One of the great goals of Elon Musk is to lead the transition towards the use of renewable energies. In the field of mobility, it is achieving it hand in hand with Tesla. But his company’s interest isn’t just in electric cars, as it also offers solutions for the home — panels, solar roofs and batteries — and could even become a retail electricity provider. However, the tycoon has been in the news after assuring that the world needs to continue using non-renewable energy. At least for now.
During his presentation at an energy conference in Norway (via Reuters), Elon Musk assured that to sustain civilization it is necessary to continue extracting oil and gas. But meanwhile this continues to be done, take advantage of it to advance with the development of renewable energy sources.
Realistically, I think we need to use oil and gas in the short term, because otherwise civilization will collapse. One of the biggest challenges the world has faced is the transition to sustainable energy and a sustainable economy. That will take a few decades to complete.”
It is not the first time that Elon Musk advocates in favor of hydrocarbons, but he has an explanation
Elon Musk’s statements did not take long to gain space among the headlines, as every time he expresses himself in public on a sensitive issue. Especially when it comes to activities related to his ventures. However, his posture shouldn’t be too surprising. Last March, shortly after the Ukraine war began, he called for an increase in oil and gas production, in order to limit the commercial dependence of many regions on Russia.
“I hate to say it, but we need to increase oil and gas production immediately. Extraordinary times demand extraordinary measures,” he had posted on his Twitter account, to the disbelief of many. In justifying him, the CEO of Tesla and SpaceX assured that the existing sustainable energy solutions even cannot replace hydrocarbon exports.
But Elon Musk’s request didn’t end there. A few days later, he called for restarting Europe’s nuclear plants to counteract Russian interference in energy availability on the continent. “Hopefully, it is now extremely obvious that Europe should restart idle nuclear power plants and increase the power output of existing ones,” he had posted. And although nuclear energy is not renewable, it does not emit polluting gases into the atmosphere. That is why it may well qualify as an intermediate green solution.
Returning to his participation in the Norwegian event, the entrepreneur took the opportunity to give his opinion on the energy reality in northern Europe. He said wind power generation in the North Sea, combined with stationary battery packs, could be a crucial sustainable energy source, especially during winter. Despite this, he agreed that Norway continue with the extraction of gas and oil. “I think additional exploration is warranted at this point,” he said.
Promise of news about Tesla and SpaceX
In addition to his comments on the use of non-renewable energy, Elon Musk also spoke about the next goals of his companies. The tycoon assured that his efforts towards the end of the year are focused on ensuring that SpaceX’s Starship can fulfill its long-awaited orbital flight. As for Tesla, he predicted that the fully autonomous driving system could be definitively available – and not just in beta – in the United States.
“The two technologies that I’m focused on, trying to get done ideally before the end of the year, are getting our Starship into orbit and then having Tesla cars that can drive themselves. Having autonomous driving widely available, at least in the United States and potentially in Europe, pending regulatory approval,” he said.
Let’s not forget that Tesla has recently been the subject of criticism in the United States, after announcing a new increase in the package of total autonomous driving. According to Elon Musk, after the release of beta version 10.69.2, the price will jump from $12,000 to $15,000. Change that will be effective from next September 5.