Elon Musk: Tesla still plans to develop Supercharge network after eliminating global team

• The staff behind by Tesla BI reported earlier that booster stations were being shut down.
• Musk said after the cuts that Tesla would continue to grow charger network “at a slower speed.”
• Tesla will now focus on “100% uptime and expanding existing locations,” Musk said.

Right after that news came out Tesla will lay off another round of employeesincluding the team behind the company’s Supercharge network, CEO Elon Musk took to social media to reassure owners and investors that the charging stations aren’t going anywhere.

“Tesla There are still plans to grow the Supercharger network, just at a slower pace in new locations and with more focus on 100% uptime and expansion of existing locations,” Musk wrote in a post on X.

Despite Musk’s assurances, Tesla has begun to pull out rental contract for upcoming stations in New York, EV news agency Electricity report.

The company currently operates 57,579 Superchargers at 6,249 locations globally, it reported.

Even the most ardent Tesla fans are disappointed by this news. Commenters on Musk’s post were quick to call his announcement “a bit lame” and urged him to reconsider, arguing that a large charging network is key to driving widespread adoption of the devices. charger. tram nationwide.

Troy Meekhof, who runs the website The Cybertruck Guy, specializes in Cybertrucks and other electric vehicles, wrote in response to Musk’s post. “You’re opening up the network to almost every electric vehicle driver on the continent without the need for urgent construction? I’m actually very pleased with this decision.”

Meekhof told Business Insider that, as the owner of two Tesla cars, he is very familiar with Superchargers and called them “almost magical,” saying they work every time. and the stations he visited were rarely full. Yet, he said, entire regions of the country and his home state of Michigan are completely off-limits to him and his vehicles “simply because of the lack of charging options.”

“In general, I tend to trust Musk’s crazy ideas because they indicate a more complex long-term plan, but destroying the department responsible for what I believe is the Their single greatest achievement in North America is both shocking and bewildering.” told BI, adding that he’s “certainly looking forward to seeing what the broader plan is, but on the merits, I’m very concerned.”

Tesla’s latest round of layoffs, announced by Musk via email late Monday, include Rebecca Tinucci, senior director of the company’s Supercharger group, and Daniel Ho, head of new products, BI reported. previous news. While some staff may be reassigned, the Supercharge team, which is around 500 employees strong, will be dissolved.

The cuts come after Tesla’s indifference income statement last week, including first-quarter revenue down 8.7% year-over-year, earnings per share below consensus forecasts, and the company’s free cash flow down 674% year-over-year down to negative 2.5 billion USD.

A representative for Tesla did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Business Insider.