It has been less than three days since Hertz announced its purchase of 100K Tesla models, and we now know that half of the purchase will go to Uber.
American car rental company Hertz will lease out 50K units of Tesla vehicles to Uber drivers in the country starting from November 1st. Uber drivers in Los Angeles, San Francisco, San Diego, and Washington D.C. can pay US$334 (may be lowered to below US$299 in the future) to obtain a package that comprises of a single unit Tesla Model 3, as well as vehicle insurance and maintenance services.
However, only drivers with a score rating of at least 4.7 and have completed 150 trips are eligible for this plan, which will be expanded throughout the entire country within the next several weeks.
Uber believes that Hertz’s purchase from Tesla will help with the environment and the revenue of the drivers, and commented that the particular action would lower vehicle emissions and facilitate first EV experience for a lot of people, while also reducing portions of operating cost. Drivers will exempt from paying fuel expenditures, and Uber will also offer additional incentives to drivers who are on the Uber Green plan with US$1.5 per trip.
The incorporation of a large volume of EVs means a lot to Uber, since it helps the company in attaining the target of carbon neutrality by 2040, as well as mitigate the issue of air pollution that the public generally believes to be the fault of ridesharing.
For Hertz, the provision of EVs for Uber drivers with a low cost has expanded the company’s cash flow, and by working with online auto trade platform Carvana on the other hand, the vehicles of these Uber drivers that have been replaced by Model 3 are placed on the platform of Carvana for sales awaiting new owners.
Hertz aims to revitalize its assets through these multi-party cooperation. For example, a Tesla vehicle can be used as the working tool for an Uber driver from Monday to Friday, and leased to a small family during the weekends for outdoor trips, which should be the optimal solution in exerting the advantage of EV pertaining to a low maintenance cost.
This time, the share prices of all four companies, including Hertz, Uber, Tesla, and Carvana, have risen simultaneously. Hertz is expected to provide all 50K units of Tesla vehicles to Uber by 2023, and optimistically believes that the figure is likely to continue expanding to 150K units in the future, which insinuates the possibility of a continual partnership between the two companies.
(Cover photo source: Hertz)