Hertz CEO says his record-breaking $4.2 billion Tesla buy was inspired by electric vehicles going 'mainstream' as consumer demand for EVs rises

Hertz Interim CEO Mark Fields spoke with Morning Brew about the company's latest electric vehicle purchase.
The once-bankrupt car rental company announced on Monday it bought 100,000 Teslas for $4.2 billion.
"Electric vehicles are now mainstream, and we've only just begun to see rising global demand and interest," Fields said.

Hertz Interim CEO Mark Fields is shedding light on why the once-bankrupt car rental agency has decided to enter the world of electric vehicles.

The company announced it placed a $4.2 billion order for 100,000 Teslas on Monday, in what Bloomberg reported was the largest ever single purchase of electric vehicles. According to Fields, the record-breaking move was spurred in part by "a combination of data and also mindset," he told Morning Brew in an interview on Thursday.

"When you look over the next 12 to 36 months, I think there's gonna be about 100 EV models coming into the marketplace," Fields told Morning Brew. "So you have this combination of customer intent or predisposition rising, and you have the products coming."

Fields said he decided to specifically purchase Teslas because of their scale of production, though noted that Hertz eventually wants to work with all EV automakers "and have strategic discussions with them instead of just tactical ones," he told Morning Brew.

According to a press release, the Teslas will be available in the US and Europe within the next 14 months. As part of the deal, Hertz will provide 50,000 of the cars to Uber drivers so more people can experience riding in a Tesla. Tesla stock rose 4.3% in pre-market trading following the announcement.

"Electric vehicles are now mainstream, and we've only just begun to see rising global demand and interest," Fields said in the release. "The new Hertz is going to lead the way as a mobility company, starting with the largest EV rental fleet in North America and a commitment to grow our EV fleet and provide the best rental and recharging experience for leisure and business customers around the world."

While Fields hinted at Hertz eventually comprising his fleet entirely of EVs, he told Morning Brew "it's not something that we're prepared to talk about publicly." However, he did say Hertz is "committed to doing the right thing for the environment" and that their plans will "evolve over time" when it comes to EVs, according to the interview.

Fields said he hopes that wider consumer access will encourage more drivers to purchase electric vehicles, telling Morning Brew that studies show once a person drives or rides in an EV, they are 3 to 4 times more likely to purchase one.

"That serves dual purposes for us: It helps Tesla (because they're driving Teslas), but more importantly it helps us achieve our overall objective of making sure we accelerate the adoption of EVs and sustainable transportation across the globe," he said.

Globally, there were more than 10 million electric vehicles in operation in 2020, 1.75 million of which hailed from the US, according to the International Energy Agency's Global EV Data Explorer. The Tesla Model 3 was one of the most popular EVs sold in 2020, with over 95,000 purchases, according to the sustainability information site Treehugger.

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