Elon Musk’s Tesla given go-ahead to supply electricity in Great Britain

Elon Musk’s Tesla has won approval to supply electricity to households and businesses across Great Britain, as the tech billionaire expands his energy ambitions.The energy regulator, Ofgem, has formally granted Tesla an electricity supply licence, enabling it to provide electricity to domestic and business premises in England, Scotland and Wales.The company is expected to replicate its supply business in Texas, where it is branded as Tesla Electric and offers to help customers power “your home, electric vehicle and community with low-cost sustainable electricity”.However, Tesla’s electricity licence means it cannot offer a dual fuel contract to households. It could supply a customer’s electricity if they had a separate tariff agreement for their gas supply.In Texas the company already operates a “virtual power plant” that allows Tesla owners to charge their cars cheaply and then pays them for selling electricity stored in its Powerwall home batteries back to the grid.In Britain the “virtual power plant” for Powerwall owners is offered through Octopus Energy, another household energy supplier.Tesla does not report how many Powerwalls it has sold in Britain but it has sold more than 250,000 electric vehicles.The carmaker’s sales have slumped in the UK and much of mainland Europe in the past year amid tougher competition in the electric car market and controversy around Musk’s politics.Tesla’s UK sales fell 37% from 3,852 to 2,422 in February compared with the same period last year, according to the latest figures from the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders.It estimated that Tesla’s market share in the UK stands at 1.34% in the year to date, below its Chinese rival BYD at 2.64% and BMW at 5.43%.Sales were hurt in part by a buyer backlash against Musk’s support for Donald Trump and a period working in the president’s administration. In his role at the “department of government efficiency”, or Doge, the billionaire led sweeping job cuts, but he quit in May after falling out with Trump over the “big, beautiful” tax and spending bill.Musk also alienated customers through other political interventions, including appearing to give a Nazi salute at Trump’s victory rally, showing support for Germany’s far-right Alternative für Deutschland party, and accusing Keir Starmer and other senior UK politicians of covering up the scandal about grooming gangs.In December, Tesla launched a lower-priced version of its Model 3 car in Europe, in a push to revive sales. Musk has previously argued that the cheaper option would reinvigorate demand by appealing to a wider range of buyers.Tesla was approached for comment.