By Scott Kanowsky
Investing.com -- Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) has been in talks with Glencore PLC (LON:GLEN) over the electric carmaker potentially taking a stake in the Swiss commodities group, according to a report in the Financial Times.
Preliminary negotiations over billionaire Elon Musk's Tesla purchasing between 10% - 20% of Glencore first started last year, the FT said, citing two people familiar with the situation.
But these discussions hit a snag in March 2022 after Tesla posed concerns over the environmental impact of Glencore's coal mining operations.
Global vehicle manufacturers are racing to nail down their raw material supply sources as firms across the automobile industry plan to transition to selling more electric cars.
Tesla has already signed a so-called offtake agreement - or a long-term deal to secure raw material sources - with Glencore. But Musk has tweeted that Tesla may need to "get into [...] mining & refining directly at scale" to stem potential supply chain disruptions and improve costs.
Tesla and Glencore did not officially comment on the story.
Shares in Glencore fell in early trading in London on Monday.