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Oil Giant BP Famous for Gulf of Mexico Spill Purchases $100M Worth of Superchargers from Tesla

BP, the oil giant responsible for the largest marine oil spill in history, in a surprising move today has announced that it’ll be purchasing $100 million worth of superchargers from Tesla to install at the former’s charging sites.

If you had any doubts about whether the EV revolution was truly in full swing, today’s news should erase any such questions. Earlier today, one of the largest oil companies in the world, BP, in a surprise move announced that it will be purchasing Superchargers worth $100 million from the company working the hardest to drive the oil giant out of business, Tesla.

Tesla famously operates under the company’s famous motto – “transitioning the world to sustainable energy.” However, today, in what’s likely to be the first sign of the dominos starting to fall for the old guard, Tesla has teamed up with BP to help the latter go “green.”

BP, if you happen to be unfamiliar, is one of the largest oil companies in the world. Not only that, BP is responsible for the largest marine oil spill in history – the Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill also known as the Gulf of Mexico oil spill.

The 2010 Deepwater Horizon oil spill saw 4.9 million barrels of oil spill into the Gulf of Mexico, 41 miles off the coast of Louisiana. The oil spill was so damaging, it covered an area of more than 57,500 square miles and caused an economic impact worth tens of billions of dollars.

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At the same time the Gulf of Mexico oil spill was happening, back in 2010, Tesla was a small upstart having only produced its first vehicle – a small sports EV built on a Lotus Elise chassis.

However, fast forward 13 years, and how the fates have turned. Tesla is now the largest automaker in the world and is worth $650 billion which is more than 6.5 times the size of BP which is currently valued at $90 billion.

Tesla’s market cap as compared to BP’s should on its own prove how the future is trending, however, today, by purchasing $100 million worth of Superchargers from Tesla, BP appears to have officially waved the white flag.

The new deal between Tesla and BP Pulse, which is BP’s charging network arm, sees BP Pulse purchase $100 million worth of supercharger equipment. In a press release announcing the deal, Richard Bartlett, global CEO of BP Pulse said…

 “Strengthening the bp pulse network with Tesla’s industry-leading hardware is a major step forward in our ambitions for high speed, open access charging infrastructure in the US and advances our ambition to delivering an exceptional customer experience. Combined with our vast network of convenience and mobility sites on and off the highway, this collaboration with Tesla will bring fast and reliable charging to EV drivers when and where they need it,”

BP Pulse is expected to start installing superchargers at select locations starting in 2024. Currently, it’s not exactly clear which exact BP Pulse locations will first get the superchargers however, Houston, Phoenix, Los Angeles, Chicago, and Washington, DC have been identified as the first geographical regions.

The deal between BP and Tesla marks the first time the EV maker has ventured to selling its superchargers to third-party installers. However, given the fact that some reports show that Tesla superchargers cost less than half that of other competing fast charger brands, there is a chance that Tesla can easily corner the fast-charging hardware market.

If Tesla’s deal with Ford for the latter to adopt the NACS port is any indication, Tesla’s deal with BP appears to be the first of many similar agreements to be made between the EV maker and charging networks.

And we’ll be sure to keep you posted as more and more companies adopt Tesla’s products. Until then, make sure to visit our site torquenews.com/Tesla regularly for the latest updates.

So what do you think? Excited to see BP and Tesla working together? Do you think this means the end for big oil is near? Let me know your thoughts in the comments below.

Image: Courtesy of Tesla, Inc.

For more information check out: A Tesla Cybertruck Prototype Broke Down & had to Be Towed After It was Unable to Supercharge in the Mojave Desert Heat

Tinsae Aregay has been following Tesla and The evolution of the EV space on a daily basis for several years. He covers everything about Tesla from the cars to Elon Musk, the energy business, and autonomy. Follow Tinsae on Twitter at @TinsaeAregay for daily Tesla news.