Tesla’s stock value is now worth more than Ford’s. Yesterday, Tesla was worth $45.47bn, while Ford was worth $45.35bn, according to Google Finance. It may seem like a marginal difference. But the fact that Tesla is doing so well is quite telling. It means that a company with a focus on renewable energy can outcompete one that relies on fossil fuels. Tesla is therefore helping us inch closer towards a greener society.
How significant is this?
Electrek claims Tesla’s success doesn’t matter, because Tesla can’t really be considered an automotive company anymore. And this may be true. After all, Tesla CEO Elon Musk dropped ‘Motors’ from its name. The Silicon Valley firm wants to go beyond electric cars and expand into two other trillion-dollar industries – solar power and battery storage.
Tesla recently acquired SolarCity, the largest solar energy services provider in the US. Electrek stresses that it’s unfair to make a strict comparison between Tesla and Ford, since Tesla now does far more than manufacturing vehicles. In fact, while Ford delivers a million cars every quarter, Tesla has yet to deliver 100,000 in a full year.
But Tesla did recently unveil its Model 3, which is more affordable, and which some say has much more mainstream appeal.
Reducing the harm caused by transport
There’s been a surge in the popularity of electric cars in Europe. This may be just what we need. Research illustrates that the pollution associated with diesel cars contributes to lung disease, heart attacks, asthma and other respiratory issues. It is significantly more damaging to human health than petrol.
A separate report highlights that carbon emissions linked to diesel cars may be 25-50% higher than previously thought.
Europe’s switch from petrol to diesel in the 90s seems to have backfired. Indeed, much of the most dangerous pollution in the UK comes from diesel cars.
Of course, electric cars are only as green as their energy supply. But considering that Tesla is now expanding into the solar energy and battery storage industries, it’s likely that it will look for ways to make electric cars far greener than they currently are.
And the fact that Tesla can capitalise on innovations in solar energy and battery storage is promising. This ambitious firm wants to be a key player in the move towards a truly green society.
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