Bird's eye view of Gigafactory in California

Gigafactory

Join us in nevada.

Located less than an hour from Lake Tahoe, Gigafactory Nevada is one of the world's highest volume plants for electric motors, energy storage products, vehicle powertrains and batteries—producing billions of cells per year. Now, we’re continuing to grow Gigafactory Nevada with two new facilities: a 100 GWh 4680 cell factory and our first high-volume Semi factory.

Join us as we accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy.

Tesla manufacturing employee

Manufacturing

Help us build the future of sustainable energy by building the batteries and powertrains that make it run. This factory will also manufacture our fully electric truck, Semi—it’s a beast.

Apply  to lead a motivated team to achieve ambitious quality and production goals

Apply to improve the devices, equipment and systems critical to our production lines

Production Associate

Apply to get on-the-job training and work across all areas of manufacturing—no prior experience required

Engineers at Tesla's Gigafactory

Employee Benefits 

Comprehensive benefits from day one and options available with zero out-of-pocket paycheck deductions

Personal Benefits

Full medical, dental and vision coverage

Maternity and paternity leave

Competitive starting wage and 401(k) matching

Generous paid time off and flexible scheduling

Discounted stock purchase program

Discounted accessories and upgrades, including free Full Self-Driving

Free shuttles, monthly carpool subsidies and Bike to Work Earning Program

Free EV charging

Discounts on dining, travel, cellular, fitness resources and more

Factory Conveniences

Cafeterias, food trucks and outdoor patios

In-house medical support

On-site training centers

Gyms at select locations

Rethink the future of sustainable energy

Tesla participates in the E-Verify Program .

Tesla is an Equal Opportunity / Affirmative Action employer committed to diversity in the workplace. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, age, national origin, disability, protected veteran status, gender identity or any other factor protected by applicable federal, state or local laws.

Tesla is also committed to working with and providing reasonable accommodations to individuals with disabilities. Please let your recruiter know if you need an accommodation at any point during the interview process.

For quick access to screen reading technology compatible with this site,  download a free compatible screen reader ( view the free step-by-step tutorial ).

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Tesla Factory Tours & Parties

Tesla now has three Gigafactories around the world. There is one running in America in Nevada, California and Buffalo, New York, as well as one in Shanghai, China. On top of that, Tesla has it’s first factory in Freemont, California, which is not a “Giga” per se, but still one of their most important factories!

The newer two Gigafactories are in Austin, Texas, and Berlin, Germany. Both of which are due to open in the first half of 2022.

One of the questions most people have about Tesla’s Gigafactories is – Can I get a tour of a Tesla factory?

Unfortunately, Tesla does not provide regular factory tours at any of their Gigafactories. However, under exceptional circumstances, people have gotten in to tour their factories.

Table of Contents

Giga Berlin Factory Tour & Party

The most recent example was at Giga Berlin, on the 9th October 2021 where Tesla threw a huge festival and party, and provided tours at the not yet complete Gigafactory.

They revealed a lot of new technology during the factory tour including 4680 cells and structural packs, Giga castings, new LED lights and much more. It was a rare chance for Berlin locals to get a look at the electric revolution that Tesla is currently leading!

Giga Texas Factory Tour & Party

Likewise, Elon Musk has stated that a Giga Texas Grand Opening Party along with factory tours, is also on the cards. And many believe it is slated for either March or April 2022.

Keep your eye out if you live in the area as tickets tend to go insanely fast!

BREAKING: Giga Texas party in early 2022! https://t.co/oBcKNGDBQm — Sawyer Merritt (@SawyerMerritt) December 19, 2021

Tesla Fremont Factory

Most Tesla factory tours have happened in their Freemont factory, however, it is still not something you can book easily.

Usually, it is some Youtube celebrity accompanied by Elon Musk or a major media outlet that gets the factory tour, but you never know your luck. If you live close by and purchase a Tesla, be sure to ask the delivery center and maybe you can find a way inside!

Here is Marques Brownlee touring the Tesla Freemont factory with Elon.

Giga Nevada Factory Tour

Again, Tesla rarely lets anyone take a factory tour at Giga Nevada, but some media outlets have managed to get inside. Of course, Tesla has to keep a lot of their technology secret, and a factory floor is not the safest place in the world, so it is kind of understandable.

Here is a video of a Giga Nevada tour that CNBC managed to get.

Giga New York Factory Tour

The long-forgotten New York Giga Factory 2 in Buffalo is also important to Tesla, producing solar roof tiles and other automotive parts for the company. Again, it is almost impossible to get in, but here is a video we found showing a lot of the factory operations.

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Visit the Tesla Factory: A Comprehensive Guide to Touring the Birthplace of Electric Cars

Tesla is one of the largest electric vehicle manufacturers in the world, with factories all over the globe. While the Fremont Factory was their first manufacturing site, they have since expanded to include Gigafactories in Nevada, Shanghai, New York, Texas, and Berlin, with more on the way.

Many people wonder if it’s possible to visit the Tesla factories, Gigafactories, or headquarters. The good news is that you can indeed visit the Tesla factory, and there are opportunities to tour some of their other facilities as well. In this article, we’ll explore how to arrange a visit to the Tesla factory and what to expect when you get there.

Tesla Factories Visit

If you’re a Tesla owner or potential owner, you might have heard that it’s possible to visit the Tesla factory. But what’s the truth? Is the Tesla factory open to the public for regular tours? Well, the answer is a bit more complicated than a simple yes or no.

Tesla Owners and Potential Owners

If you’re a Tesla owner or potential owner, you’re in luck! Tesla offers factory tours for Tesla owners. You’ll get to see where your vehicle was made and experience the lively culture of the factory. You’ll also get to see the various processes that a Tesla car goes through during production.

To get a factory tour, you’ll need to go through a specific process, even if you’re a potential owner. However, if you’re enthusiastic about getting a tour, you can convince Tesla to help you out.

Tesla Employee

If you have a friend who works at the Tesla factory, you might be able to schedule a tour with the tour team. For employees of the company or the factory, it’s easier to schedule an appointment for a tour.

If you don’t have a friend who works at the factory, it might be a bit more difficult to schedule a tour. However, it’s not impossible.

Work in Tesla

Another way to visit the Tesla factory is to try and work there. Tesla offers different types of jobs in their company, not just for engineers. They’re interested in hiring dedicated and skill-driven people from any discipline.

If you’re enthusiastic about working at Tesla, you can plan on applying for a job there. By working at Tesla, you’ll get to see more than you would as a tourist on a factory tour. However, keep in mind that working at Tesla requires a lot of hard work.

In conclusion, if you’re a Tesla owner or potential owner, you have a good chance of getting a tour of the Tesla factory. If you have a friend who works at the factory, it might be easier to schedule a tour. And if you’re interested in working at Tesla, you might be able to see even more of the factory.

Tesla Headquarters Visit

While Tesla factories are open to the public, it’s a different story when it comes to the headquarters. The headquarters are not open to the public due to the highly confidential nature of the information kept there. The designs for their previous and future cars and other devices like robots are kept at the headquarters, making it a highly sensitive area.

However, it’s possible for people who work under the company to visit the headquarters. Executives of other top-notch companies can also visit if they are invited for a meeting. Additionally, if someone is there to conduct an important interview, they can go in with permission.

It’s important to note that the headquarters are not as interesting as the factory. It only includes a bunch of desks along with computers where they keep their vital information.

Here are some key takeaways regarding a visit to the Tesla headquarters:

  • The headquarters are not open to regular tourists due to the confidential nature of the information kept there.
  • Only people who work under the company, executives of other top-notch companies, and those with permission to conduct an important interview can visit the headquarters.
  • The headquarters are not as interesting as the factory and only include desks and computers where vital information is kept.

Overall, while the headquarters are not open to the public, Tesla factories are open for tours. Visitors can learn about the manufacturing process and see the innovative technology used to create Tesla vehicles.

Gigafactories and Tesla

Tesla is a company that has been growing rapidly over the years. One of the major aspects of this growth is the construction of their Gigafactories. Gigafactories are massive production facilities that are used for the manufacturing of Tesla’s electric vehicles and energy storage products.

One of the first Gigafactories built by Tesla was Gigafactory 1, located in Nevada. While it was initially inaccessible to the public, it is now open for tours from Tuesday through Friday. The company has added several sections to make the tours more exciting and informative.

However, not all Gigafactories are currently available for tours. For instance, the Texas Gigafactory, which was opened in 2022, is only accessible for invite-only events. The company has not yet opened it for regular tours, but it is expected to be opened to the public in the future.

Similarly, the Berlin Gigafactory is not yet open for public tours. The visitor area is still under construction, and visitors will have to wait until the main building is completed before they can take public tours.

It is worth noting that in the past, access to Gigafactory tours was limited to a selected few people who were members of the investment community or owners of Tesla who referred someone else for buying a Tesla Model S or Tesla Model X. However, the company has since opened up the tours to the public, making it possible for anyone to visit and learn more about Tesla’s manufacturing process.

In summary, while some Gigafactories are open for public tours, others are not yet accessible to the public. However, Tesla is constantly expanding and improving its facilities, and it is expected that more Gigafactories will be opened to the public in the future.

Tesla Factory Tour Activities

If you are lucky enough to schedule a Tesla factory tour, you will enjoy a 60-minute tour of the factory. However, in some cases, the tour can last for 75-90 minutes, depending on the location and current tour processes.

In some Gigafactories, visitors are not allowed to walk around the factory on their own. Instead, they are offered a ride on a tram, which will take them around the factory with a tour guide. The tour guide will provide detailed information about the factory and answer any questions visitors may have.

On the other hand, some Gigafactories offer walking tours, allowing visitors to explore the factory on foot. The tour guide will accompany visitors and provide information about the factory.

Tesla factory tours are an excellent opportunity for visitors to learn about the company’s manufacturing processes and innovations. Visitors can see firsthand how Tesla produces its electric vehicles and learn about the company’s commitment to sustainability.

Tesla Factory Tour Requirements: Dos and Don’ts

To ensure a smooth and enjoyable Tesla factory tour experience, visitors must abide by certain rules and regulations. Tesla requires all visitors to provide a photo ID and sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) before entering the factory. Moreover, visitors must be at least 18 years old.

Tesla suggests that visitors wear flat and close-toe shoes, long pants, and sleeved shirts or tees. Sandals, heels, or ballet flats are strictly prohibited in Tesla factories.

Visitors are not allowed to take photos or record anything inside the factory. Doing so can result in legal action and the cancellation of the tour.

It is important to note that different tour locations may have additional requirements, and visitors should follow all guidelines provided by Tesla. Bringing family, friends, or guests may be limited or not allowed, depending on the location.

Overall, following these Tesla factory tour requirements will ensure a safe and enjoyable experience for everyone involved.

Visiting Tesla factories is an exciting opportunity for friends and family. However, it’s important to follow Tesla’s requirements to avoid tour cancellations or being denied entry. For more information, visit Tesla.com. Remember to keep paragraphs short and engage readers with a confident and knowledgeable tone.

Frequently Asked Questions

How to book a tour of a tesla factory.

To book a tour of a Tesla factory, you can visit the official Tesla website and visit the ‘Factory Tours’ page. From there, you can select the factory you want to visit and check the availability of the tours. You can also book a tour by calling the Tesla customer support team.

Are there any Tickets Required for Tesla Factory Tours?

Tesla factory tours are free of charge, but you need to book a reservation in advance. You can book a tour by visiting the Tesla website or by calling the Tesla customer support team. Tesla owners can bring up to three guests on the tour.

Where is the Tesla Fremont Factory Located?

The Tesla Fremont factory is located in Fremont, California, United States. The factory is situated at 45500 Fremont Blvd, Fremont, CA 94538.

What are the Operating Hours for the Tesla Fremont Factory Tours?

The Tesla Fremont factory tours are available from Monday to Friday, from 10:00 am to 2:00 pm. The tours last approximately 1.5 hours.

How Large is the Tesla Factory Located in Austin, Texas?

The Tesla factory located in Austin, Texas, is known as the Tesla Gigafactory Texas. The factory is spread over 2,100 acres, making it one of the largest factories in the world. The factory is expected to produce the Tesla Model Y, Tesla Semi, and Tesla Cybertruck.

What Job Opportunities are Available at the Tesla Texas Factory?

The Tesla Gigafactory Texas is expected to create thousands of job opportunities in the region. The factory is expected to employ engineers, technicians, factory workers, and administrative staff. Tesla has already started hiring for various positions at the Texas factory. You can visit the Tesla Careers website to check the available job opportunities.

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Tesla does not have tours for the public. very disapionting .

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Tesla’s new $3.6 billion Nevada investment includes a ‘high-volume’ Semi factory

The company is also planning a new battery cell factory and wants to hire more employees..

By Jay Peters , a news editor who writes about technology, video games, and virtual worlds. He’s submitted several accepted emoji proposals to the Unicode Consortium.

Share this story

A photo of the Nevada Gigafactory.

Tesla is investing more than $3.6 billion into its Reno, Nevada Gigafactory, and with part of the cash, it plans to build its “first high-volume Semi factory,” according to a blog post published Tuesday .

The company officially delivered the first of its long-delayed electric Semi trucks to PepsiCo in December , but it appears Tesla is ready to significantly expand its production of the new vehicle. However, Tesla’s blog post doesn’t specify how many trucks the factory might make on a regular basis or when it’s expected to open, so it might be awhile before that high volume kicks in.

In addition to the Semi factory, Tesla wants to use the Nevada investment to build a 100 GWh 4680 battery cell factory, which the company says will have “capacity to produce enough batteries for 2 million light duty vehicles annually,” as well as add 3,000 new employees to the facility. For context, the company says that the Gigafactory currently produces upwards of 37 GWh of batteries per year, enough for around 500,000 vehicles.

So far, Tesla says it has invested $6.2 billion in the Nevada Gigafactory and boasted about the battery cells the facility has produced. But Tesla has come under scrutiny for how the Gigafactory has changed the city of Reno and allegations that it covered up drug trafficking and spied on Gigafactory employees . The company also operates Gigafactories in New York, China, Germany, and Texas, and is reportedly planning one for Mexico .

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Tesla Gigafactory tour photo gallery: one engineer's report

John Voelcker

Last Friday, Tesla Motors opened the doors of its battery "gigafactory" outside Reno, Nevada, to an invited group of Tesla owners.

They toured the plant and heard presentations from CEO Elon Musk, among others.

It was a celebratory occasion, marked by many photos and lots of deep Tesla gossip and experience-swapping.

DON'T MISS: Tesla 'Master Plan' update defends Autopilot; electric SUV, pickup, autonomous bus coming

Debate continues over the size of the gigafactory—presently 14 percent of the announced size—and the true cost of the lithium-ion cells and battery packs it produces.

The photo gallery that accompanies this article was provided by midwestern Tesla owner Eric Jackson, who says he has "admired the company since 2008" and had a poster of the original Tesla Roadster in his office and in his laboratory.

"Since retiring this year," he writes, "my passion and mission in life is to promote sustainable living and, particularly, Tesla electric transport to the world."

Tour of Tesla battery gigafactory for invited owners, Reno, Nevada, July 2016

Tour of Tesla battery gigafactory for invited owners, Reno, Nevada, July 2016

Jackson described his experience on the tour:

We arrived early, where Tesla representatives greeted us and gave us our credentials. We walked into a large tent that looked like a lounge, with comfortable sofas and chairs, plus a nice stage with a disc jockey and live band.

CHECK OUT: Reactions to Tesla Motors' master plan are mixed

The tour of the factory itself was very impressive: sustainability and efficiency were the main themes. We were told that once the battery-making apparatus is up and running, the energy savings versus previous cell manufacturing will be 80 to 90 percent. Fully 90 percent of the operation will be automated, but the plant will still hire roughly 6,500 employees.  

The magnitude of the factory was impressive, as was the outstanding quality of engineering. I'm a chemical engineer who worked in manufacturing for a number of years, and I could tell that this is no turnkey operation.  Even though Panasonic will be making the battery cells inside the factory, this has Tesla’s fingerprints all over the design and operation.

Tour of Tesla battery gigafactory for invited owners, Reno, Nevada, July 2016

The chemicals including the solvents are in a closed system, so a very high recovery percentage goes back into the manufacturing. Not only is there a huge material cost savings, no chemicals are released, which means no pollution-control devices have to be implemented.

There will be no disruption to the neighborhood's air quality. Many chemical factories in the past have installed thermal oxidizers or other pollution control devices, but at the gigafactory, this is not necessary.

ALSO SEE: Cheaper leases on Tesla electric cars to run through Sept 30

As a Tesla owner, a stockholder, and an engineer, I was impressed with the present assembly of the Powerwall home energy-storage units and the future battery-cell manufacturing.

The expertise of the editors at Green Car Reports doesn't extend to evaluating lithium-ion cell fabrication and assembly equipment, but undoubtedly a few trained observers will be able to judge for themselves how modern—and perhaps cutting-edge—the present state of the gigafactory really is.

Tesla CTO JB Straubel and CEO Elon Musk presenting at gigafactory tour, Reno, Nevada, July 2016

Tesla CTO JB Straubel and CEO Elon Musk presenting at gigafactory tour, Reno, Nevada, July 2016

Meanwhile, Tesla will announce its second-quarter financial results tomorrow. CEO Musk is sure to face numerous questions about the acquisition of SolarCity—whose board he chairs—and the latest version of the company's Master Plan.

Other likely issues to be covered on the call include pressure for more specific data on Model S and Model X delivery rates, any changes to Model 3 reservation totals, and how quickly the Model 3 can realistically be put into production.

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Tour of Tesla battery gigafactory for invited owners, Reno, Nevada, July 2016

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Touring the Tesla Gigafactory: A Look Inside the World’s Largest Battery Plant

  • September 20, 2023 August 30, 2023

Tucked away near Reno, Nevada lies one of the most important sites in Tesla's master plan – the aptly named Gigafactory . This massive facility produces lithium-ion batteries for Tesla electric vehicles as well as Powerwall home energy storage units. It provides a captivating case study on the potential scale of renewable energy infrastructure .

Sprawling across 5.3 million square feet, the Gigafactory ranks among the world's largest buildings . Its roof houses a 70 megawatt solar array that generates all the power needed for battery production. Inside, vast machines churn out batteries using optimized chemistries and modular production lines.

While still ramping up production, the current factory has driven down per-kilowatt-hour battery costs by over 60% compared to Tesla's early packs. The company ultimately aims to achieve 100 Gigawatt hours of annual battery output, more than the entire world's production in 2014.

Achieving this will require continued expansion, with Tesla acquiring thousands of adjacent acres for more factory modules. Plans also call for on-site battery recycling to recover high-value materials.

For Tesla employees, working at such an ambitious cutting-edge facility provides immense pride. With the Gigafactory helping to accelerate global adoption of renewable energy, Tesla's bold vision is steadily becoming reality.

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What Tesla’s multibillion-dollar Gigafactory expansion means for Nevada

Sean Golonka

At the heart of the country’s largest industrial park, in the midst of the high desert just 20 miles east of Reno, sits the Nevada Gigafactory — a 5.4-million-square-foot facility where thousands of Tesla employees have produced millions of electric vehicle batteries over the past decade.

Since construction of the Gigafactory began in 2014 after a landmark $1 billion tax incentive deal approved by lawmakers in a special session, Tesla and the ever-growing Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center have significantly altered the Northern Nevada region. Unemployment has plummeted. Housing prices have surged. Storey County, once a desolate former mining community, is now a technology hub. State leaders envision the area as key to the country’s energy future.

But as Tesla prepares to make another multibillion-dollar investment and expand the Gigafactory — a move likely to land the world’s largest electric car manufacturer another round of major tax breaks — state officials have unanswered questions on what the new development means for the Northern Nevada economy, local infrastructure and housing.

One potential wrench in the plans for Storey County, already grappling with significant capital improvement needs: a rumored proposal to divert tax dollars from Tesla to nearby, better-populated local governments, such as Washoe County. Those other jurisdictions, including the cities of Reno and Sparks, are shouldering the burden of providing services to the Tesla workers and their families who live within their boundaries. 

Officials with Storey County and the industrial park referenced that concept in interviews with The Nevada Independent this week, panning the idea as inappropriate, but declining to identify the source of the idea.

“Little Storey County has been putting in all the hard work for 10 years. All the cash, billions and billions of dollars of cash, have been going into the Washoe County community, so it's just not right to come in — on top of all the money that's already flowing into the surrounding communities — to come in and take a piece of the Tesla tax revenue,” said Kris Thompson, project manager for the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center.

Sen. Dina Neal (D-North Las Vegas), a vocal critic of tax abatements for Tesla, said she had heard about the proposal to shift tax dollars but had not seen any specific bill language regarding the idea. 

“I'm opposed to taking revenue from Storey County that they may need,” she said.

Before such a change might come up for discussion, the next step forward is a Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) board meeting Thursday, which will see Gov. Joe Lombardo, a proponent of the Tesla expansion, and eight other board members vote on approval of a more than $400 million tax incentive package, including $330 million in abatements , for Tesla over the next 20 years.

Update: 3/2/23 at 1 p.m. - The GOED board voted Thursday to approve the $330 million tax abatement package, pushing forward Tesla’s plans to expand its Nevada Gigafactory. Read about the approval and board meeting here.

As Storey grows as industrial hub, county aims to emerge from ‘19th century’

On a typical work day, as many as 30,000 people flow into the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center, going to work at the 107,000-acre park that encompasses more than half of the land in Storey County, home to fewer than 5,000 residents.

“We are basically right now a tech city. We’ve got about 30,000 people in the park between 9 and 5,” Thompson said. “That makes us the fourth largest metro area [in the state] during the business day.”

But just 25 years ago, the park didn’t exist. Storey County’s population peaked at around 16,000 in 1880 in the height of the Comstock Lode bonanza near Virginia City — making it the state’s most populous county at the time of statehood— but the county population collapsed after the mining boom subsided, hitting a minimum of less than 600 permanent residents in the 1960 Census.

But in the mid ‘90s, county officials and developers envisioned turning a wide swath of empty desert into a future massive industrial park adjacent to Interstate 80 and a railroad, but away from the county’s population centers near Virginia City. After county officials laid the groundwork, they struck a public-private partnership with real estate developers Roger Norman and Lance Gilman in 1999 to establish the park and special zoning rules that allow for nearly all industrial uses for the park to be preapproved. 

Since then, more than 140 companies, including Google, Walmart and Switch, have opened facilities at the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center . 

Storey County Manager Austin Osborne said a benefit of doing business in the county is “speed to vertical,” meaning the county is able to quickly complete permitting and inspections, allowing businesses to quickly start construction on new developments within the park.

No company has made a larger investment there than Tesla. Since the company received approval for the Gigafactory in 2014 — along with a tax incentive package totaling more than $1 billion — Tesla has made a capital investment of $6.2 billion in Northern Nevada, contributing to billions of dollars in economic output from the industrial park over the past decade.

tesla gigafactory tour reno

But Storey County has seen little monetary benefit. With the suite of tax abatements running for 10 to 20 years, Tesla will not begin paying property taxes to Storey County until next year. 

“We know that 10 years from [2014], there's going to be a return, and that that return is going to enable the county to be able to invest in itself, in its infrastructure, in its people, in its needs, that has been needed for 100 years, that we have been unable to do,” Osborne said.

Though Storey County has yet to benefit from Tesla tax revenue, which Osborne estimates will bring the county $10-15 million annually (about the same amount as the county receives from all other property taxes) after the first round of abatements expire, the broader region has seen massive amounts of economic output tied to Tesla. 

The construction and operations helmed by the company generated $5.7 billion in salaries and wages from 2015 through 2022, according to an economic impact report prepared by Applied Analysis.

Thompson said that economic output is going primarily to Washoe County, because most Nevadans who work at the industrial park live there, rather than Storey County. Those workers are spending their paychecks, paying for housing, for groceries, for gasoline, all in Washoe County, he said.

With 150-year-old county buildings and aging infrastructure — including a water system built in the 1850s still used to service Virginia City — the lack of tax revenue from Tesla means Storey County is waiting on the expiration of abatements to act on its capital needs. 

“The money that they're going to bring in is all going to be spent on bringing up the county out of the 19th century and bringing it current,” Thompson said.

Osborne explained that those revenues are crucial to fixing county administrative buildings, noting the county is unable to hold jury trials because it lacks adequate facilities.

The county also relies on those revenues to pay off its debts. Under an agreement with the industrial park, Storey County must pay the park developers a certain percentage of revenue earned from the park, because the park developers paid upfront for the construction of roads and other public infrastructure.

“We have a development agreement that says we actually have to buy it. We have to pay that back over 50 years. There's $48 million that Storey County is responsible for in paying back,” Osborne said.

tesla gigafactory tour reno

Diverting Tesla revenues to other local governments

County officials fear that a proposal circulating to divert tax revenues from Tesla away from Storey County to other local governments would limit the county’s ability to pay off those debts and address its urgent needs.

“We don't know for sure whether that's going to happen, but yes, we are concerned,” Osborne said about the idea. “We approved everything in 2014 knowing that in 10 years, there is going to be an investment back to the county for us to do things that are needed.”

Such a proposal would need to pass through the Legislature. Neal opposes it, and as chair of the Senate Committee on Revenue and Economic Development, she has the power to shut down discussions of such a bill. But Senate Minority Leader Heidi Seevers Gansert (R-Reno) signaled an openness to discussing the idea.

“I think we always have to look at who has been impacted … so that's something that I think will probably be reviewed during the session,” she said. “We need to look at the needs of Storey County and then what counties have been impacted by the expansion of the industrial park.”

When asked for comment on the proposal, Ben Kieckhefer, Lombardo’s chief of staff, said in a statement that “as Gov. Lombardo outlined in his State of the State address, projects that have regional impact need to be broadly evaluated.”

“Furthermore, how the state views the return on investment from economic development incentives should be looked at holistically,” he said.

Bob Lucey, the state’s infrastructure coordinator and a former Washoe County commissioner, said during an interview on Nevada Newsmakers last month that Washoe County already benefits from those workers paying for goods and property taxes within the county, and Storey County has “dilapidated systems themselves that need to be addressed.”

“We can't shortchange them, looking to fill our own coffers based upon something that they put in and that they could potentially see benefit for their residents,” he said.

Similar ideas have also surfaced in the past. In 2017, Sen. Skip Daly (D-Sparks), then an assemblyman, introduced a bill that would have allowed counties with schools and services affected by the industrial park to charge impact fees to Storey County. The bill did not pass.

Concerns about large-scale tax abatements

At the heart of Tesla’s Nevada operations lies a massive tax incentive package. Since 2014, the company has not paid property taxes on the Gigafactory, nor has it paid taxes on the wages it has paid to employees. Those breaks are set to expire next year, but they came as part of a deal negotiated by state officials in 2014, and remain on the books.

As Tesla seeks to take advantage of the tax abatement package again — available for any business making a capital investment in the state of at least $3.5 billion over 10 years — Neal has pushed back against the deal.

“I don't think we need to give billionaires tax deals,” Neal said in an interview Wednesday. “Why are we giving those kinds of deals to the rich, and we don't give it to the regular business person? So I think we just need to … reexamine the power that we've delegated to the GOED board. We need to rethink — are abatements appropriate to give away to someone who can afford to do their own development?”

Neal added that she had concerns about the abatements because of the “negative impact of growth” associated with the industrial park, including rising housing costs. 

tesla gigafactory tour reno

But proponents of the abatements — which serve as a reduction in the tax rate companies pay, rather than funding granted directly to a company, and are typically used as incentives for economic development — have highlighted the major economic output and return on investment from the abatements granted to Tesla in 2014. 

Though the company was granted more than $1 billion in tax incentives, and could be granted more than $400 million more, the company’s Gigafactory has contributed to more than $20 billion in economic output in Nevada since 2014, according to the economic impact report prepared by Applied Analysis. That output includes direct spending by Tesla, secondary impacts from businesses, such as suppliers, working with the Gigafactory and local spending by employees.

“Considering the billions of cash that they put into the regional economy, abatements have proven themselves over and over and over,” Thompson said. “We can count ourselves lucky that Tesla wants to [be] located here.”

To address concerns about growth, Neal said she would like to see the Legislature have the power over future abatement deals. Under existing law, the GOED board is empowered to approve tax abatement or incentive applications by new or expanding businesses, but the scope or size of the abatements or incentives can be changed by state lawmakers.

In the meantime, the GOED board is set to move forward with a vote of approval on the tax abatements for Tesla — despite Neal’s calls to delay the vote by one month to allow more time for public consideration.

Though Gansert expressed support for the Tesla deal — pointing to a large return on investment for the state relative to the abatements granted to the company in 2014 — she also expressed openness to giving the Legislature a greater say in the abatement process.

“If we want to look towards changing them for future projects, I think everybody would be open to that,” she said.

Addressing the housing crunch

With Tesla preparing to launch construction on the Gigafactory expansion in May, local officials will next have to work on addressing the impacts of another major economic expansion.

The initial investment from Tesla has transformed the region. The unemployment rate in the Reno-Sparks area has plummeted since 2014, as manufacturing jobs through Tesla and other technology companies have grown significantly, and unemployment has remained lower than in Las Vegas, where gaming and hospitality jobs still fuel the economy. 

Reno residents have also been squeezed by rising home prices. Median home prices in the area have climbed from less than $300,000 in 2014 to as high as $600,000 in 2022. The region has also experienced serious traffic issues on the roads in and out of the industrial park with thousands of workers commuting to the area each week.

This time around, though, Tesla and state officials are planning for the expansion with housing in mind. In Tesla’s abatement application, the company stated it “is committed to working with leading local developers on agreements to accelerate hundreds of incremental workforce housing units across the northern Nevada region.”

That would align with a proposal from the treasurer’s office and supported by the governor’s office to help fund the development of “workforce housing” using the state’s Infrastructure Bank. Funds from the bank could be “be prioritized for those where outside partners are making investments within the State of Nevada in excess of $1 billion,” under that proposal . That threshold would cover companies such as Tesla and Redwood Materials, a lithium battery recycling company that was approved for more than $100 million in abatements by the GOED board in December.

tesla gigafactory tour reno

Any plans to build more housing in the region or address infrastructure needs will have to keep pace with a growing workforce at the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center.

Tesla plans to add 3,000 more employees through the two new facilities it is building at the Gigafactory — including a battery cell factory and the company’s first high-volume semi-truck factory.

Redwood is also growing its presence through a $1.1 billion expansion, and the development of new facilities means more construction workers traveling to the park.

“With the [Tesla] truck plant and Redwood … I think we're heading for 35-38,000 workers, so we're closing in on Carson City in terms of population between 9 and 5,” Thompson said.

But any plans to address infrastructure may happen more slowly. Gansert referenced a proposal from the Nevada Department of Transportation to widen I-80 heading east into Storey County as a means of addressing traffic congestion.

“I think we always have to look at the infrastructure and make sure we can keep up with what the demand is,” Gansert said. “But those are also slow processes. Whenever you have to go and look at easements and you've got federal dollars, and investments that are required to do that take some time.”

Nevada as the ‘lithium capital’ of America

Under the state’s new five-year strategic plan for economic development, released by GOED last month, officials laid out plans for Nevada to be the “lithium capital of North America.”

Tesla is a critical building block in that plan as a major electric vehicle producer, and their large presence in Northern Nevada has helped attract more companies to the industrial park. With another major investment set to move forward, the company will turn the Gigafactory into one of the world’s largest manufacturing plants. 

Even as questions remain about the impacts of the expansion, county officials have expressed optimism about the partnership with Tesla.

“I remember a day where you graduated from high school, and you really have three places you can go. You can go to UNR or you can go to work in the casinos or you’ve got construction. That’s it,” Osborne said. “You look at the investment that Tesla's come in and these other companies … [Students] can stay and go to a tech school or go get training to do these advanced manufacturing and technology types of jobs … and then they can stay in Nevada for the rest of their lives, and they can raise their families to stay in Nevada.”

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Tesla will invest $3.6 billion to expand its Nevada Semi truck factory

Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo, center, during a tour of the Tesla Gigafactory on Jan. 24, 2023 at the Truckee-Reno Industrial Center east of Sparks, Nev.

Tesla said it intends to invest $3.6 billion to expand manufacturing capabilities in Nevada and is confident growing software-related profits, reflected in  record net income reported Wednesday  for the fourth quarter of last year, will keep margins higher than any other automaker.

The company confirmed it plans to produce high volumes of semi-trucks and make enough cell batteries for 2 million light-duty vehicles annually in Nevada.

Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo posted a photo on Twitter of himself and CEO Elon Musk late Tuesday after the newly elected Republican announced in his first State of the State address Monday night that Tesla had committed to a “brand-new” manufacturing facility for electric trucks in northern Nevada.

The project actually will expand an existing operation at the Truckee Reno Industrial Center, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) east of Reno-Sparks along Interstate 80. But the plan takes the company a step closer to accomplishing previously announced plans to ramp up Tesla Semi production to make 50,000 trucks in North America in 2024.

The White House issued a statement trumpeting the plans on Tuesday as Musk wrapped up three hours of testimony defending himself in a class-action lawsuit in a San Francisco federal court over his operation of Twitter, one of three major corporations he owns including Tesla and SpaceX .

Musk’s impulsive and sometimes inflammatory usage of Twitter  took center stage as proceedings continued Wednesday  in the lawsuit alleging he misled Tesla shareholders in 2018 with a tweet about an aborted buyout.

Mitch Landrieu, President Joe Biden’s infrastructure chief, said on Tuesday Tesla’s additional investment in Nevada is proof of a continued “manufacturing boom” since Biden took office two years ago. He said the expansion would create 3,000 jobs in Nevada while promoting clean energy and strengthening U.S. security.

Lombardo tweeted a photo late Tuesday of himself with Musk at Tesla’s “Gigafactory” in the industrial park east of Reno-Sparks, where it makes batteries for electric vehicles.

“This is an incredible investment in our state,” Lombardo wrote.

Elizabeth Ray, the governor’s communications director, confirmed the photo’s authenticity and clarified in an email to The Associated Press the new investment was for an “expansion of the existing space” at the Truckee-Reno center.

Tesla’s statement on its blog site late Tuesday said that since 2014 the company has invested $6.2 billion in Nevada and built the 5.4-million-square-foot (501,676-square-meter) “Gigafactory.”

“We will be investing over $3.6 billion more to continue growing Gigafactory Nevada, adding 3,000 new team members and two new factories,” the company said, adding that it would include its “first high-volume Semi factory.”

Tesla  delivered its first electric semis  to a PepsiCo facility in Nevada in December, more than three years after Musk said his company would start making the trucks.

At a November 2017 event unveiling the Tesla Semi, Musk said production would begin in 2019 and the trucks would be able to follow each other autonomously in a convoy. But during Tesla’s third-quarter earnings conference call in October, he said the company’s “Full Self Driving” system was not quite ready to be driverless.

The truck has a range per charge of 500 miles (800 kilometers) when pulling an 82,000-pound (37,000-kilogram) load, Musk said.

The Austin, Texas, maker of electric vehicles and solar panels said on Wednesday it earned $3.69 billion from October through December, or an adjusted $1.19 per share. That beat estimates of $1.13 that had been reduced by analysts, according to FactSet. The company’s profit was 59% more than the same period a year ago.

Revenue for the quarter was $24.32 billion, which fell short of the $24.67 billion analysts expected.

Musk said that despite price cuts of up to 20% on some vehicles announced earlier this month, demand for Tesla products is strong and sales are constrained by production.

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Tesla Gigafactory tour: local Reno paper gets to go inside

Elon Musk likes his secrets.

Tesla Motors isn't known for being particularly open to the media, especially when it comes to major projects like the lithium-ion battery cell "Gigafactory" taking shape just outside Reno, Nevada.

Billed as the largest factory of its kind in the world, the Gigafactory has been strictly off limits to the press until now.

DON'T MISS: Tesla plant-capacity increases point to Model 3 preparations

In an attempt to show Nevada stakeholders a substantial sign of progress, Tesla invited local media to tour the Gigafactory.

These journalists were among the first people outside the company itself to see the factory , albeit with lots of restrictions, noted the Reno-Gazette Journal .

The building's current footprint is 800,000 square feet, with 1.9 million square feet of manufacturing space in four stories.

It also houses conference rooms, an open-air office space, and a warehouse.

While construction is ongoing, the Gigafactory currently assembles Powerwall and Powerpack energy-storage battery packs, using cells shipped from Tesla's car-assembly plant in Fremont, California.

About 14 percent of the total planned factory space is constructed, with the rest expected to be completed by 2020.

ALSO SEE: Tesla And Panasonic: Partners In Electric Cars, Foes In Home Energy Storage (Sep 2015)

That's a bit later than the original October 2017 target date, and may call into question some of Tesla's other plans.

The company hopes to be producing 500,000 electric cars per year by 2020; it is largely relying on the economies of scale offered by the huge factory to sell cars at the lower prices that can generate those sales volumes.

But Tesla implied its strategy will actually help get battery production underway faster.

The company originally planned to build the entire Gigafactory at once, but then opted to do it in segments so that the completed portions of the factory could start producing cells and packs right away, a spokesperson said.

Besides producing massive amounts of lithium-ion cells and battery packs, Tesla's other goal for the Gigafactory is for it to produce no carbon emissions whatsoever.

The company says there are no natural-gas lines "anywhere near" the factory, and its vast roof will eventually be covered with solar panels. It is, however, connected to the electric grid.

MORE: Tesla Gigafactory Jobs, Investments Fell Short Of Projections Last Year

Tesla is also working to get certain suppliers to relocate to the Reno area, and wants to contract with local businesses—which should be exactly what Nevada lawmakers want to hear.

Reno was chosen as the first Gigafactory site after Nevada promised Tesla a $1.25 billion tax-incentive package.

To qualify for the full package Tesla—along with partner Panasonic—must invest at least $3.5 billion in the project over 10 years.

Recently-released documents show they've invested $374 million of what's estimated to be a $5 billion project.

That falls short of projections made by economists hired by the Nevada government in 2014 to track the economic impact of the Gigafactory.

Tesla and Panasonic were found to be behind on other metrics as well, including job creation and payroll.

[hat tip: Brian Henderson]

_______________________________________________

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Some Tesla factory workers realized they were laid off when security scanned their badges and sent them back on shuttles, sources say

  • Tesla laid off more than 10% of its workforce on Sunday night.
  • Some factory employees only realized they were laid off when their badges didn't work, sources said.
  • Staff at the Nevada factory waited two hours to enter because of badge checks, one source said.

Insider Today

Tesla told staff it was laying off more than 10% of its workforce on Sunday night, but some workers didn't realize they were laid off until they showed up at the company's facilities, five current or former workers told Business Insider.

The cuts impacted engineers and production associates alike. At Tesla's factory in Sparks, Nevada, workers faced a roughly two-hour line to get into the facility on Monday morning as a result of badge checks, one worker said.

At the factory, the security team was scanning the badges of workers coming out of the shuttles that ferry people between the factory and nearby parking lots, said two current Tesla workers who requested anonymity since they weren't authorized to speak about the matter. Typically, security guards inspect workers' badges at the site, but they don't usually scan them directly, the two workers said. On Monday morning, the officials picked out the workers who'd been laid off and sent them back in separate vans, the two workers said.

Related stories

Three other former Tesla employees said workers at the Fremont factory were told by security that if their badges didn't work, they were no longer employed.

Tesla employees who were terminated received notice via their personal emails on Sunday night, and their access to Tesla systems was revoked, four workers said. The companywide email that Elon Musk sent announcing the cuts was delivered shortly before midnight PT on Sunday, according to a time stamp on the memo viewed by BI.

"We have done a thorough review of the organization and made the difficult decision to reduce our headcount globally. Unfortunately as a result, your position has been eliminated by this restructuring," read a separate email notifying impacted employees they'd been laid off, according to a copy viewed by BI.

The email sent directly to laid-off staff said the cuts would be effective immediately and workers would receive information regarding their severance within 48 hours.

The same day Tesla announced layoffs, at least two executives resigned from the company. The senior vice president of powertrain and electrical engineering, Drew Baglino, and the vice president of public policy and business development, Rohan Patel, said on X they had left Tesla as of Sunday.

A spokesperson for Tesla didn't respond to a request for comment. Ahead of the layoffs, Tesla employed more than 140,000 workers globally , including over 3,000 at its factory in Nevada.

Tesla workers aren't the first to unceremoniously discover they've been terminated while trying to access their former place of work. Last year, some former Google employees told BI they learned they'd been laid off when they couldn't badge into the office .

Do you work for Tesla or have a tip? Reach out to the reporter via a non-work email at [email protected]

Watch: Nearly 50,000 tech workers have been laid off — but there's a hack to avoid layoffs

tesla gigafactory tour reno

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Tesla plans to lay off 10% of workforce after dismal quarterly sales, multiple news outlets report

FILE - People walk to the Tesla Gigafactory for electric cars in Gruenheide near Berlin, Germany,March 13, 2024. After reporting dismal first-quarter sales, Tesla is planning to lay off about a tenth of its workforce as it tries to cut costs, multiple media outlets reported Monday. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi, File)

FILE - People walk to the Tesla Gigafactory for electric cars in Gruenheide near Berlin, Germany,March 13, 2024. After reporting dismal first-quarter sales, Tesla is planning to lay off about a tenth of its workforce as it tries to cut costs, multiple media outlets reported Monday. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi, File)

FILE - Tesla CEO Elon Musk waves as he leaves the Tesla Gigafactory for electric cars after a visit in Gruenheide near Berlin, Germany, March 13, 2024. After reporting dismal first-quarter sales, Tesla is planning to lay off about a tenth of its workforce as it tries to cut costs, multiple media outlets reported Monday. (AP Photo/Ebrahim Noroozi, File)

FILE - An 2023 Model X sits outside a Tesla dealership on June 18, 2023, in Englewood, Colo. After reporting dismal first-quarter sales, Tesla is planning to lay off about a tenth of its workforce as it tries to cut costs, multiple media outlets reported Monday. (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)

FILE - Drivers charge their Teslas in Santa Ana, Calif., on March 20, 2024. After reporting dismal first-quarter sales, Tesla is planning to lay off about a tenth of its workforce as it tries to cut costs, multiple media outlets reported Monday.(Jeff Gritchen/The Orange County Register via AP, File)

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DETROIT (AP) — After reporting dismal first-quarter sales, Tesla is planning to lay off about a tenth of its workforce as it tries to cut costs , multiple media outlets reported Monday.

CEO Elon Musk detailed the plans in a memo sent to employees. The layoffs could affect about 14,000 of the 140,473 workers employed by the Austin, Texas, company at the end of last year.

Musk’s memo said that as Tesla prepares for its next phase of growth, “it is extremely important to look at every aspect of the company for cost reductions and increasing productivity,” The New York Times and CNBC reported. News of the layoffs was first reported by electric vehicle website Electrek.

FILE - The logo for a Tesla Supercharger station is seen in Buford, Ga, April 22, 2021. Tesla has settled a lawsuit Monday, April 8, 2024, brought by the family of a Silicon Valley engineer who died in a crash while relying on the company’s semi-autonomous driving software. (AP Photo/Chris Carlson, File)

Also Monday, two key Tesla executives announced on the social media platform X that they are leaving the company. Andrew Baglino, senior vice president of powertrain and energy engineering, wrote that he had made the decision to leave after 18 years with the company.

Rohan Patel, senior global director of public policy and business development, also wrote on X that he was leaving Tesla, after eight years.

Baglino, who held several top engineering jobs at the company and was chief technology officer, wrote that the decision to leave was difficult. “I loved tackling nearly every problem we solved as a team and feel gratified to have contributed to the mission of accelerating the transition to sustainable energy,” he wrote.

He has no concrete plans beyond spending more time with family and his young children, but wrote that he has difficulty staying still for long.

Musk thanked Baglino in a reply. “Few have contributed as much as you,” he wrote.

Shares of Tesla fell 4.8% Monday afternoon, hours after news of the layoffs and departures broke. Shares of Tesla Inc. have lost about one-third of their value so far this year as sales of electric vehicles soften .

Tesla sales fell sharply last quarter as competition increased worldwide, electric vehicle sales growth slowed, and price cuts failed to draw more buyers. The company said it delivered 386,810 vehicles from January through March, nearly 9% below the 423,000 it sold in the same quarter of last year.

Since last year, Tesla has cut prices as much as $20,000 on some models as it faced increasing competition and slowing demand. The price cuts caused used electric vehicle values to drop and clipped Tesla’s profit margins.

The company has said it will reveal an autonomous robotaxi at an event in August.

tesla gigafactory tour reno

Tesla to lay off 10% of its global workforce, reports say: 'It must be done'

tesla gigafactory tour reno

To prepare for Tesla's "next phase," the tech giant has decided to lay off 10% of its global workforce, according to multiple reports that cite a memo sent to employees by CEO Elon Musk.

Tesla's stock was down roughly 3% as of midday Monday.

"Over the years, we have grown rapidly with multiple factories scaling around the globe," Musk said in the memo obtained by Electrek and CNBC . "With this rapid growth there has been duplication of roles and job functions in certain areas. As we prepare the company for our next phase of growth, it is extremely important to look at every aspect of the company for cost reductions and increasing productivity."

Musk and Tesla "made the difficult decision" to reduce its global workforce by 10% after conducting a "thorough review of the organization," according to the memo.

"There is nothing I hate more, but it must be done," Musk said in the memo. "This will enable us to be lean, innovative and hungry for the next growth phase cycle... It is very difficult to say goodbye."

USA TODAY contacted Tesla on Monday morning but did not receive an immediate response.

How many employees does Tesla have?

Tesla had over 127,000 employees in 2022, according to the company's 2022 impact report . This number grew to 140,473 by December 2023, CNBC reported.

Some employees affected by the layoff have already been locked out of system access, according to Electrek.

Why is Tesla laying off employees?

Tesla recently shared its quarterly delivery report with investors, which included the company significantly missing delivery estimates, and having a rare year-over-year reduction in sales, Electrek reported.

"In the first quarter, we produced over 433,000 vehicles and delivered approximately 387,000 vehicles," Tesla said in a news release regarding its quarterly delivery report . "We deployed 4,053 MWh of energy storage products in Q1, the highest quarterly deployment yet."

Tesla did acknowledge a decline in volumes "partially due to the early phase of the production ramp of the updated Model 3" at its Fremont factory in California and "factory shutdowns resulting from shipping diversions caused by the Red Sea conflict and an arson attack at Gigafactory Berlin," according to the release.

Tesla will present its first-quarter profits report on April 23, and analysts estimate the company will "still turn a profit of around 50 cents a share, down from 85 cents a share in Q1 2023," the Electrek reported.

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What Tesla’s Gigafactory expansion means for Nevada

A Tesla sign at the Nevada Gigafactory on Feb. 26, 2019.

A Tesla sign at the Nevada Gigafactory on Feb. 26, 2019.

By Sean Golonka The Nevada Independent

Monday, March 6, 2023

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At the heart of the country’s largest industrial park, in the midst of the high desert just 20 miles east of Reno, sits the Nevada Gigafactory — a 5.4-million-square-foot facility where thousands of Tesla employees have produced millions of electric vehicle batteries over the past decade.

Since construction of the Gigafactory began in 2014 after a landmark $1 billion tax incentive deal approved by lawmakers in a special session, Tesla and the ever-growing Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center have significantly altered the Northern Nevada region. Unemployment has plummeted. Housing prices have surged. Storey County, once a desolate former mining community, is now a technology hub. State leaders envision the area as key to the country’s energy future.

But as Tesla prepares to make another multibillion-dollar investment and expand the Gigafactory — a move likely to land the world’s largest electric car manufacturer another round of major tax breaks — state officials have unanswered questions on what the new development means for the Northern Nevada economy, local infrastructure and housing.

One potential wrench in the plans for Storey County, already grappling with significant capital improvement needs: a rumored proposal to divert tax dollars from Tesla to nearby, better-populated local governments, such as Washoe County. Those other jurisdictions, including the cities of Reno and Sparks, are shouldering the burden of providing services to the Tesla workers and their families who live within their boundaries.

Officials with Storey County and the industrial park referenced that concept in interviews with The Nevada Independent this week, panning the idea as inappropriate, but declining to identify the source of the idea.

“Little Storey County has been putting in all the hard work for 10 years. All the cash, billions and billions of dollars of cash, have been going into the Washoe County community, so it's just not right to come in — on top of all the money that's already flowing into the surrounding communities — to come in and take a piece of the Tesla tax revenue,” said Kris Thompson, project manager for the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center.

Sen. Dina Neal (D-North Las Vegas), a vocal critic of tax abatements for Tesla, said she had heard about the proposal to shift tax dollars but had not seen any specific bill language regarding the idea.

“I'm opposed to taking revenue from Storey County that they may need,” she said.

Before such a change might come up for discussion, the next step forward is a Governor’s Office of Economic Development (GOED) board meeting Thursday, which saw Gov. Joe Lombardo, a proponent of the Tesla expansion, and eight other board members approve more than $400 million tax incentive package, including $330 million in abatements , for Tesla over the next 20 years.

As Storey grows as industrial hub, county aims to emerge from ‘19th century’

On a typical work day, as many as 30,000 people flow into the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center, going to work at the 107,000-acre park that encompasses more than half of the land in Storey County, home to fewer than 5,000 residents.

“We are basically right now a tech city. We’ve got about 30,000 people in the park between 9 and 5,” Thompson said. “That makes us the fourth largest metro area [in the state] during the business day.”

But just 25 years ago, the park didn’t exist. Storey County’s population peaked at around 16,000 in 1880 in the height of the Comstock Lode bonanza near Virginia City — making it the state’s most populous county at the time of statehood— but the county population collapsed after the mining boom subsided, hitting a minimum of less than 600 permanent residents in the 1960 Census.

But in the mid ‘90s, county officials and developers envisioned turning a wide swath of empty desert into a future massive industrial park adjacent to Interstate 80 and a railroad, but away from the county’s population centers near Virginia City. After county officials laid the groundwork, they struck a public-private partnership with real estate developers Roger Norman and Lance Gilman in 1999 to establish the park and special zoning rules that allow for nearly all industrial uses for the park to be preapproved.

Since then, more than 140 companies, including Google, Walmart and Switch, have opened facilities at the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center .

Storey County Manager Austin Osborne said a benefit of doing business in the county is “speed to vertical,” meaning the county is able to quickly complete permitting and inspections, allowing businesses to quickly start construction on new developments within the park.

No company has made a larger investment there than Tesla. Since the company received approval for the Gigafactory in 2014 — along with a tax incentive package totaling more than $1 billion — Tesla has made a capital investment of $6.2 billion in Northern Nevada, contributing to billions of dollars in economic output from the industrial park over the past decade.

But Storey County has seen little monetary benefit. With the suite of tax abatements running for 10 to 20 years, Tesla will not begin paying property taxes to Storey County until next year.

“We know that 10 years from [2014], there's going to be a return, and that that return is going to enable the county to be able to invest in itself, in its infrastructure, in its people, in its needs, that has been needed for 100 years, that we have been unable to do,” Osborne said.

Though Storey County has yet to benefit from Tesla tax revenue, which Osborne estimates will bring the county $10-15 million annually (about the same amount as the county receives from all other property taxes) after the first round of abatements expire, the broader region has seen massive amounts of economic output tied to Tesla.

The construction and operations helmed by the company generated $5.7 billion in salaries and wages from 2015 through 2022, according to an economic impact report prepared by Applied Analysis.

Thompson said that economic output is going primarily to Washoe County, because most Nevadans who work at the industrial park live there, rather than Storey County. Those workers are spending their paychecks, paying for housing, for groceries, for gasoline, all in Washoe County, he said.

With 150-year-old county buildings and aging infrastructure — including a water system built in the 1850s still used to service Virginia City — the lack of tax revenue from Tesla means Storey County is waiting on the expiration of abatements to act on its capital needs.

“The money that they're going to bring in is all going to be spent on bringing up the county out of the 19th century and bringing it current,” Thompson said.

Osborne explained that those revenues are crucial to fixing county administrative buildings, noting the county is unable to hold jury trials because it lacks adequate facilities.

The county also relies on those revenues to pay off its debts. Under an agreement with the industrial park, Storey County must pay the park developers a certain percentage of revenue earned from the park, because the park developers paid upfront for the construction of roads and other public infrastructure.

“We have a development agreement that says we actually have to buy it. We have to pay that back over 50 years. There's $48 million that Storey County is responsible for in paying back,” Osborne said.

Diverting Tesla revenues to other local governments

County officials fear that a proposal circulating to divert tax revenues from Tesla away from Storey County to other local governments would limit the county’s ability to pay off those debts and address its urgent needs.

“We don't know for sure whether that's going to happen, but yes, we are concerned,” Osborne said about the idea. “We approved everything in 2014 knowing that in 10 years, there is going to be an investment back to the county for us to do things that are needed.”

Such a proposal would need to pass through the Legislature. Neal opposes it, and as chair of the Senate Committee on Revenue and Economic Development, she has the power to shut down discussions of such a bill. But Senate Minority Leader Heidi Seevers Gansert (R-Reno) signaled an openness to discussing the idea.

“I think we always have to look at who has been impacted … so that's something that I think will probably be reviewed during the session,” she said. “We need to look at the needs of Storey County and then what counties have been impacted by the expansion of the industrial park.”

When asked for comment on the proposal, Ben Kieckhefer, Lombardo’s chief of staff, said in a statement that “as Gov. Lombardo outlined in his State of the State address, projects that have regional impact need to be broadly evaluated.”

“Furthermore, how the state views the return on investment from economic development incentives should be looked at holistically,” he said.

Bob Lucey, the state’s infrastructure coordinator and a former Washoe County commissioner, said during an interview on Nevada Newsmakers last month that Washoe County already benefits from those workers paying for goods and property taxes within the county, and Storey County has “dilapidated systems themselves that need to be addressed.”

“We can't shortchange them, looking to fill our own coffers based upon something that they put in and that they could potentially see benefit for their residents,” he said.

Similar ideas have also surfaced in the past. In 2017, Sen. Skip Daly (D-Sparks), then an assemblyman, introduced a bill that would have allowed counties with schools and services affected by the industrial park to charge impact fees to Storey County. The bill did not pass.

Concerns about large-scale tax abatements

At the heart of Tesla’s Nevada operations lies a massive tax incentive package. Since 2014, the company has not paid property taxes on the Gigafactory, nor has it paid taxes on the wages it has paid to employees. Those breaks are set to expire next year, but they came as part of a deal negotiated by state officials in 2014, and remain on the books.

As Tesla seeks to take advantage of the tax abatement package again — available for any business making a capital investment in the state of at least $3.5 billion over 10 years — Neal has pushed back against the deal.

“I don't think we need to give billionaires tax deals,” Neal said in an interview Wednesday. “Why are we giving those kinds of deals to the rich, and we don't give it to the regular business person? So I think we just need to … reexamine the power that we've delegated to the GOED board. We need to rethink — are abatements appropriate to give away to someone who can afford to do their own development?”

Neal added that she had concerns about the abatements because of the “negative impact of growth” associated with the industrial park, including rising housing costs.

But proponents of the abatements — which serve as a reduction in the tax rate companies pay, rather than funding granted directly to a company, and are typically used as incentives for economic development — have highlighted the major economic output and return on investment from the abatements granted to Tesla in 2014.

Though the company was granted more than $1 billion in tax incentives, and could be granted more than $400 million more, the company’s Gigafactory has contributed to more than $20 billion in economic output in Nevada since 2014, according to the economic impact report prepared by Applied Analysis. That output includes direct spending by Tesla, secondary impacts from businesses, such as suppliers, working with the Gigafactory and local spending by employees.

“Considering the billions of cash that they put into the regional economy, abatements have proven themselves over and over and over,” Thompson said. “We can count ourselves lucky that Tesla wants to [be] located here.”

To address concerns about growth, Neal said she would like to see the Legislature have the power over future abatement deals. Under existing law, the GOED board is empowered to approve tax abatement or incentive applications by new or expanding businesses, but the scope or size of the abatements or incentives can be changed by state lawmakers.

In the meantime, the GOED board is set to move forward with a vote of approval on the tax abatements for Tesla — despite Neal’s calls to delay the vote by one month to allow more time for public consideration.

Though Gansert expressed support for the Tesla deal — pointing to a large return on investment for the state relative to the abatements granted to the company in 2014 — she also expressed openness to giving the Legislature a greater say in the abatement process.

“If we want to look towards changing them for future projects, I think everybody would be open to that,” she said.

Addressing the housing crunch

With Tesla preparing to launch construction on the Gigafactory expansion in May, local officials will next have to work on addressing the impacts of another major economic expansion.

The initial investment from Tesla has transformed the region. The unemployment rate in the Reno-Sparks area has plummeted since 2014, as manufacturing jobs through Tesla and other technology companies have grown significantly, and unemployment has remained lower than in Las Vegas, where gaming and hospitality jobs still fuel the economy.

Reno residents have also been squeezed by rising home prices. Median home prices in the area have climbed from less than $300,000 in 2014 to as high as $600,000 in 2022. The region has also experienced serious traffic issues on the roads in and out of the industrial park with thousands of workers commuting to the area each week.

This time around, though, Tesla and state officials are planning for the expansion with housing in mind. In Tesla’s abatement application, the company stated it “is committed to working with leading local developers on agreements to accelerate hundreds of incremental workforce housing units across the northern Nevada region.”

That would align with a proposal from the treasurer’s office and supported by the governor’s office to help fund the development of “workforce housing” using the state’s Infrastructure Bank. Funds from the bank could be “be prioritized for those where outside partners are making investments within the State of Nevada in excess of $1 billion,” under that proposal . That threshold would cover companies such as Tesla and Redwood Materials, a lithium battery recycling company that was approved for more than $100 million in abatements by the GOED board in December.

Any plans to build more housing in the region or address infrastructure needs will have to keep pace with a growing workforce at the Tahoe-Reno Industrial Center.

Tesla plans to add 3,000 more employees through the two new facilities it is building at the Gigafactory — including a battery cell factory and the company’s first high-volume semi-truck factory.

Redwood is also growing its presence through a $1.1 billion expansion, and the development of new facilities means more construction workers traveling to the park.

“With the [Tesla] truck plant and Redwood … I think we're heading for 35-38,000 workers, so we're closing in on Carson City in terms of population between 9 and 5,” Thompson said.

But any plans to address infrastructure may happen more slowly. Gansert referenced a proposal from the Nevada Department of Transportation to widen I-80 heading east into Storey County as a means of addressing traffic congestion.

“I think we always have to look at the infrastructure and make sure we can keep up with what the demand is,” Gansert said. “But those are also slow processes. Whenever you have to go and look at easements and you've got federal dollars, and investments that are required to do that take some time.”

Nevada as the ‘lithium capital’ of America

Under the state’s new five-year strategic plan for economic development, released by GOED last month, officials laid out plans for Nevada to be the “lithium capital of North America.”

Tesla is a critical building block in that plan as a major electric vehicle producer, and their large presence in Northern Nevada has helped attract more companies to the industrial park. With another major investment set to move forward, the company will turn the Gigafactory into one of the world’s largest manufacturing plants.

Even as questions remain about the impacts of the expansion, county officials have expressed optimism about the partnership with Tesla.

“I remember a day where you graduated from high school, and you really have three places you can go. You can go to UNR or you can go to work in the casinos or you’ve got construction. That’s it,” Osborne said. “You look at the investment that Tesla's come in and these other companies … [Students] can stay and go to a tech school or go get training to do these advanced manufacturing and technology types of jobs … and then they can stay in Nevada for the rest of their lives, and they can raise their families to stay in Nevada.”

The Nevada Independent is a 501(c)3 nonprofit news organization. We are committed to transparency and disclose all our donors. The following people or entities mentioned in this article are financial supporters of our work:

  • Lance Gilman - $16,000
  • Kris Thompson - $45

This story was first published March 2 by  The Nevada Independent  and is republished here with permission.

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Are Reno-Sparks apartments overbuilt? Plus most and least expensive areas to rent

With thousands of apartment units in the pipeline, industry watchers are keeping an eye on how they will impact average rent and vacancies..

tesla gigafactory tour reno

Reno-Sparks ended last year with average rents above $1,600 once again — the 11th straight quarter that the market saw rents above that price.

In fact, the last time that average rents in Reno-Sparks were below that number was the first quarter of 2021, according to data from real estate appraisal and consulting firm Johnson Perkins Griffin.

The good news for renters is that average rents in Reno-Sparks have gone down for two quarters in a row, ending 2023 at $1,612. That’s the lowest average rent seen in the area since, well, early 2021.

The question now is whether rents will continue to go down or jump up again. After all, the average apartment rent also fell for two straight quarters at the end of 2022, only for it to go up two quarters in a row during the first half of last year.

Reno’s surging multifamily apartment market

Insufficient housing construction after the global financial crisis of 2010 led to skyrocketing rents in Reno-Sparks several years later as inventory was quickly gobbled up while the area recovered from the Great Recession.

At the beginning of 2013, for example, the average rent in Reno-Sparks was $829. Average rents in Reno-Sparks also hovered within the $800 range from 2006 to early 2015.

By the second quarter of 2022, however, the average rent more than doubled to $1,680, which continues to be the record for the highest rent seen in Reno-Sparks.

Growth especially started to pick up after 2014 when Tesla picked Storey County as the site of its first Gigafactory, with several other companies also deciding to move or expand into the greater Reno area.

The strong demand for housing combined with cheap financing from low interest rates fueled a building boom for new apartments in the area.

“Our area had just been going gangbusters,” said Brian Bonnefant, project manager at the Center for Regional Studies at the University of Nevada, Reno. “A lot of it had to do with in-migration demographics.”

Reno-Sparks would see the largest number of housing permits filed since the 2005 housing bubble. Permits for apartments, in particular, surged and several new apartment projects started to come online in recent years.

Even now, there are still 15 major apartment projects with 80 units or more under construction in Reno-Sparks, according to Johnson Perkins Griffin. They are expected to add 4,708 units to the market.

In addition, there are 16 more large apartment projects in the planning stages that account for an additional 4,771 units.

One national real estate company is projecting an influx of units in the Reno-Sparks metro area.

“Right now, Reno is our 80th largest market (in the United States) from a rental standpoint,” said Doug Ressler, business intelligence manager for property management software company Yardi. “It has over 44,000 units completed and there are 13,000 to 15,000 units in the process of construction that will pan out in the next couple of years.”

All eyes on the impact of new apartment inventory in the pipeline

With thousands of new apartments set to enter the market, industry watchers are keeping an eye on the potential impact on rents.

While vacancies are still below the 5% rate that denotes a balanced market, they have been trending higher as more inventory enters the market.

The 3.09% vacancy seen at the end of 2023, for example, is the highest since the third quarter of 2022. It also marks a big change from early 2021 when vacancies dipped below 2%, although it is also important to note that vacancies typically get higher during the fourth quarter of most years.

Meanwhile, new apartments are not filling up as quickly as they used to.

“Although the overall vacancy rate for the entire market has remained low, it is recognized that there are currently a number of new projects that are taking a prolonged amount of time to reach stabilization at 90% occupancy,” Johnson Perkins Griffin stated in its report.

Ten of Reno-Sparks’ 11 apartment submarkets also saw their average rents decrease, with only the West Reno submarket seeing a slight increase.

In another sign of slowing apartment absorption, more apartments are offering rent concessions. By the end of last year, 37.27% of apartments were offering concessions to renters, according to Johnson Perkins Griffin. The last time more than 37% of apartments offered concessions was the beginning of 2014.

Falling rents would be good news for residents who have struggled with housing affordability in Reno-Sparks. With median home prices hovering around the $600,000 range in Reno, more people are unable to afford buying a home and are renting longer.

At the same time, new apartment construction is also expected to slow down as more developers take a wait-and-see approach to confirm how quickly the upcoming inventory is absorbed.

Two potential wildcards are inflation and interest rates.

Higher than expected inflation and job growth in March has killed hopes for a June rate cut by the Federal Reserve . The higher cost of financing is also making developers hesitant about starting new projects.

Should new development for housing stall — new housing permits already fell by 28% last year in Washoe County — Reno-Sparks could very well see a repeat of the Great Recession where what was initially thought of as a housing surplus turned into a housing deficit.

For now though, the pace of housing development in Reno-Sparks is still high, according to Yardi’s Ressler.

When the percentage of housing units coming on board is equal to 3% of the existing housing stock, the pace of development is considered to be aggressive, Ressler said. The pace this year for Reno-Sparks is 3.5%.

Next year is even higher at 4.8% of inventory, Ressler added.

“So there’s a tsunami (of new housing units) for Reno,” Ressler said. “The pipeline is pretty full.”

Average rents in Reno-Sparks by submarket and apartment type

Here are the average rents for each area in Reno-Sparks, according to the latest data from Johnson Perkins Griffin from the end of 2023. Note that the downtown urban market combines the downtown areas for Reno and Sparks.

  • East Sparks: $1,764
  • Southeast Reno: $1,699
  • Downtown Urban: $1,687
  • Northwest Reno: $1,676
  • Lakeridge: $1,667
  • West Reno: $1,581
  • W.Sparks/N. Valley: $1,450
  • Airport: $1,430
  • Southwest Reno: $1,392
  • Northeast Reno: $1,390
  • Brinkby/Grove: $1,200

In addition, here are the average rents for Reno-Sparks by unit type.

  • Studio: $1,193
  • 1 bedroom, 1 bath: $1,433
  • 2 bedrooms, 1 bath: $1,485
  • 2 bedrooms, 2 bath: $1,763
  • 3 bedrooms, 2 bath: $2,202
  • Townhouse: $1,892

Tesla Cybertruck

  • Tesla Powershare

Tesla Cybertruck owner gets quoted over $30,000 for Powershare installation

Avatar for Fred Lambert

A Tesla Cybertruck owner has been quoted over $30,000 for a Powershare installation to enable his electric pickup truck to power his house.

When Tesla unveiled the production version of the Cybertruck late in the year, the automaker finally confirmed it was its first bi-directional charging-capable vehicle.

The feature allows Cybertruck owners to use the battery pack in trucks for more than just driving the vehicle. They can power virtually anything from the outlets in the bed of the vehicle, even another electric vehicle.

But through Tesla’s new Powershare product, Tesla Cybertruck owners can also power their homes in case of an outage.

The company previously said that Powerwall owners already have the required hardware to use the feature, and if not, you can use Tesla’s Universal Wall Connector ($595) and a Gateway ($1,800). Thought the automaker also unveiled a new ‘ Powershare Mobile Connector ’.

For Cybertruck Foundation series buyers, Tesla offers this hardware for free and for Cyberbeast Foundation series buyers, the automaker offers $4,000 toward installation , but we warned it could be much more expensive.

However, we didn’t expect it to be about 10 times more expensive, but that’s exactly what a Cybertruck owner was quoted.

Joe Tegtmeyer, a Cybertruck owner better known for his drone flyovers of Gigafactory Texas, shared his quote to install Tesla Powershare at his house:

I wanted to provide an honest follow-up on the costs that may be incurred to install Powershare equipment that comes with the Cybertruck Foundation Series purchase. Included in the original purchase are a $595.00 Powershare home charger, $230.00 Powershare mobile connector & a… pic.twitter.com/amBN6zfR0n — Joe Tegtmeyer 🚀 🤠🛸😎 (@JoeTegtmeyer) April 25, 2024

He is being quoted $64,275, but that’s with 2 Powerwalls to be fair. For the cost of enabling Powershare alone without Powerwalls, Tegtmeyer is being quoted $33,837.50 by installer Treehouse.

The insane pricing is due to suspicious $24,000 upgrade to increase the power input into the house:

tesla gigafactory tour reno

It’s unclear why you would need to increase the power input into your house to get backup power? Couldn’t you just backup what you already have?

Tegtmeyer was surprised by the quote as he recently had electrical upgrades for his home solar panel installation:

I had thought Powershare might be a viable option for me, especially since I already had a huge solar panel system & all related electrical upgrades including a completely new main circuit-breaker panel & new heavy-duty wiring included as part of my solar system installation. I had thought this would make the Powershare installation easier, but apparently, that is not the case.

A quote like that will certainly change your plans.

Top comment by Chris Arnold

Seems overly complex for the rare times you may need additional backup power. I'm happy just running an extension cord from my CT to the fridge and whatever else requires 120v to start like a gas hot water heater. Now if you could sell power to the grid during an outage for a profit, folks may be tempted to light candles on purpose.

The easy solution is to get another quote, but that can be difficult as you have to go through a Tesla-approved installer and not many have been approved for Powershare yet.

Electrek’s Take

Now, this could be an isolated case, but I feel like it won’t be. It reminds me of the early days of Powerwall when buyers were being given crazy installation quotes when Tesla started working with third parties.

The whole idea of Powershare and bidirectional charging is that it is a cheaper way to get backup power because you already have the battery in your vehicle. The electrical hardware and installation cost are the difference makers.

It looks like Tesla has the hardware under control, but it might need to control the installation cost by working with installers.

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IMAGES

  1. Flight Instructor Captures Stunning Tesla Gigafactory Photos

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  2. TESLA GIGAFACTORY August 2017 Aerial Construction Update

    tesla gigafactory tour reno

  3. Tesla's Gigafactory continues to reshape Reno: Transforming education

    tesla gigafactory tour reno

  4. aerial photograph of Tesla Gigafactory in Storey County, east of Reno

    tesla gigafactory tour reno

  5. Aerial Video of Tesla Gigafactory Shows Plentiful Progress and Activi

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  6. Here's our first look inside Tesla's Gigafactory

    tesla gigafactory tour reno

VIDEO

  1. Tesla, Reno 1-31-09

  2. Tesla Gigafactory 3 Phase III Inside 4K

  3. (October 29 2020) Tesla Gigafactory 3 Shanghai 4K Video

  4. DJI meets Tesla again

  5. Tesla

  6. Driving from Reno to Tesla Gigafactory

COMMENTS

  1. Gigafactory Nevada

    Located less than an hour from Lake Tahoe, Gigafactory Nevada is one of the world's highest volume plants for electric motors, energy storage products, vehicle powertrains and batteries—producing billions of cells per year. Now, we're continuing to grow Gigafactory Nevada with two new facilities: a 100 GWh 4680 cell factory and our first ...

  2. Tesla Factory Tours & Parties

    Giga Berlin Factory Tour & Party. The most recent example was at Giga Berlin, on the 9th October 2021 where Tesla threw a huge festival and party, and provided tours at the not yet complete Gigafactory. They revealed a lot of new technology during the factory tour including 4680 cells and structural packs, Giga castings, new LED lights and much ...

  3. Visit the Tesla Factory: A Comprehensive Guide to Touring the

    Tesla Factory Tour Requirements: Dos and Don'ts. To ensure a smooth and enjoyable Tesla factory tour experience, visitors must abide by certain rules and regulations. Tesla requires all visitors to provide a photo ID and sign a non-disclosure agreement (NDA) before entering the factory. Moreover, visitors must be at least 18 years old.

  4. Tesla Gigafactory Tours

    per person. Jul 13 - Jul 20. Roundtrip non-stop flight included. Boston (BOS) to Reno (RNO) 8.8/10 Excellent! (847 reviews) Beautiful time the week after they closed the mountain for skiing. Very quiet!

  5. Gigafactory Nevada

    Gigafactory Nevada (also known as Giga Nevada or Gigafactory 1) is a lithium-ion battery and electric vehicle component factory in Storey County, Nevada, United States. The facility, located east of Reno, is owned and operated by Tesla, Inc. The factory supplies battery packs and drivetrain components (including motors) for the company's electric vehicles, produces the Tesla Powerwall home ...

  6. How Tesla's first Gigafactory is changing Reno, Nevada

    How Tesla's first Gigafactory is changing Reno, Nevada / USA Today's The City goes deep on life inside and outside the massive factory. By Sean O'Kane. Nov 13, 2019, 2:58 PM UTC.

  7. Tesla Gigafactory tour: local Reno paper gets to go inside

    To qualify for the full package Tesla—along with partner Panasonic—must invest at least $3.5 billion in the project over 10 years. Tesla battery gigafactory site, Reno, Nevada, Feb 25, 2015 ...

  8. Tesla's new $3.6 billion Nevada investment includes a 'high-volume

    The Gigafactory. Tesla is investing more than $3.6 billion into its Reno, Nevada Gigafactory, and with part of the cash, it plans to build its "first high-volume Semi factory," according to a ...

  9. Tesla Gigafactory tour photo gallery: one engineer's report

    Tesla CTO JB Straubel and CEO Elon Musk presenting at gigafactory tour, Reno, Nevada, July 2016. Meanwhile, Tesla will announce its second-quarter financial results tomorrow. CEO Musk is sure to ...

  10. We got a tour in Tesla's Gigafactory. It's big, loud and secretive

    It's big, loud and secretive: We got a tour of Tesla's Gigafactory and here's how it works. Benjamin Spillman. Reno Gazette-Journal. 0:00. 1:31. Big numbers are one way to appreciateTesla's ...

  11. Take a tour inside Tesla's first Gigafactory

    Tesla's Gigafactory in Nevada is expected to be the largest building in the world by footprint once completed. CNBC's Uptin Saiidi gets a rare look inside wh...

  12. Touring the Tesla Gigafactory: A Look Inside the World's Largest

    Tucked away near Reno, Nevada lies one of the most important sites in Tesla's master plan - the aptly named Gigafactory. This massive facility produces lithium-ion batteries for Tesla electric vehicles as well as Powerwall home energy storage units. It provides a captivating case study on the potential scale of renewable energy infrastructure. Sprawling across… Read More »Touring the ...

  13. What Tesla's multibillion-dollar Gigafactory expansion means for Nevada

    Update: 3/2/23 at 1 p.m. - The GOED board voted Thursday to approve the $330 million tax abatement package, pushing forward Tesla's plans to expand its Nevada Gigafactory. Read about the approval and board meeting here. As Storey grows as industrial hub, county aims to emerge from '19th century'.

  14. Tesla gets $330M tax deal for Nevada expansion, truck plant

    FILE - A sign marks the entrance to the Tesla Gigafactory, Oct. 13, 2018, in Sparks, Nev. Tesla will get more than $330 million in tax breaks from Nevada to massively expand its vehicle battery facility east of Reno and add a new electric semi-truck factory. Approval on Thursday, March 2, 2023, from the Governor's Office of Economic ...

  15. Tesla will invest $3.6 billion to expand its Nevada Semi ...

    Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo, center, during a tour of the Tesla Gigafactory on Jan. 24, 2023 at the Truckee-Reno Industrial Center east of Sparks, Nev. Tesla said it intends to invest $3.6 billion to ...

  16. Tesla will invest $3.6B in Nevada truck factory expansion

    This photo provided by the Nevada Governor's Office shows Nevada Gov. Joe Lombardo, center, during a tour of the Tesla Gigafactory on Tuesday, Jan. 24, 2023 at the Truckee-Reno Industrial Center east of Sparks, Nev. Tesla has confirmed it intends to invest $3.6 billion to expand its manufacturing capabilities in Nevada for "high-volume" production of semi-trucks and make enough cell ...

  17. Tesla Makes Reno a Critical Stop on Way to Las Vegas and CES

    Tesla Makes Reno a Critical Stop on Way to Las Vegas and CES. Investors invited to exclusive tour of Elon Musk's Gigafactory; Driving down battery costs is key as Model 3 production nears

  18. Tesla Gigafactory tour: local Reno paper gets to go inside

    To qualify for the full package Tesla—along with partner Panasonic—must invest at least $3.5 billion in the project over 10 years. Tesla battery gigafactory site, Reno, Nevada, Feb 25, 2015 ...

  19. Tesla's Gigafactory keeps supercharging Reno

    Reno, a city just four hours away from Silicon Valley, is the home of Tesla's Gigafactory. It's a city whose economy once chiefly relied on the low-wage casino industry, where bankruptcy and ...

  20. How Tesla feeds its Reno Gigafactory with local food and drink

    1:09. At its Gigafactory east of Reno, Tesla is remaking an old idea — the company cafeteria — with a new economy spin, helping local food and drink vendors with the cost of setting up shop so ...

  21. Some Tesla Workers Get Badge Scan, Realize Layoff

    A spokesperson for Tesla didn't respond to a request for comment. Ahead of the layoffs, Tesla employed more than 140,000 workers globally, including over 3,000 at its factory in Nevada.. Tesla ...

  22. Tesla now plans electric semi truck volume production in 'late 2025'

    In January 2023, Tesla announced an expansion of Gigafactory Nevada to build the Tesla Semi in volume. However, more than a year later, we haven't heard much about the effort.

  23. Tesla plans to lay off 10% of workforce

    FILE - Tesla CEO Elon Musk waves as he leaves the Tesla Gigafactory for electric cars after a visit in Gruenheide near Berlin, Germany, March 13, 2024. After reporting dismal first-quarter sales, Tesla is planning to lay off about a tenth of its workforce as it tries to cut costs, multiple media outlets reported Monday.

  24. Tesla skirts Austin's environmental rules at Texas gigafactory

    Tesla's Texas gigafactory is commonly referred to as being in Austin, but it is actually situated not far outside the city's official borders. ... Yadea factory tour: The surprises I found at ...

  25. Tesla layoffs: 10% of jobs to be cut, reports say; stock drops Monday

    Tesla's stock was down roughly 3% as of midday Monday. "Over the years, we have grown rapidly with multiple factories scaling around the globe," Musk said in the memo obtained by Electrek and CNBC .

  26. Tesla gives update on Cybertruck, 1,000 in a week

    Now, Tesla should be able to maintain that in the coming weeks and move for another push up later this quarter. It's likely that Tesla exits Q2 at 2,000 Cybertrucks per week, which would be a ...

  27. What Tesla's Gigafactory expansion means for Nevada

    At the heart of the country's largest industrial park, in the midst of the high desert just 20 miles east of Reno, sits the Nevada Gigafactory — a 5.4-million-square-foot facility where thousands of Tesla employees have produced millions of electric vehicle batteries over the past decade. Since construction of the Gigafactory began in 2014 ...

  28. Reno-Sparks average rents by submarket, apartment type: Report

    Growth especially started to pick up after 2014 when Tesla picked Storey County as the site of its first Gigafactory, with several other companies also deciding to move or expand into the greater ...

  29. Tesla Cybertruck owner gets quoted over $30,000 for Powershare

    He is being quoted $64,275, but that's with 2 Powerwalls to be fair. For the cost of enabling Powershare alone without Powerwalls, Tegtmeyer is being quoted $33,837.50 by installer Treehouse.

  30. Tesla layoffs include 14% of Buffalo workers, WARN notice shows

    Item 1 of 2 A Tesla sign is pictured outside the Tesla Gigafactory 2 in Buffalo, New York, U.S., February 13, 2022. REUTERS/Carlo Allegri/File Photo