Tesla sent the first invites to the official opening of its Gigafactory. On the 29th of July, the enormous facility will be open for public before getting ready to start full capacity production. The actual cell production is expected to begin in 2017.
Tesla Gigafactory
The factory is located in the vicinity of Reno, Nevada. The construction began in June 2014, and the costs for foundation alone were of approximately $16 million.
The original surface of the factory is 1.9 million square feet. In the future, the facility will expand even more and reach a total surface of 13 million feet.
Tesla wants to reach an annual production of 50 GWh batteries, which will be enough for 500,000 Tesla cars. The new in-house production will both enhance vehicle production and cut down the prices for the consumer.
The facility is designed to be a net-zero energy factory, which means that it will be powered by renewable energy resources such as solar, geothermal and wind.
The company planned a sophisticated recycling system that will capture lithium, aluminum and nickel and use them in new batteries.
The factory will help reduce the costs of the batteries production, which will contribute to decreasing the price of Tesla cars and make the new models more affordable. The company also offers home energy solutions that depend on batteries, so the factory’s cost efficiency goals will have a large impact on Elon Musk’s projects.
The total value of the facility is set to $5 billion. The factory will be the creation point of the new Tesla Model 3.
Tesla Model 3
This prototype intends to offer more space, performance, and safety. The model is designed to be the most affordable of Tesla’s vehicles. It will be equipped with an autopilot system and supercharging features.
The maximum range will be at 215 miles per charge, and it will take under 60 seconds to reach the speed of 60 mph.
The car will be made of a mix of steel and aluminum. The first more costly models were made exclusively from aluminum.
Tesla declared that the production was programmed to begin in 2017. More than 115,000 people already put deposits to secure the buy of the new car.
The model was announced to the public during a SpaceX launch party. Both Tesla Motors and SpaceX belong to Elon Musk.
The aim of the company is to create transportation with zero-emissions and full automation. For the first time, Tesla will start producing in large numbers. Experts say that this new affordable Model 3 will either boost the company or bury it.
Image Source: Wikipedia
