Tesla Demand 'very, very solid,' Hertz CEO Says

Photo: Brendan McDermid

Demand for Tesla car rentals through Hertz has skyrocketed, the company's CEO said. High demand is observed among leisure and corporate travelers. The company continues to improve the charging infrastructure so that customers do not have to worry about range.

“Demand has been very, very solid,” Hertz CEO Stephen Scherr said in an exclusive Yahoo Finance Live interview Tuesday. “We’re seeing demand not just among leisure travelers but also among corporate travelers, where in fact corporations want their employees in an electric vehicle to satisfy some of their own carbon footprint objectives.”

In late 2021, Hertz signed an agreement to purchase 100,000 Tesla Model 3 vehicles for its fleet by the end of 2022. In addition, Model Y was later added to the order. Since then, Scherr has repeatedly stated that the demand for Tesla cars offered by the company is very high. By the end of 2024, Hertz plans to have 25% of its fleet be electric vehicles. Currently, about 5% of the vehicle fleet is electric.

On Tuesday, Hertz announced a new deal with oil giant BP to deploy electric vehicle charging stations. The rental car company plans to have thousands of charging stations across the country by the end of 2023 as part of an agreement. Scherr said it is looking for similar offerings for charging stations.

“One of the real issues why engaging with BP is an important step is that not only are they going to build out charging stations—mostly fast chargers on our facilities—but we are going to use their energy management tools and software to sort of overcome range anxiety,” Scherr said.

© 2022, Eva Fox | Tesmanian. All rights reserved.

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