Elon Musk makes surprising announcement about the future of Tesla Semi — here's how it could make waves in the shipping industry

The Tesla Semi was originally only going to be available in the U.S., but Elon Musk has announced that it will be available in other countries, too.

According to Electrek, "Musk announced that the Tesla Semi class 8 electric truck will be available worldwide."

Earlier in 2024, Musk said Tesla could produce the Semi in Europe. That was followed up by Tesla bringing a modified version of the electric truck that fit European regulations to the IAA Transportation conference in Germany in September.

A post from Tesla Manufacturing showed the Tesla Semi at the Gigafactory Berlin, captioned "Special Guest at Giga Berlin."

Tesla is building a new plant next to the Gigafactory in Nevada, and it is expected to mass produce the truck starting next year. Tesla aims to produce 50,000 trucks annually.

Trucking is an essential part of the economy to get goods and food to people, but it is also a significant source of polluting gases. According to Forbes, while trucks only consist of 6% of the vehicles on the road, they account for 25% of the polluting gases in the transportation sector.

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Electric trucks don't emit those polluting gases so these vehicles can improve air quality and are quieter on the road, reducing noise pollution as well, per the NRDC. Additionally, they are cheaper to maintain since it costs less to power them, and they have less maintenance.

The NRDC also noted, "High diesel fuel prices contribute to rising consumer costs." That can really add up if you like ordering from home.

Per the Tesla website, the Semi has a range of up to 500 miles, uses "less than 2 kWh per mile," and can charge 70% of its range in just 30 minutes. All of this comes in handy when trying to deliver everyone's packages.

While Tesla is just entering the trucking market, it's been in the electric vehicle business for many years. One Tesla owner said they saved over $2,400 in one year driving electric over a gas-powered vehicle.

Tesla is also working on making EVs even cleaner and cheaper. Its latest technology allows its EV owners to charge their cars with excess solar energy.

You can make your next car an EV and save money powering your vehicle, too.

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