Gigafactory 1

Steve Jurvetson on a tour of Tesla Gigafactory 1.
Elon Musk on a March 2015 tour of the construction of Gigafactory 1.

The Tesla Gigafactory 1[1] is a lithium-ion battery factory currently under construction being built primarily for Tesla Motors at the Tahoe Reno Industrial Center in Storey County, Nevada, US,[2][3] slated to be operational by 2017.[4] The projected cost to build the facility is approximately US$5 billion.[5] Nevada Governor Brian Sandoval estimates that Nevada would enjoy $100 billion in economic benefit over two decades from the construction of this factory.[6]

When Gigafactory 1 comes online, Tesla expects to achieve a minimum of 30% reduction in production cost for their car battery packs. By 2020, the Gigafactory is projected to achieve a production capacity of 35 GWh/year of cells and 50 GWh/year of battery packs,[7] which would employ approximately 6,500 people and supply 500,000 Tesla cars per year.[4][5][8]

In July 2014, it was announced that Panasonic has reached a basic agreement with Tesla Motors to invest in the factory.[9][10]

The 18650-size battery cells produced at the factory can be put in various devices such as drones, toys, and Grid energy storage.[11]

Elon Musk has said that the building is diamond shaped to fit with the environment and reduce the amount of earth moved for construction. It points to true north to enable placement of equipment with GPS.[12]

Factory location

Several sites were initially considered, including California),[13][14] Arizona, Nevada, New Mexico and Texas. As of June 2014, Tesla was looking at two or three states for locating the Gigafactory. The intent was to complete plans and gain approvals at all three locations before making a final choice. Tesla did not expect to make "a downselect for Gigafactory 1 before the end of [2014]."[15]

On September 3, 2014, the Reno-Tahoe Industrial Center in Storey County near Reno, Nevada was selected as the final location of the Gigafactory with a $1.25 billion incentive grants from the State of Nevada in the form of tax breaks and perks.[16][17]

Grading had already begun prior to the September announcement during the summer of 2014, with vertical construction reported by January of 2015.[18] Tesla and its partners intend to complete the facility before 2020.[8]

Future Gigafactories

On the 30th April 2015, Elon Musk announced that the factory heretofore known simply as the Gigafactory was now known as Gigafactory 1. Musk mentioned that Tesla plans to build more such factories in the future. At the same event, Musk also said that he believed that other companies would build their own similar "Gigafactories".[1]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 "Elon Musk Debuts the Tesla Powerwall". YouTube. 30 April 2015. Retrieved 1 May 2015.
  2. ↑ "Tahoe Reno Industrial Center". Retrieved September 22, 2014.
  3. ↑ http://www.nytimes.com/2014/09/05/business/energy-environment/nevada-a-winner-in-teslas-battery-contest.html?_r=0
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 "Planned 2020 Gigafactory Production Exceeds 2013 Global Production" (PDF). February 26, 2014. Retrieved 2014-06-05.
  5. ↑ 5.0 5.1 Cuthbertson, Anthony (March 20, 2014). "Tesla to Create World's Largest Lithium-ion Battery Factory". IBT. Retrieved 2014-06-12.
  6. ↑ "Nevada Lures Tesla Plant With $1.3 Billion in Tax Breaks".
  7. ↑ "Panasonic to pour billions of yen in Tesla's gigafactory as initial investment". ZDNet. October 7, 2014. Retrieved October 9, 2014.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Gigafactory | Blog | Tesla Motors". teslamotors.com. Retrieved 2014-06-12.
  9. ↑ "Panasonic, Tesla agree to partnership for US car battery plant". Nikkei Inc. July 29, 2014. Retrieved 2014-08-01.
  10. ↑ John Kell (July 31, 2014). "Tesla, Panasonic team up to build Gigafactory". Fortune. Retrieved 2014-09-17.
  11. ↑ "Elon Musk's 'gigafactory' seen transforming power industry as much as Tesla cars". The Sydney Morning Herald. Retrieved October 9, 2014.
  12. ↑ Elon Musk announces the Tesla Gigafactory New 2015
  13. ↑ “California's ‘Improbable’ Bid To Land Tesla's Gigafactory”, Forbes, May 26, 2014
  14. ↑ “California makes big plans to land Tesla battery ‘gigafactory’”, San Jose Mercury-News, June 6, 2014
  15. ↑ Tesla Motors, Inc. 2014 Annual Shareholder Meeting, June 3, 2014, event at 52:30.
  16. ↑ "Reports: Tesla Selects Nevada as Giga Battery Factory Site". Retrieved October 9, 2014.
  17. ↑ http://www.tahoereno.com/
  18. ↑ http://www.rgj.com/picture-gallery/news/2015/01/08/tesla-construction/21467201/

Further reading

Coordinates: 39°32′31″N 119°26′24″W / 39.542°N 119.440°W