Source: Gasgoo Author: Tan Xuan
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According to foreign media reports, Tesla has finally begun to advance the expansion plan of the Nevada Gigafactory to increase the production of Tesla Semi and 4680 batteries.
Image source: Tesla
The Tesla Nevada Superfactory is the first major step in Tesla’s efforts to secure battery supply for growth. Tesla has partnered with Panasonic to deploy new cell capacity at the factory, which Tesla uses to build battery packs for its cars and energy storage products.
When it initially announced its plans, Tesla expected the factory to produce 105 GWh of cells and 150 GWh of battery packs per year upon completion.
However, the Tesla Nevada factory is only about 30% complete at this point, and Tesla has not expanded the factory in years as both Tesla and Panasonic are focused on optimising existing capacity. So far, it’s been five years since Tesla expanded the plant.
Yellow represents the completed factory, red (Tesla) and blue (Panasonic) represent the parts of the factory that are in operation. Image source: Electrec
In January 2023, Tesla announced a major expansion of the Nevada Superfactory to increase production of Semi and 4680 cells and eventually expand the factory to its originally planned size. Tesla aims to mass produce Semi and 4680 cells at the plant.
Tesla is known to move quickly after such announcements, but over the past year-long period, Tesla has taken no action.
Tesla has now reportedly finally begun work on the expansion project for the Nevada Superfactory, or at least groundbreaking has begun.
Youtube user Zanegler Tesla Semi Stalker claimed in a video that Tesla held a “groundbreaking ceremony” for the Nevada Superfactory expansion project on January 17. Video shows that Tesla is conducting groundbreaking work at the factory, but it is currently unable to confirm whether a groundbreaking ceremony was held.
Zanegler Tesla Semi Stalker pointed out that Tesla told employees at the groundbreaking ceremony that the new area Tesla built for the Semi will actually be a new building independent of the existing building, but this cannot be confirmed at this time.
Last year, it was revealed that Tesla had hired an executive from U.S. pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly to lead the expansion plans for its Nevada Superfactory. Plans for the factory may have changed since then.
