Tesla is known for finding inventive ways to do things — and it seems the company is at it again.
Elon Musk, Tesla's CEO, has always preferred to sell directly to consumers, either online or through the company's own sales, service, and delivery (SSD) facilities. However, direct sales laws in many states make this impossible, and buyers often have to drive hours to pick up their new car — or pay thousands of dollars to have it shipped.
But, as Electrek reports, Tesla has previously used a loophole to get around direct sales laws without using a third-party dealership. The workaround involves building its SSDs on Native land.
The practice started in 2021 when Tesla made a deal with the first nation of Nambé Pueblo in New Mexico. Now, the company is doing it again. Syracuse.com reports that Tesla made a deal with the Oneida Indian Nation to build its new showroom on a piece of the Nation's land in Syracuse, New York.
Not only do these deals benefit Tesla, but they are also good for the indigenous groups as well as the customers who benefit from cheaper, more accessible EVs.
The Syracuse showroom is set to open in 2025. In a statement to Syracuse.com, the Oneida Nation said it will "eliminate obstacles to electric vehicle (EV) ownership in Upstate New York."
The construction and business operations of the SSDs are expected to create new jobs for both the Oneida and Nambé nations.
Carlos Vigil, president of the Nambé Pueblo Development Corporation, told AP the Nambé Pueblo "has the responsibility to the land where we have resided for over 1,000 years," calling the Tesla service center "a renewable business that lines up with our belief system."
Oneida Nation Enterprises CEO Ray Halbritter echoed the sentiment.
"This initiative and partnership with Tesla align with the Nation's commitment to environmental stewardship, the constant diversification of our enterprises, and warm hospitality for all who enter our ancestral homelands," Halbritter said, according to Syracuse.com.
Tesla's deal is also a major win for the environment. According to the Environmental Protection Agency, transportation is the economy's top contributor to emissions of toxic heat-trapping gases. The fewer obstacles to being able to easily purchase an EV, the more people are likely to make the switch and bring us closer to the goal of carbon-free transportation.
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