Elon Musk. (Britta Pedersen/Pool/AFP)

The richest man in the world, Elon Musk seems to have added a new country to the list of Tesla’s expansion plans in Asia. The Tesla boss is said to have been in virtual contact with Mongolian Prime Minister Luvsannamsrai Oyun-Erdene, discussing possible expansion and investments in his country.

“They discussed the possibility of bringing Tesla to Mongolia for its electric vehicle battery plant, taking advantage of the country’s wide availability of copper and rare earth elements, which are important components of electric car batteries.” , says a statement issued by the Mongolian government. 6/2023).

Tesla’s investment interest in Mongolia is not surprising, where the country is known to be rich in minerals and has large reserves of copper, gold and coal.

“The Mongolian government is committed to working with international organizations to help encourage the development of new technologies and increase investment in the country,” the statement said.

A statement from the Mongolian government’s cabinet secretariat added that the country’s prime minister stressed his support for the use of electric cars and urged Mongolians to use the vehicles.

In addition to Tesla’s investment, Musk and Oyun-Erdene also talked about bringing Starlink, a satellite communications terminal and service provider operated by SpaceX, to Mongolia.

Starlink is registered as a company in Mongolia in 2022 and is expected to launch regionally this year.

Musk’s meeting with the Mongolian leader comes after the tech billionaire met with Chinese Vice Premier Ding Xuexiang and other senior officials in China last week, as Beijing seeks to introduce a welcoming business environment for people. foreign companies in a context of tensions with the United States.

Technological advancements in China have also received praise. Elon Musk also had the opportunity to visit the Tesla gigafactory in Shanghai.