Jun 19, 2020 - Energy & Climate

Tesla closing in on Texas factory in Austin

Ben Geman

Austin Texas — Austin, Texas. Photo: George Rose/Getty Images

There are growing signs that Tesla will choose the Austin region in Texas to build a factory that would make the "Cybertruck" pickup and Model Ys for East Coast delivery.

Driving the news: Per the Austin American-Statesman, Tesla has a proposed deal with a local school district that would provide up to $68 million in tax incentives over a decade for building a 4 million- to 5 million-square-foot plant that would employ thousands.

Tesla is eyeing a 2,100-acre site that's currently home to a sand and gravel mining operation, per the Statesman and other reports.

But, but, but: Musk cautioned via Twitter last night that they "are considering several options," a comment that came in response to someone who asked whether Tulsa, Oklahoma, was still in the mix.

Quick take: If the Austin region indeed gets the plant, it will be the second big recent sign that tech players see options well beyond the coasts.

Earlier this week, the big Boston-area cleantech startup incubator Greentown Labs announced that it's opening a second location in Houston.

How it works: "The proposed deal with the Texas school district makes use of a state tax program that allows districts to grant breaks to economic-development projects. The state then repays the district," Bloomberg reports.

Go deeper: Tesla ushers in the electric pickup moment

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Tesla closing in on Texas factory in Austin

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