brief: Tesla’s Gigafactory in Nevada will continue to grow thanks to the extra inflow of cash. The electric automaker has announced plans to invest more than $3.6 billion in a massive 5.4 million square foot battery and component complex. The expansion calls for two new facilities, including a 100 GWh 4680 cell factory capable of producing enough batteries for 1.5 million light duty vehicles annually and the company’s first high-volume Semi factory.
Tesla Unveiled Its 4680 battery cell format during its Battery Day keynote in 2020. The cell measures 46mm x 80mm (hence the 4680 name) and produces five times the energy, six times the power and increases the range by 16 percent courtesy of the new design.
The Semi was introduced in 2017 and was supposed to enter production a few years later. Manufacturing won’t begin until 2022, however, with Pepsi taking delivery of the first production units late last year. Others who have reportedly placed orders for Tesla Semi trucks include United Parcel Service and Walmart.
cm has one estimated range With a range of 500 miles, consumes less than 2 kWh per mile and can achieve 70 percent range with a 30-minute charge. Tesla notes that charging with electricity is approximately 2.5 times cheaper per mile than filling up with diesel, and can save operators up to $200,000 within the first three years of ownership.
Expansion Gigafactory Nevada, located just outside Reno, will also create 3,000 new jobs.
Tesla currently operates five Gigafactories around the world, with additional locations in New York, Austin and Shanghai. The sixth factory is being told planned to For construction in the northern Mexican state of Nuevo León.
In September, experts told reuters Tesla was having problems with the dry-coating technology used in the production of its 4680 batteries. Because the technology is so new and unproven, the automaker was reportedly struggling to mass-produce it, where there would be huge cost savings.
