billionaire businessman Elon Musk On Monday he said he was considering “significant investments in France” as he visited the country for a summit aimed at attracting foreign business leaders.
The world’s second richest man, who is the chief executive of an electric car firm Teslasocial media company Twitter and Space Exploration Organization spacexHe made the remarks after meeting President Emmanuel Macron and Economy Minister Bruno Le Maire.
“I am very impressed with President Macron and the French government and how welcoming they have been to the industry,” said the 51-year-old South African.
“I am confident that Tesla will make significant investments in France in the future.”
Le Maire said France would “continue discussions” with the businessman, but declined to share any further details.
Macron and Musk had earlier met at the Elysee Palace before heading to Versailles for the latest edition of the Select France conference of presidents, where Macron is looking to ramp up investment in the country.
“We talked about the attractiveness of France and the important progress it has made in the electric vehicle and energy sectors,” Macron later wrote on Twitter.
“We have a lot to do together,” he said.
Musk smiled and waved to reporters during the meeting, but did not comment.
Finance Minister Bruno Le Maire told broadcaster BFMTV that “negotiations are ongoing” with the magnates.
Le Maire gave no details of Monday’s conversation with Musk, saying only that “all of today’s investments are the fruit of months or years of negotiations”.
choose france
In another tweet, Macron said investments of around 13 billion euros would be announced at the summit, equivalent to the creation of around 8,000 jobs.
“When a foreign investor chooses France, it is good for jobs and for our regions,” he said.
Around 200 foreign business owners are expected at the summit, including Sunil Bharti Mittal of Indian conglomerate Bharti Enterprises, ArcelorMittal chief Lakshmi Mittal and Nokia chief executive Pekka Lundmark.
The meeting is being held at the Palace of Versailles, the former residence of the French emperors, around which a tight security perimeter has been set up.
Macron remains the target of angry protests after signing his controversial pension reform law last month, prompting fresh allegations from the opposition that he was only a president for the rich.
An investment of more than five billion euros has already been confirmed last week by Taiwanese battery maker Prologium to build a new factory in northern France for its first European plant.
In other projects, Swedish furniture giant Ikea is announcing investments of more than 900 million euros in France until 2026, including the construction of a logistics center near Toulouse.
In pharmaceuticals, Pfizer is injecting an additional 500 million euros and Britain’s GSK almost 400 million into France
During a US visit in December, Macron had an undisclosed one-on-one meeting with Musk, which the latter said the two had “frank and honest” discussions during an hour-long meeting including electric cars and batteries.
He also conveyed to Musk his – and Europe’s – concerns about content moderation on Twitter since Musk bought the influential platform.
Macron confirmed the pair “also talked about digital regulation” in their Paris meeting.