The new factory, which is anticipated to double the global capacity for lithium-ion batteries and is 20 times as large as the biggest battery factory now in production, will be used to principally supply hundreds of thousands of new generation Tesla electric cars but several market analysts are questioning the viability of the investment.
Nevada was selected after offering a package of tax breaks, which requires approval of the State Legislature, that totals about $1.25 billion over 20 years. Tesla’s CEO Elon Musk said that although Nevada had won the Gigafactory deal the company may prepare other sites elsewhere to ensure that it has a suitable spot when it is needed. California, Arizona, New Mexico and Texas are likely to be front-runners for another site.
Tesla has chosen an industrial park outside Reno, Nevada to build the battery gigafactory rather than sites in California, Texas, Arizona and New Mexico and will give a boost the EV manufacturing capacity which is key in the company’s long term aims to produce an electric car that costs around $35,000 and can go 200 miles on a single charge.
Although Tesla has shown that a range of hundreds of miles is possible with its models the company recognises that sales volume needs to grow considerably to drive vehicle price tags below the $70,000 base price of the Model S luxury sedan Tesla sells at now.
The 10 million square feet gigafactory, which is being developed with help from Panasonic, aims bring the cost of batteries down markedly. Tesla plans the factory to be up and running by 2017 and is looking to produce batteries for about 500,000 vehicles annually by 2020.
The Gigafactory 15 miles east of Reno and close to a deposit of lithium which is an essential element for battery production. Nevada offers low tax rates and business-friendly workplace laws and is relatively close to the Tesla’s car manufacturing plant in the San Francisco Bay Area.
Source: http://www.electronics-eetimes.com/en/tesla-gigafactory-breaks-new-ground-in-battery-revolution.html?cmp_id=7&news_id=222922264&vID=209
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