Saudi billionaire investor Prince Alwaleed bin Talal told CNBC on Monday that electric cars will eventually hurt the demand for oil.
“All other companies are going into the Tesla path of electric cars and even autonomous cars, … so five, 10, 20 years [from now] there is no doubt the dependence on oil will have to diminish,” he said in an interview on “Squawk Box.”
Alwaleed, chairman of Kingdom Holding, said cars account for more than 70 percent of oil consumption, so his country must anticipate a world with lower demand for oil.
“Saudi Arabia’s move to reduce its dependence on oil is very important and smart,” he said.
“We would like to celebrate when we export the last drop of oil and be dependent on other sources of wealth.”
On Tesla, the investor isn’t a buyer at these levels.
“Maybe some people believe the value is right. It’s not for me to enter [at] that price. It’s too exuberant for me right now,” he said.
Alwaleed said he bought a stake in ride-sharing company Lyft because he was able to get a “better entry point” in terms of valuation versus its competitor Uber.
The prince spoke to CNBC from the headquarters of his Kingdom Holding in Riyadh.
Tesla shares are up more than 60 percent this year.
Source: Tech CNBC
Tesla's stock price is 'too exuberant for me,' Saudi Prince Alwaleed says