The factory is crucial to meeting Tesla's goal of becoming a full-line maker of affordable cars, pickups and semi trucks.
Tesla broke ground on the factory in June 2014, and it is expected to begin cell production in 2017.
Tesla has been racing to get the Gigafactory into production to help fulfill its goal of building 500,000 vehicles a year to by 2018.
The factory is currently about 14 percent complete. When it's finished, it will be more than 10 million square feet - making it one of the largest buildings in the world.
By 2020, the Gigafactory will reach full capacity and produce more lithium ion batteries annually than were produced worldwide in 2013, the company says on its website.
In cooperation with Panasonic and other strategic partners, the Gigafactory will produce batteries for significantly less cost using economies of scale, innovative manufacturing, reduction of waste, and the simple optimization of locating most manufacturing process under one roof, Tesla says.
"We expect to drive down the per kilowatt hour (kWh) cost of our battery pack by more than 30 percent. The Gigafactory will also be powered by renewable energy sources, with the goal of achieving net zero energy," the company continues.
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