Issue link: http://resourceworld.uberflip.com/i/937377
42 www.resourceworld.com F E B R U A R Y / M A R C H 2 0 1 8 IN NOVEMBER 2017 TESLA INC.'S [TSLA-NASDAQ] founder and CEO Elon Musk hosted an unveiling of the much anticipated Tesla Semi Truck – the "Semi" – to an audience in Hawthorne, California, near Los Angeles International Airport. The unveiling had been delayed a few times, and Musk was clearly under pres- sure to deliver something special. Musk opened the event with two sleek Semis rolling on to the stage. Later in the pre- sentation, in an homage to Apple's Steven Jobs, Musk appeared to be wrapping up the presentation and then paused and said: "Oh, and just one more thing". Then the trailer of one of the Semis opened and out the back rolled a new model of the Tesla Roadster, a super sexy, two-seat sports car. The crowd went nuts. There had been no indication of a second significant product introduction at this event, and the surprise was tremendous showmanship. The car is expected to be the fastest production sports car in the world, at any price, based on a claimed 0 to 60 miles per hour time of 1.8 seconds. Chalk one up for Elon Musk, and add it to his reputation as the world's greatest tech promoter. But why does the guy need to introduce a transport truck? After all, he's got self-landing space rockets, hyper-loop transport tunnels and electric cars so why such a utilitarian product as a Semi truck? WHY TESLA NEEDS A SEMI TRUCK First of all, Tesla intends to disrupt the transportation industry completely by making Internal Combustion Engine (ICE) vehicles obsolete. Musk's "Master Plan Part Deux" vows to expand the company's line up to cover the major forms of terres- trial transport. This is just opening another theatre in the global war on ICE vehicles. Secondly, Tesla has proven that electric vehicles are fast and quiet, but they are not known for their ability to haul stuff. Tesla's Model X SUV has trailer hauling capabilities, but a quick internet search will reveal that it is impractical for such a task, with range suffering severely when the Model X tows a trailer. So expectations were that the Tesla Semi truck would have a modest range, perhaps like a Tesla car or a bit less, say 300 miles at most before a recharge would be needed. The trucking industry thinks electrics are only good for short hauls. For example Cummins, a major diesel engine/ truck manufacturer announced an electric model Class 7 truck with a 100 mile range in August 2016. TESLA'S SEMI TRUCK – game changer or gamesmanship? by Alf Stewart