Tesla is a household name, but few people have heard of the Loan Programs Office (LPO), one of Tesla’s crucial early backers. Part of the US Department of Energy, the LPO is tasked with awarding government-backed loans to clean-tech. In 2010, it loaned Tesla $465 million to help it weather the fallout from the financial crisis and build out the production of the Model S. With the signing of the Inflation Reduction Act last summer, the LPO was supercharged. It now has more than $400 billion to help the US achieve its climate goals. 

Jigar Shah is the director of the LPO and joins Zero to give an exclusive on the organization's biggest ever loan: $9.2 billion to BlueOval SK, a joint venture between US auto giant Ford and South Korean battery manufacturer SK On. The money will be used to build battery factories for Ford’s growing line of electric vehicles. Jigar explains why he chose to make this loan, how it fits into President Joe Biden’s electric vehicle ambitions, and how he deals with the risks of investing in pioneering technologies.  

Read more: 
Read Bloomberg's deep dive on the Ford loan.
The Department of Energy’s liftoff reports
Article: Tesla’s shrewdest product is proving to be its charging network
Article: Ford’s electric pickup is built from metal that’s damaging the Amazon
A transcript of this episode

Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Oscar Boyd and our senior producer is Christine Driscoll. Special thanks to Ari Natter, Keith Naughton, Gabriella Coppola and Kira Bindrim. Email us at zeropod@bloomberg.net. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit bloomberg.com/green.

Tesla is a household name, but few people have heard of the Loan Programs Office (LPO), one of Tesla’s crucial early backers. Part of the US Department of Energy, the LPO is tasked with awarding government-backed loans to clean-tech. In 2010, it loaned Tesla $465 million to help it weather the fallout from the financial crisis and build out the production of the Model S. With the signing of the Inflation Reduction Act last summer, the LPO was supercharged. It now has more than $400 billion to help the US achieve its climate goals. Jigar Shah is the director of the LPO and joins Zero to give an exclusive on the organization's biggest ever loan: $9.2 billion to BlueOval SK, a joint venture between US auto giant Ford and South Korean battery manufacturer SK On. The money will be used to build battery factories for Ford’s growing line of electric vehicles. Jigar explains why he chose to make this loan, how it fits into President Joe Biden’s electric vehicle ambitions, and how he deals with the risks of investing in pioneering technologies.  
Read more: 
<ul>
<li aria-level="1">Read Bloomberg's <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2023-ford-ev-battery-plant-funding-biden-green-technology/">deep dive</a> on the Ford loan.</li>
<li aria-level="1">The Department of Energy’s <a href="https://liftoff.energy.gov/">liftoff reports</a></li>
<li aria-level="1">Article: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/features/2023-06-11/tesla-dominant-in-us-charging-invites-ford-gm-evs-to-fuel-up">Tesla’s shrewdest product is proving to be its charging network</a></li>
<li aria-level="1">Article: <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/graphics/2023-ford-f150-electric-car-rainforest-damage/">Ford’s electric pickup is built from metal that’s damaging the Amazon</a></li>
<li aria-level="1">A <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2023-06-22/-zero-podcast-transcript-a-9-billion-deal-to-supercharge-cleantech">transcript</a> of this episode</li>
</ul>
Zero is a production of Bloomberg Green. Our producer is Oscar Boyd and our senior producer is Christine Driscoll. Special thanks to Ari Natter, Keith Naughton, Gabriella Coppola and Kira Bindrim. Email us at zeropod@bloomberg.net. For more coverage of climate change and solutions, visit <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/green">bloomberg.com/green</a>.

Zero is about the tactics and technologies taking us to a world of zero emissions. Each week Bloomberg’s award-winning reporter Akshat Rathi talks to the people tackling climate change – a venture capitalist hunting for the best cleantech investment, scientists starting companies, politicians who have successfully created climate laws, and CEOs who have completely transformed their businesses. The road to zero emissions has many paths and everyone’s got an opinion about the best route. Listen in.

Zero: The Climate Race

Zero

Meet the man with $400 billion to supercharge climate tech

https://api.omny.fm/orgs/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/clips/5c01956f-a703-4e8e-87d9-b02700f4d045/transcript

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