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Gigafactory Will Be Net Zero And Carbon Neutral

JB Straubel says the Tesla GigaFactory will be net zero and carbon neutral. It will get most of its power from solar panels mounted on the roof and nearby.

Published

9 years ago

November 12, 2015

Steve Hanley

When Tesla Chief Technical Officer JB Straubel made a presentation at the University of Nevada last month, what he said in the Q&A session afterwards may have been more important that what he said during his talk. He told his audience that the Gigafactory will be a net zero facility producing as much energy as it uses.

“[F]rom the get-go, from the first concept of this factory, we wanted to make it a net zero facility,” Straubel said. “So…the most visible thing we are doing is covering the entire site with solar power. The whole roof of the Gigafactory was designed from the beginning with solar in mind. We kept all of the mechanical equipment off the roof. We didn’t put extra…penetrations through the roof that we didn’t need to and it’s a very, very clean surface that we can completely cover in solar. But that’s not enough solar, though. So we have also gone to the surrounding hillsides that we can’t use for other functions and we’re adding solar to those.”

Drone video of Tesla Gigafactory from Sept, 2015

Net zero does not mean the factory won’t be connected to the grid. It means that it will put as much electricity back into the grid as it takes from it. One thing the Gigafactory will not be connected to, though, is a natural gas source. According to CleanTechnica, Straubel told his audience,

“[W]e took kind of a radical move in the beginning and said we are not going to burn any fossil fuels in the factory. You know, zero emissions. We are going to build a zero-emissions factory — just like the car. So, instead of kind of fighting this battle in hindsight, we just said we are not even going to have a natural gas pipeline coming to the factory, so we didn’t even build it. And it kind of forced the issue. When you don’t have natural gas, you know, none of the engineers can say, “Oh, but it will be more efficient, let me use just a little bit.” Sorry, we don’t even have it.”

Tesla is committed to showing the world how to break its fossil fuel habit by building high quality electric cars. When it comes to its own manufacturing facility in Nevada, Tesla is not only talking the talk, it is walking the walk. Tesla has been telling us for sometime that the Gigafactory would be net zero and carbon neutral. It says so right on the artist’s rendering of what the building will look like.

Straubel is justifiably proud of the effort Tesla is making to have its Gigafactory be a model for all other manufacturers. When completed, the Gigafactory will not only be one of the largest buildings on earth, it will be an ongoing demonstration project for how to do business in a sustainable, carbon neutral manner. The process has taken a lot of thought and creative solutions, but Straubel made it clear to his audience that he and his colleagues have enjoyed the process.

“[I]t’s kind of been a fun activity and just, a lot of challenges that come up. But in every single step of the process, we have been able to reinvent and come up with solutions. There’s a heat pump technology that actually ends up way more efficient than just burning natural gas for steam. And then, we have a facility that has basically no emissions. The only emissions are related to the vehicles that might go there that aren’t electric or things like that. But we’ll try to attack that one piece at a time.” If Elon Musk has his way, all those old fashioned fossil fuel burning cars and trucks in the parking lot will soon be a thing of the past.

Judge rejects Elon Musk’s OpenAI injunction, but offers fast trial

The judge, however, opened the door for an expedited trial on Musk’s core claims against the artificial intelligence startup.

Published

1 minute ago

March 5, 2025

Simon Alvarez

MINISTÉRIO DAS COMUNICAÇÕES, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

A federal judge has rejected Elon Musk’s push to block OpenAI’s for-profit conversion. The judge, however, opened the door for an expedited trial on Musk’s core claims against the artificial intelligence startup.

Injunction Denied, but Core Case Advances

U.S. District Judge Yvonne Gonzalez Rogers ruled on Tuesday that “Musk has not demonstrated likelihood of success on the merits” in his request for a preliminary injunction.” The judge flagged Musk’s recent $97.4 billion bid to buy OpenAI’s nonprofit as undercutting his “claim of irreparable harm,” noting it suggested competitive motives over irreparable loss.

Judge Gonzales Rogers did offer to hold a trial in her California courtroom as early as this fall “given the public interest at stake and potential for harm if a conversion contrary to law occurred,” as noted in a report from the Associated Press. This effectively keeps Musk’s core allegations alive, including breach of contract tied to OpenAI’s nonprofit roots.

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Musk, who invested $45 million in OpenAI from its founding until 2018, alleged that the firm violated its founding mission when it shifted its efforts into becoming a for-profit company.

Judge Gonzales Rogers, for her part, had previously questioned why the Tesla and SpaceX CEO invested tens of millions in OpenAI without a written contract. “That is just a lot of money” to invest “on a handshake,” the judge previously noted.

What Musk and OpenAI’s Lawyers Say

OpenAI has welcomed the court’s decision. In a statement, the artificial intelligence startup stated that, “This has always been about competition. Elon’s own emails show that he wanted to merge a for-profit OpenAI into Tesla. That would have been great for his personal benefit, but not for our mission or U.S. interests.”

Elon Musk lawyer Marc Toberoff also noted that he is pleased about the judge’s decision to offer an expedited trial on the lawsuit’s core claims. “We look forward to a jury confirming that Altman accepted Musk’s charitable contributions, knowing full well they had to be used for the public’s benefit rather than his own enrichment,” the lawyer stated.

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Trump tariffs could obliterate Ford, GM, and Stellantis profits, but Tesla may be safe: Barclays

Tesla will likely be safe from the adverse effects of Trump’s tariffs as the company produces its vehicles in the United States.

Published

2 hours ago

March 5, 2025

Simon Alvarez

Ivan Radic, CC BY 2.0 , via Wikimedia Commons

United States President Donald Trump’s 25% tariffs on imports from Canada and Mexico are threatening Detroit’s automakers, with Barclays analysts warning of a potential profit hit for Ford, GM, and Stellantis.

Tesla will likely be safe from the adverse effects of Trump’s tariffs, however, as the company produces its vehicles in the United States.

Trump Tariff Threat

As noted in a Fortune report, one out of four cars sold in the United States are built in either of the two countries. For GM and Stellantis, over a third of their vehicles that are intended for sale in the United States are produced in Mexico and Canada.

The Trump administration’s tariffs could tack on at least $3,000 more per vehicle, Barclays analysts estimated. “Without any adjustment, we estimate it could wipe out effectively all profits for the D3,” the analysts noted.

Auto executives have expressed their reservations about the effect of Trump’s tariffs against Canada and Mexico. In a comment to Fortune last month, Ford CEO Jim Farley noted that if the Trump administration does move forward with its planned import duties, it would cost the U.S. auto industry billions of dollars in profit headwinds.

“We would have to make some major strategy shifts in the U.S., build new plants et cetera, if this persists. Obviously, it’s a devastating impact,” Farley noted.

Tesla Dodges Bullet

Tesla could very well sidestep the worst of the tariffs, as the EV maker assembles the vehicles it sells in the U.S. within the country with minimal reliance on Mexican parts. Elon Musk has also noted that Tesla’s planned Gigafactory Mexico has been paused for now.

Tesla’s vehicles, such as the Model Y and the Model 3, have been listed as among the most American-made cars over the years. Tesla’s vehicle production facilities in the United States such as the Fremont Factory and Giga Texas are also among the largest and most productive auto plants in the country.

Barclays’ Warning

Overall, Barclays analysts noted that if Trump’s high import duties are left in place, automakers such as Ford, GM, and Stellantis will likely feel a lot of pain. This may be the case even if the tariffs themselves are reduced.

“Given the potential for significant disruption ahead if the tariffs stick, we believe it’s a reminder as to why tariffs of this magnitude are unlikely to stick… Even if the tariffs are scaled back to something more modest (or are used to bring content back to the U.S.), it promises to add cost to vehicles, likely causing inflation,” the Barclays analysts warned.

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Tesla gets a $320 price target from Goldman Sachs

The bank cites weaker Q1 deliveries and demand challenges — but still believes in Tesla’s long-term software revenue growth thanks to FSD.

Published

3 hours ago

March 5, 2025

Maria Merano

Credit: @TeslaFrenzy/X

Goldman Sachs slightly cut its 12-month price target for Tesla from $345 to $320, citing weaker-than-expected vehicle deliveries in key regions and demand challenges.

“We lower our below consensus delivery estimates for Tesla, reflecting the quarter-to-date data for key regions (i.e., China, Europe, and the US), as well as what we believe are broader demand trends,” noted Goldman Sachs analysts.

The investment firm predicts Tesla will report Q1 2025 deliveries of 375,000 units, down from its previous forecast of 399,000 units. For perspective, the consensus for Tesla’s first-quarter deliveries is 426,000 vehicles.

Goldman Sach’s prediction for Tesla in the first quarter is slightly above the company’s results in Q1 2024 when it delivered 386,810 units. Meanwhile, the consensus estimate for Tesla is slightly above the company’s Q1 2023 results, when it delivered 422,875 vehicles.

Tesla stock rises despite potential decline in deliveries

The bank stated that Tesla’s transition to the new Model Y contributed to its weak Q1 delivery forecast. However, it expects Giga Shanghai’s production ramp for the Model Y Juniper to improve deliveries in China this month. Goldman Sachs also observed that underlying demand for Teslas is “somewhat weaker” than previously expected.

It notes that Tesla’s US deliveries in February are “tracking flattish year-over-year.” In Europe, Goldman Sachs states Tesla registrations show a “>40% year-over-year decline” in January and a mid-to-high 20% drop in February in key markets like the United Kingdom and Spain. Meanwhile, in China, CPCA data reveal that Tesla’s retail sales have seen a mid-single-digit decline year-over-year.

Despite its dreary predictions for Tesla in the short term, Goldman Sachs sees a bright future for the company. The bank still believes Tesla’s software revenue will grow long-term. It acknowledges Tesla’s progress with version 13 of Full Self-Driving (FSD).

However, it predicts that Tesla could struggle with monetizing FSD in China, where more competitors offer hand-free ADAS solutions. Goldman Sachs notes that Chinese competitors do not charge for incremental software packages.

Goldman Sachs is maintaining a Neutral rating on Tesla stock, emphasizing that its 2025 earnings estimates are below consensus.