Giga Nevada also known as Gigafactory 1 is an electric vehicle and lithium-ion battery manufacturing plant owned and operated by Tesla Inc. It mass produces battery packs and energy storage products like the Tesla Powerwall.  The factory supplies electric batteries for all Tesla vehicles except the ones that come from Giga Shanghai. 

Tesla constructed the Giga Nevada in 2014 for $3.5 billion. However, now the company is planning to invest an additional $3.6 billion dollars, to construct two new mega factories on the premises. One of the factories will be used to mass produce the Semi Electric Truck while the second unit will be used to make 4680 battery cells to supply more than 1.5 billion light-duty vehicles annually. 

The Nevada complex already employs around 7000 people. But Tesla is planning to hire 3000 more to run the two new factories. 

The Tesla Semi Electric Truck concept prototype was announced in 2017 and the actual manufacturing started in 2018. In December 2022, five years after its announcement, the company made its first delivery of the Semi fleet to Pepsi. co. The company blamed the lack of battery production capabilities as the reason for the stall in Semi supply. 

Tesla Semi is a futuristic, fully electric truck that can carry 81000 pounds including cargo. The 18-wheeler truck has a range of up to 500 miles and goes from 0 to 60mph in just 20 seconds. The truck consumes less than 2kWh of energy per mile and can be charged up to 70% in just 30 minutes. It also features an enhanced autopilot system, semi-autonomous capabilities, and active safety controls.

Many companies including Walmart, United Parcel Services, and Brewer Anheuser-Busch have already reserved their Tesla Semi. Apart from being a green vehicle, the Semi is estimated to save up to $200000 in 3 years in fuel savings and may also qualify for up to $40000 tax credits given to green commercial vehicles under the Inflation Reduction Act. 

While the new factory will mass produce the Semi, the second unit will take care of the production of the 4680 batteries which will help the company to reduce the battery cost by half and achieve its goal of selling 20 million EVs by 2030. According to experts, the 4680 battery faces scaling issues as the dry coating technique used to produce the bigger battery is new and unproven. But Tesla is planning to manufacture the batteries on a large scale in the new factory.

Tesla which faces stiff competition in the Electric Truck segment from established players like Nikola Corp, Daimler’s Freightliner, and Volvo, plans to produce around 50000 Semi in 2024. The company has not announced the actual details of the factory setup yet and has not explained how is it planning to overcome the scaling issues of the 4680 batteries. 

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The trajectory of development of the Tesla Semi has seen the futuristic electric truck miss some specified deadlines. The global chip shortage and the coronavirus pandemic may have contributed to the delays. The company seems to be turning the corner as the Tesla Semi has now started receiving orders. A $20,000 deposit is the requirement but it remains to be seen how it will go without any delivery date specified.

In 2021, Tesla had announced that deliveries of the Tesla Semi will commence in a few months, but the company failed to deliver. The Tesla Semi is a great-looking monster of a truck with center driving and the cabin doors behind the front wheels and beside the driver’s seat. The unusual design of the entry points has taken cognizance of driver safety. The two large screens on the sides of the steering wheel give an unobtrusive view for the driver. Parts of the large screen serve as the rearview mirror of the electric truck.

Tesla seems to have imposed its core principles in the design of the interior of the Semi. There are no distractions in the cabin while maximum comfort is guaranteed. The Tesla Semi comes highly priced. There is a 300 miles (483km) model priced at $150,000 while the 500 miles (804km) model will cost $180,000. Both models will offer haulage capabilities of around 36 tonnes and are well-kitted in the current market. The truck can accelerate from 0 to 60mph (97km/h) in 20 seconds even with its massive load.

The Tesla Semi is being projected as offering substantial savings in fuel costs from traditional trucks. It is projected as capable of saving up to $100,000/ year in running costs, which is simply massive. The Tesla Semi could therefore bring revolutionary changes to the haulage industry if the energy-saving projections are correct. It is expected that the delivery date for the Tesla Semi will not be too far off since the pre-order process has commenced.

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