Texas governor Rick Perry, a surprising environmental ally, has come out in favor of Tesla’s direct car sales model.
In an interview with Fox Business Network, Perry called the independent dealer requirement an “old and some would say antiquated protection in there for car dealers.”
Perry’s support keeps Texas in the hunt as one of the locations for Elon Musk’s multi-billion dollar Gigafactory that Texas, Nevada, Arizona and New Mexico are all vying for. Some thought Texas had fallen behind the other states because of its reluctance to embrace the direct sales model, but Perry’s words offer new hope for the Lone Star State.
Perry hopes Texans can keep an open mind about Tesla’s process.
“We live in a different world than we did 30 years ago, 10 years ago,” he said “I think it’s time for Texas to have an open conversation about this … the cachet of being able to say we put that manufacturing facility in your state is hard to pass up.”
The Gigafactory is expected to create at least 6,500 jobs and be the largest lithium-ion factory in the world. It could also help create a Tesla model that would retail for around $35-40,000 and boost the economy of the state where it lands.
