has not been confirmed that Musk’s visit was directly linked to the government’s search for a site.
Brexit uncertainty
It is also not the first time that Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) has been linked with building a plant in the UK. However, back in 2019, Elon Musk told Auto Bild that he had chosen Berlin as the European site for Tesla’s Gigafactory, citing the UK's exit from the European Union.
"Brexit [uncertainty] made it too risky to put a Gigafactory in the UK,” Musk said at the time.
Some analysts have suggested that Musk’s trip to the UK amid reports that a plant could be built in the country is a method of applying pressure on Germany to help finish the Berlin Gigafactory. Regulation is still holding up completion of the plant and the start of production is set to be delayed.
Tesla had originally planned to begin production from its Berlin factory in July this year, but recent claims have suggested this could be pushed back until January 2022.
Musk has been noticeably irritated by the delays, saying that if there was less bureaucracy, it would be better. The billionaire also recently took to Twitter to push suppliers.
“Giga Berlin suppliers please accelerate!” Musk tweeted on the 18th May.
Whether Musk is seriously considering building a plant in the UK is still up in the air but if there’s a chance the UK government can incentivise Tesla to bring its manufacturing to the UK, then its something they will likely try and grab with both hands.