State Department Pauses $400M Armored Tesla Deal

Image Credit: Reuters

The State Department had been in discussions with Elon Musk's Tesla about purchasing armored electric vehicles, but the Trump administration has paused the plans following reports of a potential $400 million deal.  

A spokesperson for the State Department stated that Tesla, owned by Musk—who is now President Donald Trump's billionaire adviser focused on reducing federal agencies and workforce—was the sole company to show interest back in May 2024, when Joe Biden was still president. During the planning phase, the contract with Tesla was projected to be the largest of the year, highlighting how Musk's wealth has been, and was expected to be, partly funded by taxpayer money. Musk's companies receive substantial government contracts, with SpaceX having secured nearly $20 billion since 2008 for space missions, and Tesla already receiving $41.9 million from the U.S. government, including payments for vehicles supplied to U.S. embassies.  

The State Department clarified that no contract had been awarded to Tesla or any other manufacturer for armored electric vehicles. Under the Biden administration, the State Department was tasked with exploring potential suppliers in September, with an official bid request planned for May. However, this solicitation is now on hold with no timeline for resumption.  

Following reports about the potential Tesla purchase, the State Department updated its contract forecast for fiscal year 2025, stating that the entry should have been listed as a generic “electric vehicle manufacturer.” Notably, another entry for a different purchase still mentions German automaker BMW.

Paraphrasing text from "Reuters" all rights reserved by the original author