This expansion is composed of four initiatives.
Tesla has submitted plans for a $700 million expansion of the Texas Gigafactory plant in Austin to the Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation.
Plans for strategic expansion
The Texas Gigafactory is a huge manufacturing complex that is around a mile long.
There, Tesla started producing its Model Y cars. The vast complex is only partially occupied by the assembly lines.
The company intends to produce Cybertruck there and has talked about expanding the facility for the manufacturing of future vehicle programmes and batteries.
The Texas Department of Licensing and Regulation received an application from Tesla on January 9 asking for authorization to expand the facility, according to an Electrek story.
To be more precise, an additional 1.4 million square feet of space will be constructed for $717 million. The beginning of construction is anticipated by the end of the month.
Expected development
Four specific developments are part of the expansion, as reported by the Austin Business Journal.
The Cell 1 building is the largest of his four planned buildings at 693,093 square feet. It is also the most expensive project at an estimated US$368 million. From January 23rd to February 2nd. Construction of the project is scheduled for December 12, 2024.
The second largest project, the drive unit, will cover 423,032 square feet. The value of this business is $85 million. Construction work is scheduled to start on February 6th and last until January 1st. 15th, 2024.
$TSLA | Tesla submits an application to expand its Texas Gigafactory by a significant $700 million.
— Benzinga (@Benzinga) January 10, 2023
At 321,186 square feet and priced at $260 million, Cathode will be his third-largest project by total square footage. This operation began on January 30th and ended on December 18th.
The smallest of the four initiatives is the Cell Test Lab. It will be 2,560 square feet larger than the standard Starbucks and cost an estimated $3.7 million. The project begins on January 30 and ends on August 25.
A portion of the expansion documentation may, in the meantime, be an update to an existing plan.
For instance, recent drone flyovers of the Cathode plant construction site demonstrate that the facility has already started to be built. The projects, according to Tesla, “include ground up and complete interior finish out of the [electric vehicle] manufacturing plant.”
The Gigafactory Texas facility will soon start producing the Gen 3 vehicle platform, which includes the Tesla Semi and Tesla Bot.
Recent News
In November 2022, a lawsuit was connected to the Texas Gigafactory before this highly encouraging development.
A group of workers who contributed to the building of one of Tesla’s massive Gigafactories intended to lodge a complaint and refer a case to the US Department of Labor.
These employees allegedly charged Tesla management with grave labour and employment violations that exposed them to the risk of mishaps and payment fraud.