Following reports Tesla had purchased a plot of land in Austin, Texas for a future Cybertruck Gigafactory, CEO Elon Musk has spoken.
Electrek on Thursday reported that Tesla made the purchase as it continues to hash out final tax incentives with the local governments. Musk said on Twitter the same day, however, that Tesla merely has the "option" to purchase but the company "has not exercised it."
When asked if Tulsa, Oklahoma remains in the mix for a possible Tesla production site, Musk simply said the company continues to consider "several options."
We are considering several options
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 18, 2020
Tesla's main vehicle factory in Fremont, California has been struggling to find room to build new models since the Model 3 ramp-up began. Remember the tent? This new facility will be responsible for Cybertruck production and Model Y production for the east coast.
There's been a great deal of speculation as to where this new Tesla facility might land, with places like Tulsa going all-out to entice the electric carmaker, but the latest information suggests Austin has a higher priority. Local newspaper the Austin-American Statesman reported on Thursday Tesla wants to begin construction of the site as early as the third quarter of this year and explicitly said Austin and Tulsa are the "current focus." A final deal in Texas, however, hinges on tax incentives that would see Tesla skip out on paying property taxes for the local school district.
Specifically, it's looking for $68 million worth of property tax credits from a Travis County school district. Tesla also confirmed in the official documents that "eight states" were also under consideration.
"We've pulled together a compelling, well-balanced and, more importantly, a responsible performance-based incentives package to attract Tesla to Oklahoma," Oklahoma Secretary of Commerce Sean Kouplen said in a statement. "Our offer not only includes the standard incentives package presented to companies interested in locating to Oklahoma, but also financial commitments to improve local infrastructure and invest in our workforce, expanding educational programs within our academic institutions to ensure Tesla has a pipeline of qualified workers to recruit."
Tesla did not respond to Roadshow's request for comment.
Update, June 19: Adds information from local newspaper and CEO Elon Musk.
First published June 18.