Musk (Finally) Invited to White House To Talk About EVs
Tesla CEO Elon Musk finally got the one thing he wanted — a meeting at the White House. The Biden Administration held meetings with several executives, including Musk and General Motors CEO Mary Barra to discuss electric vehicles (EVs) and charging stations on April 6.
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“There was broad consensus that charging stations and vehicles need to be interoperable and provide a seamless user experience, no matter what car you drive or where you charge your EV,” The Biden administration said in a statement, according to Reuters.
Last August, President Joe Biden signed an executive order, setting a new target of electric vehicles representing half of new vehicles sold in 2030, according to the White House.
“The future of the auto industry is electric — and made in America. Today, I’m signing an executive order with a goal to make 50% of new vehicles sold by 2030 zero-emission — and unveiling steps to reverse the previous administration’s short-sighted rollback of vehicle standards,” Biden tweeted at the time.
A slew of carmakers responded to the announcement, including Ford, GM and Stellantis, as GOBankingRates previously reported.
“Yeah, seems odd that Tesla wasn’t invited,” Musk tweeted at the time.
Other attendees at the April 6 meeting included Ford Motor Chief Executive Jim Farley, Chrysler-parent Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares, Lucid CEO Peter Rawlinson and Nissan Americas chair, Jeremie Papin, CNBC reports.
The Bipartisan Infrastructure Bill, signed into law last year includes $7.5 billion to build out a nationwide network of 500,000 electric vehicle chargers.
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Of these funds, $4.75 billion will be distributed by formula to states, and an additional $2.5 billion will be distributed through a competitive grant program that will support innovative approaches and ensure that charger deployment meets Administration priorities such as supporting rural charging, improving local quality and increasing EV charging access in disadvantaged communities, the Transportation Department said in a press release in February.
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