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Key takeaways
Tesla plans to dramatically increase its solar cell production capacity to 100 gigawatts a year.The expansion includes both an increase in production at the existing plant in Buffalo, New York, and the construction of new facilities.Elon Musk’s renewed focus on solar power is fuelled by growing demand from the AI sector.
Tesla is actively working on plans to significantly increase its solar cell production capacity, aiming to meet Elon Musk’s ambitious goal of 100 gigawatts per year. That effort follows previous attempts by the company to introduce solar power on a large scale, which fell short of expectations.
Expansion plans
The plan includes several phases. Initially, Tesla plans to expand production at its existing factory in Buffalo, New York, to reach a capacity equivalent to 10 nuclear power plants. Long-term goals include building a second plant in New York state and exploring sites in Arizona and Idaho.
This initiative is being led by Bonne Eggleston, vice-president of Tesla, who has publicly announced that he is recruiting staff for positions in domestic solar manufacturing. Musk’s renewed focus on solar power is driven by the growing demand from the AI sector, which requires huge amounts of electricity.
Previous solar energy efforts
Tesla acquired SolarCity, a company chaired by Musk and run by his cousins, in 2016. Although the acquisition was intended to integrate “beautiful solar roofs” into Tesla’s mission, the product failed to gain widespread acceptance.
Musk’s current vision is focused on solar cell production, a market currently dominated by China. The United States produces only a fraction of global solar cell production, despite import tariffs on Chinese imports and previous efforts to boost domestic production.
Recent reports suggest that Musk’s teams from SpaceX and Tesla have visited solar companies in China to explore possible equipment purchases. (at)
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