Tesla Gigafactory Texas Pre-Construction Already In Motion

Jul 25, 2020

By Eva Fox

Featured image: Jeff Roberts / YouTube

During the Q2 2020 Earnings Call, Tesla CEO Elon Musk confirmed that a new factory for manufacturing Semi, Cybertruck, and Model Y will be built near Austin, Texas. Musk said that the site covers around 2,000 acres and is located just five minutes from the airport and about 15 minutes from downtown Austin, near the Colorado River:

“It will be stunning. It's right by the Colorado River. It will have a boardwalk… It will be an ecological paradise. It will be open to the public as well."

We already know that Tesla has acquired a 2,100-acre site located at the intersection of SH-130 and Harold Green Road.

Source: @stacyconaway / Twitter

Application to the Del Valle Independent School District from Colorado River Project, LLC

Tesla CyberTruck Giga Texas (Terafactory) Possible Site Location https://t.co/wNS7q2IXR4 pic.twitter.com/xeT9kMfzlu
— Tesmanian.com (@Tesmanian_com) July 24, 2020

According to Tesla's application filed in late May, construction is proposed to commence in Q3 of 2020 pending all required approvals. The manufacturing plant will be 4-5 million square feet. Tesla wrote that the timing of the construction still needs to be determined, but it is expected that it will cover the next two to three years.

Yesterday, Jeff Roberts via YouTube posted the first drone video from Giga Texas. He made a test flight to make sure he did not violate the nearby no-fly zones from the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport.

Source: Jeff Roberts / YouTube

As you can see from the video, heavy machinery is leveling the ground in the area. It is noteworthy that significant work has already been done and a fairly large part of the site is already partially prepared for the next stage.

In comparison, it took about five months from Tesla's announcement of plans for the construction of Giga Berlin to the start of land leveling on the site in Germany. In addition to the fact that the company needed to obtain a number of permits, the site was a pine plantation, which means Tesla had to harvest, uproot the roots, and remove the top, unusable soil layer.

The site near Austin looks more suitable for construction, so the company can move through development much faster. If this information is correct, the construction of Giga Texas could potentially take five months less time than Giga Berlin. This would prove exciting, "next-level" advancement in Tesla's gigafactory construction process.

We hope that the construction will take place in accordance with Tesla's plans because Giga Texas should produce the long-awaited and desired Cybertruck and Semi.

Article edited by @SmokeyShorts, you can follow him on Twitter

Follow @EvaFoxU

About the Author

Eva Fox

Eva Fox joined Tesmanian in 2019 to cover breaking news as an automotive journalist. The main topics that she covers are clean energy and electric vehicles. As a journalist, Eva is specialized in Tesla and topics related to the work and development of the company.

Follow me on X