Factory location Gigafactory 1

tesla considered several sites, reno not 1 of them. manager @ reno–tahoe international airport offered of 3,000 available acres @ reno stead airport, , persuaded tric owner split bill private jet fly tesla people reno. reno tried several times, , tesla came tric , pleased speed of regulatory work.

state competition , incentives

at least 5 states competed attract gigafactory offering tax incentives, cash grants , other methods in hope of future business; california, arizona, nevada, new mexico, , texas, san antonio had offered bigger incentives no sales tax, did not factory. states without sales tax topping list of preferred sites.

nevada estimates tax base of $1.9 billion on 20 years. after sticky negotiations, tesla chose tahoe-reno industrial center (tric) location of gigafactory due speed , state of nevada incentive package. other location reasons rail access, direct sale ability, , low air humidity.

the incentives include $195 million in transferable tax credits depending on tesla s investment schedule , job creation, similar volkswagen chattanooga assembly plant deal , others. tesla s investments earn them $10 million in tax credits per quarter, , july 2016 had sold these $20 million cash. @ end of 2016, tesla , panasonic had 477 employees , 5,591 construction workers, nevada residents, , invested $1.1b earning $59m in tax credits.

the incentive package includes 20 years free sales tax , 10 years free property tax, depending on tesla s ability meet performance expectations (like investing $3.5 billion in nevada). 2034, package have accumulated value of $1.25 billion in missed taxes; 10th largest in us. $725m sales tax abatement particularly important, 5 other states charge no sales tax @ , 34 states, including arizona , texas, don t charge sales tax on manufacturing equipment. tax base of $1.9 billion , incentive package of $1.25 billion, projected end result calculated tax-per-abatement ratio of 1.52. nearby data centers apple inc. , switch received incentives.

nevada estimates construction impact @ $2.4 billion , economic impact project @ $100 billion on 2 decades ($5 billion/year, of $353 million wages). economists said number flawed , instance, counted every tesla employee if otherwise have been unemployed , made no allowance increased government spending serve influx of thousands of local residents. tesla agreed pay $7.5m per year 5 years ($37.5m) school system.

logistics

the 6-mile nevada state route 439/usa parkway built tric, , connects tric interstate 80. since 2004, tric owners had planned extend sr 439 south u.s. route 50. in 2014, nevada department of transportation advanced otherwise dormant south extension. improves traffic conditions many large logistics centres @ tric , gigafactory, bypassing reno on way u.s. route 50. tesla plans ship batteries rail car factory in fremont.

water scarce in nevada, , of water gigafactory piped treatment plant in neighboring washoe county. 1.5 million u.s. gallons (5.7 million l) water tank used (about 2 olympic-size swimming pools).

tric built high-pressure natural gas lines sites, tesla decided use electricity , not connect natural gas gigafactory. heat pump technology used heating, , $6.8 million energy storage tank scheduled site. in 2014 navigant estimated 100 mw electricity delivery supplied (on average) nearby wind turbines , roof solar panels, whereas former tesla logistics manager in 2016 estimated 300 mw produce 35 gwh of battery capacity per year.

tesla works mining company extract lithium 200 miles (320 km) southeast, @ silver peak in esmeralda county. intend process underground brine water industrially on hours rather traditional way of letting water evaporate ponds on year.