- The world’s richest person has made money from EVs and is fan of solar energy
- However, his backing of Donald Trump potentially puts the energy transition in jeopardy
- Will he help or harm the planet in his new role in the US government?
It’s impossible to ignore Elon Musk. With his calls for the UK government to be overthrown and his incessant berating of Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer, he has dominated the news cycle since late 2024.
His ownership of X, formerly Twitter, high-profile backing of US president-elect Donald Trump, and official role in the upcoming administration make his cultural influence almost as significant as his status as a business leader.
This should not be surprising, as not only is he the world’s richest person, with an estimated net worth of over $400 billion, he heads up some of the world’s most recognised businesses, and is at the forefront of mankind’s mission to colonise Mars.
Now, as we enter 2025, Elon Musk is assuming a role in the US government, in charge of reigning in public spending, a job that could have implications for millions of Americans, the global economy and the fight against climate change.
One thing is for certain, and that is that he’s here to stay, and with his fortune and influence, his words and actions will likely have consequences for us all.
With that in mind, we’ve decided to take a look at his environmental credentials to see if Elon Musk is a positive or a negative for the planet.
Why Elon Musk is GOOD for the planet
To start with, let’s look at the primary source of Elon Musk’s fortune and the company he is most synonymous with – EV manufacturer Tesla.
He is a 13% shareholder of the company and has been CEO since 2008. During his tenure, Tesla has been credited broadly with revolutionising the EV industry and expanding the market for clean energy transportation, as well as promoting the use of alternative fuels.
Musk was quoted in 2006, when he was an early investor in Tesla, that the company’s “overarching purpose” was to “expedite the move from a mine-and-burn hydrocarbon economy towards a solar electric economy”.
Just nine years later in 2015 he described the transition to renewable energy as “inevitable” and that delaying it could cause “more displacement and destruction than all the wars in history combined”.
Going by what he said early in his career at Tesla, one could easily see Musk as an environmentalist; and he’s certainly given the impression that the company has followed through on its stated objective.
In 2023 Tesla’s revenue was $96.7 billion, an 18% year-on-year increase from 2022. Since Musk took over as CEO in 2008, the company has sold more than 6.7 million EVs, with its Model 3 the first EV to sell more than a million units.
Critics of EVs say that they actually use more carbon emissions than an internal combustion engine (ICE) vehicle, primarily because of the battery pack, but it is estimated that an EV overcomes this within six months if it is only powered by renewable energy.
Even if you were to power an EV with a mix of a mix of renewable and fossil fuel energy, it would reach carbon emissions parity within 1-5 years.
Sales of EVs globally have boomed considerably in recent years. The International Energy Agency (IEA) says that approximately 14 million EVs were sold globally, 95% of which were from China, the US or Europe, bringing the total number to about 40 million.
More than 3 million EVs were sold globally in 2023, accounting for 18% of all car sales. This was a 35% year-on-year increase from 2022 and a six-fold increase from 2018.
In the 2010s alone, EV ownership globally increased by 904%.
Even if we look at the UK in isolation, EV sales increased by 21% year-on-year in 2024, accounting for more than 19% of car sales overall with the UK overtaking Germany as Europe’s top market as the German EV market takes a tumble.
While it is very difficult to attribute this market growth to Musk, and much of it might well have happened in any case, having arguably the world’s most recognisable businessman at the forefront cannot be a bad thing for the industry or the energy transition.
Supporting solar
As well as EVs, Musk is also a high profile supporter of solar energy, for both domestic and industry, and he has attempted to make Tesla an integrated sustainable energy company by providing rooftop panels and battery systems.
In 2015 Tesla launched the Powerwall 1 battery system, a 3.3 kilowatt home energy storage system that would allow users to store solar-generated electricity for consumption and back-up power.
The Powerwall 2 was launched in 2017 and was followed by the Powerwall 3 in 2024.
Musk has been very clear that he believes solar will continue to be a critical energy source in the future.
As recently as September 2024, he predicted that all energy generation will eventually be solar and claimed that a solar farm in “a relatively small corner of Texas or New Mexico” would be enough to meet the US’ energy needs.
Why Elon Musk is BAD for the planet
Despite being one of the most high-profile pioneers of low-carbon technology (LCT), Musk is arguably having a severely negative effect on the planet due to his support for politicians and parties who are against pursuing net-zero targets, most notably US president-elect Donald Trump.
Musk was pivotal during Trump’s victorious electoral campaign in November 2024, vocally supporting him on X and elsewhere and donating a reported US$250m towards his presidential election campaign via super PAC contributions through Spacex, Tesla and his own personal contributions.
He has now been given the job of overseeing cutbacks to apparent waste in the public sector and will lead the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) when Trump is sworn on Monday 20th January 2025.
This means he will be responsible for enacting Trump’s promises to save money.
Central to Trump’s campaign was opposition to net-zero legislation, such as President Biden’s Inflation Reduction Act, which he pledged to overturn.
If he does indeed repeal the Act, it would do severe damage to the US’ clean energy economy as it commits the US to cutting carbon emissions by 40% by 2030 and provides tax credits worth an estimated $1.2 trillion for individuals and businesses who invest in renewables.
In addition to the Inflation Reduction Act, Trump also has his eyes on the New Green Deal.
A cornerstone of US sustainability policy, the Deal’s objective is to bring down greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to net zero and have renewable sources account for 100% of US power generation by 2030.
The Deal includes a significant amount of funding for communities affected by climate change, investment in infrastructure and renewable energy across the economy.
Trump is yet to clarify if he plans to repeal the Deal altogether or just cut it back, but either way, it is certainly bad news for the planet – bad news which Musk through his support has helped facilitate.
Another key environmental plan the incoming Trump presidency could threaten is The Paris Agreement, the international framework for reducing carbon emissions, which he has described as “a disaster” for the US economy.
Trump withdrew the US from the Paris Agreement during his first term in 2017, before President Biden recommitted the country to it.
Should the US withdraw a second time, it would “cripple” the Paris Agreement, according to the UN, which would significantly set the world back in the fight against climate change.
Added to this is Trump’s policy to increase offshore and inland drilling, and he has made it clear he will make it easier for oil companies to drill on federal land, including the Arctic.
He enacted a similar policy during his last tenure, and this time his goal is to turn the US into the biggest exporter of oil and gas in the world, thereby making the US energy independent.
Outside the US
While he may not have an official position in any other country, Musk’s outspoken support for parties with a similar view on the environment – including Reform UK and Alternative fur Deutschland (AfD) – could possibly inhibit environmental efforts if he is able to indirectly influence policy.
Summary
There is no doubt that Elon Musk’s innovations in EVs and solar energy are positive for the planet; helping bring EVs into the mainstream but it is hard to reconcile his enthusiasm for LCT with his support for and facilitation of anti-environmental politicians.
During the presidential election campaign, Musk’s influence reportedly helped change Trump’s opposition to EVs, which offers hope that even if the administration does choose to withdraw from the Paris Agreement, it might not all be lost for renewable sources of energy, such as solar power.
It also demonstrates that Trump can be convinced to change course if it is in his interests to do so. If Musk can convince Trump that EVs, solar power and other LCT can help make the US energy independent, as they are doing elsewhere, and improve the jobs market, it could help accelerate their implementation.
Whether that, if it happens, will be enough to mitigate the possible environmental disaster of withdrawing from major international sustainability agreements, the world will only know in the years to come.