Tesla will build its next American factory in Austin, Texas, CEO Elon Musk announced today, ending a month-long search to build the next Cybertruck. Construction work “is already underway,” Musk said. “It started this weekend.”
Tesla recently received tens of millions of dollars in tax exemptions from both the Texas county where the factory will be built and a local school district. The company was also considering Tulsa, Oklahoma, and Musk said Tesla would “strongly consider it” for future projects.
The new Texas factory will be open to the public, Musk said, and there will be a boardwalk and walking and biking trails. “Basically it will be an ecological paradise. Birds in the trees, butterflies, fish in the stream, “he said.
In addition to the Cybertruck, Tesla will also build the Model Ys and Model 3 destined for the East Coast, as well as the Tesla Semi, Musk said. It will be the company’s fourth factory in the United States, after the vehicle factory in California, the battery factory in Nevada, and the solar energy factory in New York. Tesla also has a new vehicle factory on the outskirts of Shanghai, China, and is building another factory on the outskirts of Berlin, Germany.
The site where Tesla is building the factory consists of approximately 2,100 acres of land east of the Austin-Bergstrom International Airport, with approximately two miles of exposure to the Texas Colorado River. It is not widely used today, although a sand and gravel mining company operates at the center of development. In a June meeting with county officials, Tesla’s global director of public policy said the following about the site:
The potential is simply excellent for recreation, beauty, and the vision to potentially transform a former mining site into a sustainable factory with recreational opportunities; That is just a vision that is perfectly suited to our mission.
Tesla plans to hire up to 5,000 workers with an average salary of $ 47,147, with entry-level positions starting at $ 35,000. It will invest at least $ 1 billion and plans to build a 4-5 million square foot factory.
“Tesla is one of the most exciting and innovative companies in the world, and we are proud to welcome its team to the State of Texas,” said Texas Governor Greg Abbott in a statement. “Texas has the best workforce in the nation, and we have created an economic environment that allows companies like Tesla to innovate and succeed. Tesla’s Gigafactory Texas will maintain the strongest Texas economy in the nation and create thousands of jobs for working Texans. I look forward to the tremendous benefits that Tesla’s investment will bring to central Texas and the entire state. ”
It is currently unclear what, if any, it promises Tesla received from the state of Texas for choosing to build in the Austin area.
Kevin Stitt, the Oklahoma governor, said in a statement that he “will actively recruit Tesla’s supplier base for Oklahoma,” and that being a finalist has raised the profile of the state.
“In recent months, Tulsans and Oklahomans as a whole have shown the nation and the world that our state is worthy to be one of two finalists for an innovative and cutting-edge company like Tesla,” said Stitt. “I wish Elon Musk and Tesla all the best. In fact, I wish them so much success that they are forced to expand again, because I know the place. ”
Steve Adler, the mayor of Austin, said in a statement that the factory will be “a major economic boost in East Austin, especially as we fight the economic effects of the virus.”
“Tesla’s move to Austin is exciting. It gives us three things we need in East Austin. It gives us thousands of well-paying jobs that don’t need a 4-year degree. Your factory will be better for people and the planet, “said Adler.
Reached his comment Wednesday afternoon, Hector Nieto, the Travis County, Texas public information officer, said county officials had not been notified of any decision. “It’s like being invited to the prom with our gown and corsage, but we’re still waiting for them to show up.”
Musk revealed that Tesla was looking for a place to build a new factory in March. Exploration places for Cybertruck Gigafactory. It will be the center of the United States, “he tweeted on March 10. Nashville, Tennessee was reportedly an early candidate, before Austin and Tulsa finally emerged as finalists. Officials of (and residents of) Tulsa made many flashy moves, such as painting a statue of a 70-foot-tall oil driller to resemble Musk Patel said last month that Tesla had held talks with “almost every state and governor east of the Rocky Mountains.”
While Tesla took the time to come to a massive deal for its first Gigafactory in Nevada a few years ago, this time the company was much more convenient. The process only seemed to speed up in May when Musk threatened to kick Tesla out of California on public health orders that forced the company to shut down its vehicle factory there, and multiple reports soon emerged that Austin and Tulsa were the finalists.
Not long afterward, Tesla began having public discussions about tax incentives for a possible deal in Austin. It was at one of those meetings that many residents expressed concern about Musk’s behavior during the pandemic, and especially about the battle he fought with Alameda County, where the Tesla factory in California is located. Local union members also repeatedly pressured officials during these meetings for Tesla to accept better wages and protections for workers. Tesla eventually accepted some concessions, such as paying food service and janitors the same $ 15 an hour minimum wage that entry-level factory workers will earn.
However, many more residents and local business owners expressed enthusiasm during those meetings about the idea of Tesla building a factory in Austin. At the final meeting of the Travis County Commissioners Court, the administrative and policy-making arm of the local government, a common phrase emerged among those who supported bringing Tesla to Texas: that this was a “generational” opportunity that Austin you shouldn’t lose.
Commissioner Jeffrey Travillion said his campus, which is where the factory will be, represents “the greatest amount of poverty and the least amount of access to health, social and economic resources” in the Austin area.
Travillion, who advocated approving the tax package in response to a request to delay the vote, said he felt the Tesla factory could help solve those problems.
“If we are talking about a transformation process that will address poverty and opportunities in that area for generations, it would be difficult for me to accept that we have a consensus in the future and do not make a decision, and allow this project to go to another market” , said.
