Russian President Vladimir Putin said he could see himself buying a Tesla, though he thinks cars that run on gas are better for saving the planet.
Putin, whose homeland is one of the biggest oil producers in the world, said Wednesday he would be interested in driving a Tesla. The Russian President was speaking during an energy forum in Moscow. Putin said he had tried driving various foreign electric cars and that it is not all carts and tanks that people drive in his country.
During the plenary session at the Energy Week, when asked whether he could see himself buying a Tesla car, Putin replied: ‘Why not?’ The Russian leader said he likes the ‘light, fast and efficient’ electric vehicles made by U.S. and Japanese producers.
However, Vladimir Putin added that while Tesla and the other electric vehicles are just praised to the skies as environmentally friendly, since they are still charged using an energy grid that makes heavy use of fossil fuels, particularly coal, they are not as clean as their reputation suggests.
The Russian leader is well-known to have a collection of cars that could count as many as 700 ultra-luxury cars. The fleet also includes high-end car collections. Many of his cars are built in Germany and Russia, including Mercedes Benz collection and LADA range. The fleet is also reported to have a number of rare and supercars as Ferrari, Lamborghini, Bentley, and even a Formula 1.
