Tesla CEO Elon Musk had a spat with California health officials back in May when he reopened the company's Fremont factory in defiance of the local government's safety protocols. The maverick executive had his way but still threatened to move Tesla's operation out of the sunshine state.
It appeared that Musk is still upset about the contentious episode as he dropped hints in a recent podcast interview that Tesla's presence in California is not assured for the long-term. He said that finding a new home remains in the cards for the automaker.
"There's no question that our headquarters will remain in California for the short term ... Long term, we'll have to wait and see," the LA Times reported Musk as saying.
Tesla resumed the operations of its Fremont factory in early May but health officials in Alameda County ordered the facility to shut down again for safety reasons. The coronavirus pandemic has yet to be controlled at that time, as it is today, and the Alameda government feared that Musk's decision to reopen would lead to further outbreaks.
Musk, however, stood his ground and the Fremont factory was eventually allowed to resume production activities.
Nonetheless, Musk signified his plan to move Tesla from California and his recent actions seemed to indicate that the company will transfer to Austin, Texas.
Per the same report, the company has already put his Bel-Air residence on the market, and Musk himself has revealed that he already applied for a driver's license in Texas.
He added in the same interview that his Tesla team in California points to Austin as the favored new home for the company in case of a move out soon.
"A lot of people from California, if you ask them what's the one place you would move outside of California, it's Austin," Musk said.
In a related report, Electrek called the latest Musk antics as amounting to a "childish" reaction. The blog post scored the company chief for playing with the livelihood of people, noting that Tesla currently employs thousands in California.
It is unfortunate too that Musk appeared bent on making a statement that it was right for him to return to business no matter the risks posed by the COVID-19 spread. He could be right to keep Tesla's factory humming but Musk must understand too that health officials are implementing rules in order to save lives, the report added.
Electrek said before the global health crisis, Tesla has enjoyed a productive relationship with California and that Musk should consider this before voicing out threats that will only hurt all the parties concerned.
