Tesla (TSLA) – Get Tesla Inc Report Chief Executive Elon Musk’s Twitter feed often reads like a stream of consciousness or an indirect interior monologue used extensively by celebrated English writer Virginia Woolf.
It mimics the non-linear way in which Musk’s brain works. Not surprisingly it is also filled with contradictions.
He defies convention and this time was no different.
It has been more than 10 days into the Russian invasion of Ukraine and the controversial billionaire, in a series of tweets, has appealed to Europe to “restart [its] dormant nuclear power stations” in a bid to strengthen their borders.
As a crusader for clean energy, Musk’s plea to support nuclear energy that creates radioactive waste is befuddling.
Experts at environment group Greenpeace USA say, “Nuclear energy has no place in a safe, clean, sustainable future. Nuclear energy is both expensive and dangerous.”
After Oil, Musk Is Now Pro Nuclear Energy
Musk recently tweeted, “Hopefully, it is now extremely obvious that Europe should restart dormant nuclear power stations and increase power output of existing ones. This is *critical* to national and international security.”
And added that,”those who (mistakenly) think this is a radiation risk, pick what you think is the worst location. I will travel there & eat locally grown food on TV. I did this in Japan many years ago, shortly after Fukushima. Radiation risk is much, much lower than most people believe.”
These tweets put Musk, who has put his weight behind electric vehicles, in a bind. In a world where everyone is trying to reduce their carbon footprint, Musk’s company makes vehicles that run on an electric battery instead of an internal combustion engine.
While nuclear energy is a non-renewable energy source that comes from the nucleus of atoms. But nuclear plants have gained a bad reputation after a series of bad accidents including Fukushima and Chernobyl.
Last week, Russia captured the largest nuclear power plant in Europe located about 350 miles southeast of Kyiv, in Ukraine, and sparked fears of a nuclear disaster bigger than Chernobyl.
European nations have been reevaluating their relationship with nuclear energy with Germany closing three of its six nuclear power plants on December 31, last year, Switzerland shutting one of its five nuclear power plants in 2019 and Belgium vowing to end its dependence on nuclear energy by 2025.
Musk Called for More Oil Production
Musk’s remarks came a day after he backed the increase of oil output.
Musk was quick to admit that this was counterproductive with respect to his own business.
Oil prices soared to a 14-year-high to touch over $130 a barrel, as the threat of a potential ban on Russian oil imports became imminent.
Investors are worried that the rise in oil prices will destabilize the market hurting U.S. stocks.
“The gallon of gasoline at the pump has exceeded the $5 threshold in California, a new reality that scares many Americans, at least those who do not have electric vehicles or hybrid vehicles,” TheStreet reported earlier.
If gasoline prices everywhere hit $5 a gallon, it will further increase overall cost of living for Americans, that are already reeling under the impact of inflation.
