Yesterday morning, it looked like Austin would definitely be the new location for Gigafactory 5 (Giga Texas). KXAN reported that Tesla submitted an application with the Del Valle Independent School District for “Gigafactory” and there are $68 million tax incentives proposed.
The new Gigafactory will be between 4 million to 5 million square-feet and it looked as though Tesla would build on land located in the Del Valle Independent School District. The application was confirmed by the Texas comptroller’s office, which noted that there were more than $68 million in tax incentives included.
Tesla would create around 5,000 new jobs according to its Section 313 tax limitation application with the school district, and wages would be around $74,000 annually. If it is approved, Tesla can start construction in Q3 of 2020. Tesla already paid Del Valle ISD $150,000 back in May to file the application.
In a letter from Tesla that was included in the application, the company stated: “Since school taxes are the largest component of local property taxes, the Section 313 tax limitation is especially critical to creating a level playing field between Texas and other states vying for this project. Therefore, obtaining the 313 limitations is a determining factor in the decision of whether to locate the project in Texas.”
KXAN also reported that the United Auto Workers union along with Texas AFL-CIO’s president, Rick Levy, are opposed to Tesla building its 5th gigafactory in Texas. In their letter to Travis County, they wanted the commissioners to “pump the brakes on considering a new Tesla plant in Travis County.” UAW believes that Tesla relies heavily on taxpayer subsidies but doesn’t deliver on its commitments.
Regarding subsidies, the oil companies rely even heavier on them and I think if we can spend billions on companies that destroy our planet, we can spend millions on a company that is trying to save it. A report from Oil Change International showed that America spends over $20 billion on oil subsidies annually. At least with Tesla, it is removing all the pollution in the air by creating electric vehicles.
Following all of this news, however, Elon Musk indicated on Twitter (20 hours ago) that Tesla had not yet exercised its option to buy the land, and 4 hours later indicated that Tesla is still considering several options for this next US gigafactory, including Tulsa, Oklahoma.
Tesla has an option to purchase this land, but has not exercised it
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 18, 2020
We are considering several options
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 18, 2020
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