Musk's Tesla Removed from US$400m State Contract
Earlier this week, the State Department removed Tesla, Elon Musk's company, from the procurement forecast. It had appeared in the document last December regarding a US$400m armoured EV purchase, according to reports released on Wednesday.
In the December version, mentions of an "Armored Tesla" were included as a budget item, which would span five years and start this year.
Following a revision, mention of Tesla has been removed. This comes after reports of the company's appearance on the procurement document from Drop Site News and The New York Times.
Mentions of Tesla removed
Currently, Elon is making headlines for his role at DOGE (Department of Government Efficiency) within President Trump's administration, which has him overseeing government spending.
This has led to questions about how Elon would oversee a company contract where his own business was competing for government work. Elon has consistently maintained that DOGE and its activities would be transparent.
Mention of Tesla had appeared in this document alongside BMW AG, which is offering its armoured X5 and X7 SUVs that the State Department plans to purchase.
BMW remains present on the list, whilst Tesla has been removed—leaving the US$400m contract, currently at the planning stage, now listed under a generic designation of "armoured electric vehicles."
No government contract has been awarded
A State Department spokesperson said in a statement to Bloomberg that no government contract had been given to any auto manufacturer, Tesla or otherwise, to produce armoured EVs.
The spokesperson added that the solicitation, first made during the Biden administration, had sought to explore private companies' interest in providing armoured electric vehicles.
Hours after Bloomberg's initial report, a State Department spokesperson told Fortune in a statement: "No government contract has been awarded to Tesla or any other vehicle manufacturer to produce armoured electric vehicles for the Department of State."
When Bloomberg attempted to contact representatives for Tesla, they did not respond to requests for comment after regular business hours.
Elon took to his social media platform, X, where he replied to a post highlighting Tesla's removal from the document. He replied, saying: "I'm pretty sure Tesla isn't getting US$400m. No one mentioned it to me, at least."
Conflict of interest?
Questions about Elon and potential conflicts of interest across his range of companies are likely to continue.
His SpaceX programme already launches rockets for the US military and transports astronauts to and from the International Space Station for NASA, with both companies having already awarded billions of dollars in contracts.
Explore the latest edition of Procurement Magazine and be part of the conversation at our global conference series, Procurement & Supply Chain LIVE.
Discover all our upcoming events and secure your tickets today.
Procurement Magazine is a BizClik brand
