Tesla plans 30MW rooftop solar system on Austin factory

A 30MW rooftop solar installation currently under construction at Tesla's factory in East Austin, Texas would be the largest in the world when complete, company officials said. 

Tesla's Giga Texas electric vehicle (EV) factory, its global headquarters, is where the company manufactures its Model Y electric SUVs, eventually to be joined by the Cybertruck when it reaches full volume production.

In a presentation to the Travis County Commissioners Court, Tesla officials said phase 1 of construction is complete, allowing the factory to use 10MW of rooftop solar power, the Austin Monitor reports.

"When it’s all said and done, it will be 30 megawatts, which will be the largest rooftop solar I think in the world,” Logan Grant, Tesla senior manager of factory engineering, said in the presentation.

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Seventy-thousand panels will sit atop the 10-million-square-foot factory once construction is complete, Tesla officials said at the presentation.

Recently, Travis County commissioners voiced their support of the $2.9 million in tax breaks Tesla has received for its East Austin factory since 2022, the Austin Monitor reports - and the company received a total of more than $64 million in state and local tax breaks for the factory's construction.

Tesla says it plans to donate $750,000 as part of the tax deal, which is more than twice the $298,000 it is required to donate per the agreement.

Originally published by Sean Wolfe on Renewable Energy World.