Arizona EV companies still confident amid signs of industry slowdown
PHOENIX - In a significant development, officials with electric vehicle maker Tesla announced they will lay off 10% of its workforce.
The decision was announced in a memo to employees, and came as the industry has shown signs of a slowdown for several months.
During that same timeframe, some car manufacturers have also announced their decision to pull back on EV promises, and focus instead on hybrids.
"Is this a Tesla-specific problem?" we asked Arizona State University Research Professor Paul Polzin.
"No, it’s definitely not," Polzin replied. "The whole EV industry is kind of catching their breath here."
Polzin said demand has hit a bump between early adopters and the rest of the population.
"The trend is toward more EVs," said Polzin. "The pace of the trend is really what’s come into question."
The owners of some EV-related businesses, however, remain unconcerned.
"We are preparing for what’s to come," said Carl Kasalek. Kasalek is the owner of Wattlogic, which helps residential and commercial properties find solutions to EV charging needs. "We have a similar facility in California, but just moved into Phoenix here, about the size of the building that we were in to be able to prepare."
"There’s really no going backwards at this point. I think everyone knows, whether you like it or not, electric vehicles are the future, and it’s gonna be growing no matter what," said Brian Ritter with EVUrgency, which offers emergency charges on the go for drivers who run out of juice.
Kasalek, however, said more layoffs might be on the way at other companies.
"Wouldn’t be surprised if we hear more in the months to come," said Kasalek.
However, the layoffs did not appear to deter Kasalek’s vision, and he said anyone who was laid off won't be looking for a job for long - In fact, he said he has already seen a few resumes on April 15 - as skills from those being laid off are in high demand.
