Tesla is building the ‘world’s largest’ rooftop solar system

Tesla operates not only in the electric car world but also with energy solutions such as Solar Roof and Powerwall. On the other hand, the company is currently busy installing a massive solar panel system on the roof of its Gigafactory in Austin, Texas, which will be the largest in the world when completed.

According to company officials, a 30 MW rooftop solar energy system currently under construction is being installed at the Texas Gigafactory. Meanwhile, the Giga Texas electric vehicle (EV) factory, Tesla’s global headquarters, is the facility where the company produces Model Y electric SUVs, and when full volume is reached, the new Cybertruck model will also be produced here.

First phase completed

In their presentation to the Travis County Commissioners Court, Tesla officials state that the first phase of construction has been completed and the necessary permits have been received for the factory to use 10 MW rooftop solar energy. Again, according to officials, if everything goes as planned, a total capacity of 30 megawatts will be reached. This will currently be the largest rooftop solar installation in the world. Tesla officials said in the presentation that when construction is completed, there will be 70,000 panels at the top of the 10 million square meter factory. The entire roof surface of the factory will not be covered with panels. The text ‘TESLA’ will be written with these panels.

The closest follower of Tesla’s 30MW rooftop solar energy system is Sumitomo Rubber Industries’ Falken Tires factory in Thailand. The factory, which produces tires for the European market, started the construction of the energy system, which consists of 40,000 solar panels on its roof and is expected to have a total production of around 22 megawatts (MW), in the first months of this year.

Tesla is expanding its Giga Texas manufacturing facility to include electric vehicle (EV) battery production and cathode production, as noted by Rohan Patel, the automaker’s senior global director of public policy and business development. “America’s first large-scale battery production is here, and the first American cathode production, the most expensive part of the battery, is also taking place in Giga Texas,” Patel said during the presentation.