RIYADH (Reuters) – Tesla will launch in Saudi Arabia early next month, according to a post announcing the opening on the company’s website.
Elon Musk’s EV brand trades in other countries in the Middle East, but not in Saudi Arabia, the Gulf region’s largest market.
Tesla has seen EV sales slump in Europe and the brand has been targeted by a wave of protests in the United States since Musk, the company’s CEO, became an adviser to U.S. President Donald Trump and began sweeping cuts to the federal government.
The launch event in Riyadh, scheduled for April 10, will display Tesla’s electric vehicles and products powered by solar energy, the post said.
“Experience the future of autonomous driving with Cybercab, and meet Optimus, our humanoid robot, as we showcase what’s next in AI and robotics,” it added, without saying when the products would go on sale in the kingdom.
Tesla’s sales and market share in Europe have fallen this year even as electric vehicle (EV) registrations on the continent have grown.
Musk’s brand has sold 42.6% fewer cars in Europe so far this year, data from the European Automobile Manufacturers Association (ACEA) showed on Tuesday, as Musk has stirred controversy globally.
Activists across the U.S. have staged so-called “Tesla Takedown” demonstrations over Musk’s role leading the Department of Government Efficiency, which has cut thousands of jobs, frozen foreign aid and cancelled thousands of programmes and contracts.
The Wall Street Journal reported in 2023 that Saudi Arabia was in early talks for Tesla to establish a factory in the kingdom. Musk denied the report.
The kingdom has been trying to shift its economy away from oil, while its sovereign wealth fund is the majority investor in Lucid Group (LCID.O) one of the EV startups looking to challenge Tesla.
(Reporting by Pesha Magid and Maha El Dahan; Writing by Andrew Mills and Tala Ramadan; Editing by Michael Georgy and Kate Mayberry)
