Tesla Launches First Mass-Produced Electric Cars
Published Mar 27, 2008
A test drive of what is expected to be the world’s first mass-produced electric car.
Albuquerque is poised to become the center of the latest revolution in automobile manufacturing: all-electric vehicles.
California-based Tesla Motors Inc. announced in early 2007 that it plans to construct an assembly plant in Albuquerque to produce high performance electric vehicles – the first such manufacturing facility in the country devoted solely to mass producing electric cars.
Tesla Motors is a privately owned, environmentally conscious company that was formed in 2003 in San Carlos, Calif. in the heart of the Silicon Valley. It currently employs approximately 160 people at design, engineering and manufacturing facilities in California, Michigan, Taiwan and the United Kingdom.
The initial plan for the Albuquerque facility is to employ 400 people who will produce up to 10,000 of its four-door WhiteStar sedans each year. The electric car will have a range of 250 miles before its batteries will need to be recharged. At a cost of $50,000-$65,000, the WhiteStar is designed to compete against cars such as the BMW 5 Series and the Audi A6.
“Tesla chose Central New Mexico because we have a green environment focus, and that ties into everything that Tesla envisions for its company,” says Will Steadman, division president for SunCal New Mexico, a real estate development company that is slated to ultimately sell 15 acres to Tesla for its assembly plant.
“New Mexico has a lot of opportunities for renewable energy sources, and the state supports all elements of green manufacturing. The Tesla project will be an exciting manufacturing venture.”
Initial plans for the Tesla WhiteStar were to have it available to the public in late 2009 for the 2010 model year. By early 2008, Tesla had not yet broken ground on its proposed 150,000-square-foot assembly facility.
However, that delay in plant construction was for good reason. Company officials have said that they want the aerodynamic design of the vehicle to be perfect before constructing a multimillion-dollar assembly plant that would include parts production.
“Tesla … wants to make sure that they have the right car on the drawing board, and that’s exactly the way they should be thinking,” says Steadman.
SunCal is selling the 15 acres to Tesla on the west side of Albuquerque. SunCal will also be in charge of designing and constructing the actual plant. The property and the construction of the assembly facility are estimated to cost Tesla Motors approximately $35 million.
And there is room for even more investment.
“Then, for the future, SunCal has also pledged another 75 adjacent acres at no cost to Tesla if the company eventually undergoes a major expansion,” Steadman says. “As for those additional 75 acres, SunCal would work closely with government agencies to add infrastructure to that land for the expansion.”
Story by Kevin Litwin
Photo by Skylar D. Smith
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