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Amazon to help boost oil production amid Climate Pledge, Rivian van orders
Just a few weeks ago, Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos announced that his company would be purchasing 100,000 Rivian electric vans to deliver its packages, as well as provide more eco-friendly packaging. The decisions were made after employees demanded he take the necessary steps to reduce the carbon footprint the e-commerce giant was causing. Bezos complied, alleviating the possible strike that Amazon employees were poised to take part in.
It finally seemed like one of the world’s biggest companies was taking an environmental approach to its business model, but that may not entirely be the case. As revealed by a press release from Weatherford, one of the world’s leading oilfield service companies, Amazon was one of the main contributors to the U.S. Oil and Gas Industry’s “Production 4.0” forum at the Enterprise Software Conference in Houston, Texas. The forum’s theme was simple — it centers on the development of technology that can accelerate and improve oil production.
“Weatherford Production 4.0 products, including ForeSite Edge, ForeSite Platform, CygNet Platform and ForeSite Sense, activate field-wide intelligence to maximize production. Weatherford delivers the future of production performance through next-generation automation, IoT infrastructure and advanced optimization software to boost production, uptime and efficiency,” Manoj Nimbalkar, Weatherford’s Global VP of Production Automation and Software, said.
The irony of Amazon’s decision to join this conference is notable. The company, after all, previously committed to delivering its new, environmentally-conscious packages via electric vehicle just a few short weeks ago, and now is helping the oil industry thrive. The future of gas and oil will not only contribute to the global climate crisis, but it also contributes to the decision to not have large corporations take a more environmentally-aggressive approach to the operations of their businesses. The influence Amazon might have carried with its decision to rely less on fossil fuels to power its vehicles could have convinced other companies to follow in its footsteps.
Bezos gained the respect of many eco-friendly groups when he announced his partnership with Rivian. The CEO invested $700M into the electric automaker in February 2019, making the impression that he and his company would begin gearing up for a future that would not include operating on fossil fuels. But when the company began its “Climate Pledge” in mid-September at the National Press Club, details were vague. Bezos was nevertheless adamant about doing his part to help reach the specifics of the Paris Agreement, and even took an aggressive line by stating that he wanted to accomplish the goals 10 years early. Despite the fact that the US will pull out of the agreement on behalf of President Donald Trump later this year, Amazon, at least at the time, have the impression that it was doing its part to contribute to environmental sustainability.
-->But unfortunately, the old saying “actions speak louder than words” is all too true here. All while Bezos and Amazon were taking the necessary steps to reduce its carbon footprint and become a company that will help the planet, it appears that they were putting an effort to help advance oil and gas companies just the same. It appears they have taken two steps forward and three steps back with this news. After all, when Bezos was asked at the National Press Club meeting in Washington, D.C. if he would sever ties with oil companies that Amazon supports, he gave a firm “No.”
Ten-thousand Rivian vans boasting the Amazon logo are due to hit the road and begin delivering packages in 2021, and the remaining 90,000 will be ready before 2030. It also intends to utilize Earth-friendly packaging materials, apart of the “Shipment Zero” plan, by the end of 2019. But the announcement of Amazon’s participation seems to somewhat derail, or at least delay, any ideas that the company was interested in becoming a sustainable company. After promising employees that it would begin an effort to become “green”, is Amazon really sincere in its efforts to help the climate after all?
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Tesla Europe rolls out FSD ride-alongs in the Netherlands’ holiday campaign
The festive event series comes amid Tesla’s ongoing push for regulatory approval of FSD across Europe.
Tesla Europe has announced that its “Future Holidays” campaign will feature Full Self-Driving (Supervised) ride-along experiences in the Netherlands.
The festive event series comes amid Tesla’s ongoing push for regulatory approval of FSD across Europe.
The Holiday program was announced by Tesla Europe & Middle East in a post on X. “Come get in the spirit with us. Featuring Caraoke, FSD Supervised ride-along experiences, holiday light shows with our S3XY lineup & more,” the company wrote in its post on X.
Per the program’s official website, fun activities will include Caraoke sessions and light shows with the S3XY vehicle lineup. It appears that Optimus will also be making an appearance at the events. Tesla even noted that the humanoid robot will be in “full party spirit,” so things might indeed be quite fun.
“This season, we’re introducing you to the fun of the future. Register for our holiday events to meet our robots, see if you can spot the Bot to win prizes, and check out our selection of exclusive merchandise and limited-edition gifts. Discover Tesla activities near you and discover what makes the future so festive,” Tesla wrote on its official website.
-->This announcement aligns with Tesla’s accelerating FSD efforts in Europe, where supervised ride-alongs could help demonstrate the tech to regulators and customers. The Netherlands, with its urban traffic and progressive EV policies, could serve as an ideal and valuable testing ground for FSD.
Tesla is currently hard at work pushing for the rollout of FSD to several European countries. Tesla has received approval to operate 19 FSD test vehicles on Spain’s roads, though this number could increase as the program develops. As per the Dirección General de Tráfico (DGT), Tesla would be able to operate its FSD fleet on any national route across Spain. Recent job openings also hint at Tesla starting FSD tests in Austria. Apart from this, the company is also holding FSD demonstrations in Germany, France, and Italy.
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Tesla sees sharp November rebound in China as Model Y demand surges
New data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) shows a 9.95% year-on-year increase and a 40.98% jump month-over-month.
Tesla’s sales momentum in China strengthened in November, with wholesale volumes rising to 86,700 units, reversing a slowdown seen in October.
New data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) shows a 9.95% year-on-year increase and a 40.98% jump month-over-month. This was partly driven by tightened delivery windows, targeted marketing, and buyers moving to secure vehicles before changes to national purchase tax incentives take effect.
Tesla’s November rebound coincided with a noticeable spike in Model Y interest across China. Delivery wait times extended multiple times over the month, jumping from an initial 2–5 weeks to estimated handovers in January and February 2026 for most five-seat variants. Only the six-seat Model Y L kept its 4–8 week estimated delivery timeframe.
The company amplified these delivery updates across its Chinese social media channels, urging buyers to lock in orders early to secure 2025 delivery slots and preserve eligibility for current purchase tax incentives, as noted in a CNEV Post report. Tesla also highlighted that new inventory-built Model Y units were available for customers seeking guaranteed handovers before December 31.
This combination of urgency marketing and genuine supply-demand pressure seemed to have helped boost November’s volumes, stabilizing what had been a year marked by several months of year-over-year declines.
-->For the January–November period, Tesla China recorded 754,561 wholesale units, an 8.30% decline compared to the same period last year. The company’s Shanghai Gigafactory continues to operate as both a domestic production base and a major global export hub, building the Model 3 and Model Y for markets across Asia, Europe, and the Middle East, among other territories.
Tesla bear Michael Burry got blunt with his beliefs over the company’s valuation, which he called “ridiculously overvalued” in a newsletter to subscribers this past weekend.
“Tesla’s market capitalization is ridiculously overvalued today and has been for a good long time,” Burry, who was the inspiration for the movie The Big Short, and was portrayed by Christian Bale.
Burry went on to say, “As an aside, the Elon cult was all-in on electric cars until competition showed up, then all-in on autonomous driving until competition showed up, and now is all-in on robots — until competition shows up.”
Tesla bear Michael Burry ditches bet against $TSLA, says ‘media inflated’ the situation
For a long time, Burry has been skeptical of Tesla, its stock, and its CEO, Elon Musk, even placing a $530 million bet against shares several years ago. Eventually, Burry’s short position extended to other supporters of the company, including ARK Invest.
Tesla has long drawn skepticism from investors and more traditional analysts, who believe its valuation is overblown. However, the company is not traded as a traditional stock, something that other Wall Street firms have recognized.
While many believe the company has some serious pull as an automaker, an identity that helped it reach the valuation it has, Tesla has more than transformed into a robotics, AI, and self-driving play, pulling itself into the realm of some of the most recognizable stocks in tech.
Burry’s Scion Asset Management has put its money where its mouth is against Tesla stock on several occasions, but the firm has not yielded positive results, as shares have increased in value since 2020 by over 115 percent. The firm closed in May.
In 2020, it launched its short position, but by October 2021, it had ditched that position.
Tesla has had a tumultuous year on Wall Street, dipping significantly to around the $220 mark at one point. However, it rebounded significantly in September, climbing back up to the $400 region, as it currently trades at around $430.
It closed at $430.14 on Monday.
Tesla Europe rolls out FSD ride-alongs in the Netherlands’ holiday campaign
Tesla sees sharp November rebound in China as Model Y demand surges
