The chairman of the Board of Directors of Tesla denied a report that the company had begun looking for a replacement for Elon Musk, the CEO, who has spent much of his time on President Trump, while the sales and profits of the automotive industry have fallen.
Robyn Denholm, who led the Board of Directors for more than six years, told X on Thursday that the Wall Street Journal report was “absolutely false”.
“Tesla’s chief executive is Elon Musk and the Board of Directors is extremely sure of his ability to continue executing the fascinating development plan in front,” Ms Denholm said in Tesla’s account on X, the Social Media Society held by Mr Musk.
The magazine said late Wednesday that, about a month ago, the Tesla Council had contacted the executive companies to help seek Mr Musk’s replacement, saying “people who are familiar with the issue”.
A spokesman for the magazine said the newspaper was from his report.
After the company reported a 71 % drop in quarterly profits last week, Mr Musk promised to spend more time on Tesla and less time in Washington. He said he would spend one or two days a week in government work.
Mr Musk’s absence from Tesla, while overseeing Mr Trump’s efforts to reduce government spending and reduce federal jobs, has become a painful spot with investors. Mr Musk’s involvement in the administration and with the right reasons in Europe has caused protests at the Tesla delegations and is partly responsible for a sharp decline in sales. Buyers of electric vehicles tend to be liberal or center.
Tesla’s revenue decreased by 9 % in the first quarter of the year to $ 19.3 billion, the company said last week.
The car industry has lost market share in the United States, China and Europe as competitors such as BYD, General Motors and Volkswagen import dozens of electric models. Analysts have condemned Tesla for not expanding his composition beyond two main cars.
Model Y Sport Utility Vehicle and 3 sedan model represent the overwhelming majority of Tesla’s sales. Cybertruck, Tesla’s newest vehicle, has not sold, as Mr Musk said, he said he would.
