Tesla Considers Selling or Spinning Off China Business to Facilitate Potential SpaceX Merger
Tesla CEO Elon Musk denied reports that the company is considering selling or spinning off its China business, calling them 'fake news.' The reports suggested Tesla was evaluating options including divestiture, sale, or closure to facilitate a potential merger with SpaceX. Musk had reportedly designed the China operations with easy separation in mind. China's foreign ministry said it opposed discriminatory actions and the overextension of national security concepts.
On July 31, Tesla CEO Elon Musk responded on social media that reports of the company considering selling or spinning off its China business were 'fake news,' adding that the matter had never been mentioned in any discussion.
Earlier reports said Tesla was evaluating its China business, with options including a spin-off, sale, or closure, in a move to create conditions for a potential merger with SpaceX. The reports said Musk had designed Tesla's China operations with the ease of separation between the U. S. and China businesses in mind, and in recent years had instructed executives to establish clear boundaries within the corporate structure. Tesla's advisers have discussed various separation plans, and some executives have been told to prepare for a divestiture of the China business before a potential merger, though the plans remain at an early stage and subject to change.
SpaceX is a commercial space company founded by Musk, with the U. government and defense departments among its main clients.
At a regular press briefing on July 31, Foreign Ministry spokesperson Mao Ning, responding to a question on the reports, said she was not aware of the specific situation described, and that as a matter of principle, China opposes the overextension of the national security concept and discriminatory actions against China.