Tesla Gigafactory Investor Thread

[Jerpo]

So guys who are we betying on will provide solar panels for the GF??? It will be a huge order. My money is on SPWR or JASO.

I think it is quite obvious they will use SCTY -- whether SCTY manufactures them or purchases the panels, they will want to use SCTY for their financing abilities so as to reduce capex of the facility...

Also I wouldn't be surprised if they rush it to pre 2017 to take advantage of the tax credits, regardless of if the GF is complete or ready for the panels, the %30 incentive is pretty large.

 

[Johan]

I think it is quite obvious they will use SCTY -- whether SCTY manufactures them or purchases the panels, they will want to use SCTY for their financing abilities so as to reduce capex of the facility...

Also I wouldn't be surprised if they rush it to pre 2017 to take advantage of the tax credits, regardless of if the GF is complete or ready for the panels, the %30 incentive is pretty large.

I agree on that SCTY will be the provider, but I was thinking more panel tech wise. In my mind SCTY's purchase of panel manufacturing ability was more of a long term strategy but hey, if they can produce enough of their own panels to supply the GF then all the more kudos to them.

 

[chickensevil]

I do the calculations every day. The numbers I quoted are solid and irrefutable. The colors on those maps mean nothing. What matters is the NREL data I quoted above.

You can change the feel by changing the colors of the maps. Below is the official NREL map that takes the full scale into account. When looking at this map you can see that there is a difference, however it is not nearly as large as most maps make it out to be.

If all Tesla was concerned about for the gigafactory was solar insolation then Arizona would have won hands down.

You do realize that both maps show exactly the same thing just with a bit of a difference in the colors... not sure what you were trying to prove there. They are both generated off the same NREL data, albeit from data that caps at 2005. So unless something drastic has changed in the past 10 years it would be pretty close to accurate. Given how the NE climate has been unusually cold this summer and decently cloudy most times and the SW has been in an ongoing drought (which means less clouds in the sky to block the sun), this has likely shifted even further in the favor of solar in the SW.

BTW your map puts DE at 4.5-5.0 and the Reno Area at the 6.0-6.5. Which is exactly what I said. It is more than just sunlight that you have to take into account.

But let's be honest, proximity to Fremont was a very critical factor outside of just "optimal renewables" or I agree, they probably would have went with AZ.

Maybe when and if they put a factory on the east coast (car and battery) then DE will become a state to consider.

 

[Tyl]

Dirt... they are moving lots of dirt. ...but to see it up close you will have to use a drone with a GoPro! A really friendly guard lady at the security gate wouldn't let you go inside the gated area, but there are plenty of foothills in the area you can climb to see them moving dirt... lots of dirt. I wasn't into foothill climbing that day and I do not have a drone with a GoPro. Phooey! My superman flying skills are really rusty soooo... all I have are a few photos of them moving dirt ... from quite a distance away I'm sure many more photos will come in time, as we continue to monitor.

 

[chickensevil]

Interestingly when you combine the other two energy types, you get a really great mixture of renewables in the SW region of the US no matter where you decide to build.

But yes, offshore wind is quite good no matter which shoreline you choose.

 

[AlMc]

Nice article about details of the GF deal: http://www.rgj.com/story/news/2014/09/04/nevada-strikes-billion-tax-break-deal-tesla/15096777/

 

[ecarfan]

Musk mentions solar, geothermal, and wind. I'd assume there would be substantial battery based storage as well.

I was very surprised to hear him include geothermal. I was not aware that there was a geothermal energy source in that area.

 

[chickensevil]

I was very surprised to hear him include geothermal. I was not aware that there was a geothermal energy source in that area.

Please check out this post: Tesla Gigafactory Investor Thread - Page 155

It has the NREL data for geothermal, and Nevada is lit up like a christmas tree for geothermal.

 

[Monsoon]

I was very surprised to hear him include geothermal. I was not aware that there was a geothermal energy source in that area.

There is geothermal everywhere... if you dig deep enough.

 

[iadbound]

Dirt... they are moving lots of dirt. ...but to see it up close you will have to use a drone with a GoPro! A really friendly guard lady at the security gate wouldn't let you go inside the gated area, but there are plenty of foothills in the area you can climb to see them moving dirt... lots of dirt. I wasn't into foothill climbing that day and I do not have a drone with a GoPro. Phooey! My superman flying skills are really rusty soooo... all I have are a few photos of them moving dirt ... from quite a distance away I'm sure many more photos will come in time, as we continue to monitor.

With the way Tesla is trying to keep prying eyes away from site you would think the NSA is the one building the facility. I'm hoping that Tesla makes this into something of a model building project that is open for tours, garners the interest of industrial engineers and architects, and launches a whole host of imitators.

 

[chickensevil]

There is geothermal everywhere... if you dig deep enough.

I think that is why the NREL map is 3km to 10km because I think 10km is the upper bound of what they feel would be feasible... this is like digging for oil wells... haha!

 

[ggies07]

With the way Tesla is trying to keep prying eyes away from site you would think the NSA is the one building the facility. I'm hoping that Tesla makes this into something of a model building project that is open for tours, garners the interest of industrial engineers and architects, and launches a whole host of imitators.

Elon did say at the local press conf. That it will be open for tours because you are going to want to see it. Sounds like it's going to be a BAMF of a building.

 

[chickensevil]

With the way Tesla is trying to keep prying eyes away from site you would think the NSA is the one building the facility. I'm hoping that Tesla makes this into something of a model building project that is open for tours, garners the interest of industrial engineers and architects, and launches a whole host of imitators.

If you go listen to the video during the Nevada speech Elon seems to indicate exactly this!

It is why they are making the building appealing to the eyes, like an attraction for the future of manufacturing. Because you can bet that the tech on the outside isn't the only thing worth going to take a look at!

 

[ecarfan]

Elon did say at the local press conf. That it will be open for tours because you are going to want to see it.

Yes he did say that and as soon as the factory is up and tours are available My wife and I are driving there to see it! With the Truckee SUpercharger up and running it will be an easy drive from the SF Bay Area and I'm sure there will be at least HPWC charging available at the Gigafactory, and maybe even Superchargers.

 

[iadbound]

If you go listen to the video during the Nevada speech Elon seems to indicate exactly this!

It is why they are making the building appealing to the eyes, like an attraction for the future of manufacturing. Because you can bet that the tech on the outside isn't the only thing worth going to take a look at!

I didn't listen to the announcement. Seems like I better go listen. Likewise, his comments from Tokyo also sounded like they were worth listening to.

 

[chickensevil]

I didn't listen to the announcement. Seems like I better go listen. Likewise, his comments from Tokyo also sounded like they were worth listening to.

Yes it was a really great Q&A I posted the full interview from Bloomberg over in the short term thread, it had some relevance to the gigafactory so anyone interested should check out the comments directly relating to that.

Specifically, one of the things he mentioned was that for the capacity of the factory it would be 2/3 for Tesla car production and 1/3 for stationary storage and other auto car production (like Toyota, Daimler, etc).

Also it looks like Hitachi and SMM will be very likely partners, it seems like they haven't fully committed yet but are likely to go with it since they are the current suppliers for the Panasonic cells.

Anyway the whole video is worth the 30 minutes or so that it takes.

 

[AlMc]

As I read this either Western Lithium Mining Company will be, or is lobbying to, supply the GF with Lithium with the start up of the new extraction factory:Western Lithium Advances Nevada Lithium Supply With Demonstration Plant Startup - Yahoo Finance

 

[RobStark]

As I read this either Western Lithium Mining Company will be, or is lobbying to, supply the GF with Lithium with the start up of the new extraction factory:Western Lithium Advances Nevada Lithium Supply With Demonstration Plant Startup - Yahoo Finance

All they have to do is match the quality and delivered price of Lithium from Chile.

 

[jhm]

So big they'll need to hyperloop employees from one end to the other.

 

[FluxCap]

Via reddit.com/r/teslamotors:

Exactly how HUGE will the Tesla Gigafactory be? [Fixed - OC]