'Tesla Under Government Investigation for Solar Equipment Defects'

Source: Mark Kauzlarich/Bloomberg

[Asia Economy Reporter Yujin Cho] According to a report by the U.S. economic media CNBC on the 22nd (local time), U.S. authorities have launched an official investigation following a whistleblower's report of fire defects in Tesla's solar power equipment.

According to the report, the U.S. Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) has received a tip from an internal employee regarding fire risks associated with Tesla's solar power equipment and is conducting a safety investigation.

The CPSC explained that it is investigating Tesla's solar power equipment defects and fire risk management based on the testimony of Steven Henks, who was responsible for on-site quality of Tesla's solar power equipment.

Henks reported the fire risk of Tesla's solar power equipment to the CPSC in 2019 while working at Tesla, and claimed that Tesla fired him in retaliation in August last year. He also filed a lawsuit against Tesla in November of the same year.

Henks' attorney stated in an email interview with CNBC that "there is still a fire risk due to defects in Tesla's solar power equipment, and customers are not sufficiently informed about that risk."

Although the renewable energy division, which includes Tesla's solar business, accounted for only 6% of total sales last year, its sales growth rate showed a high growth trend, recording a 30% increase compared to the previous year.

During the earnings conference call in January, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said, "We are paying a lot of attention to solar energy, and that division is growing rapidly," adding, "It won't take long for Tesla to become a leader in the solar market."

Tesla entered the solar business in 2016 by acquiring SolarCity for $2.6 billion and has been installing solar energy equipment in commercial buildings such as Walmart, schools, and homes.

Among these, fires occurred in rooftop solar power equipment installed at several Walmart locations, and it has already been reported that Walmart filed a lawsuit against Tesla in August 2019.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.