Tesla Invests $3.6 Billion in Nevada Battery, Truck Capacity

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(Bloomberg) — Tesla Inc. is investing $3.6 billion in two new factories to build electric vehicle batteries and its all-electric Semi heavy-duty truck near an existing production site in Reno, Nevada.

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The new battery facility will make Tesla’s latest so-called 4680 cells with capacity for use in as many as 2 million vehicles a year, Tesla said in a statement on its website. It will also build a “high-volume” facility for its Semi, which debuted late last year, but the company did not provide estimated production numbers. 

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Tesla also announced the news via a corporate post on Twitter. Chief Executive Officer Elon Musk purchased Twitter for $44 billion in late October.

Tesla’s sprawling factory in the region already makes electric motors and battery packs, as well as energy storage products like the home battery known as the “Powerwall.” Work on what Tesla calls its gigafactory began in June 2014. 

Elon Musk’s Austin, Texas-based company handed over the first Semi trucks to PepsiCo Inc. at an event at the Nevada factory last month. Tesla has said it aims to produce 50,000 Semis for North America in 2024.

Tuesday’s announcement came the day before Tesla is slated to report fourth-quarter earnings. 

“It will create more than 3,000 good-paying jobs in Nevada helping America lead in clean energy manufacturing, strengthening our energy security, and ultimately lowering costs for families,” Mitch Landrieu, a senior White House advisor, said in a statement Tuesday.

Tesla shares fell as much as 1.5% in extended trading after the announcement before paring some of the decline. The stock has gained 17% so far in 2023. 

(Updates with Tesla’s Twitter post.)