Tesla chooses Austin for Cybertruck and Semi production

Tesla reported its second-quarter financials on Wednesday, and the big news is the electric carmaker managed a profit, even during the coronavirus pandemic. Perhaps even bigger news, however, is that Tesla officially made a decision on where to put its next US-based Gigafactory: Austin, Texas. This new facility will build the Cybertruck and Semi, and will be responsible for making the Model 3 and Model Y for the eastern half of the US.

"It's right on the Colorado River and we'll have a boardwalk alongside. It'll be an ecological paradise and it will be open to the public," Elon Musk, Tesla CEO, said during the company's earnings call Wednesday.

Tulsa, Oklahoma was the other city Tesla was considering for its Gigafactory. Tulsa drummed up a lot of attention recently, by painting its famed Golden Driller statue with Tesla CEO Elon Musk's face. Ultimately, Tesla asked Austin to pass a chunk of tax breaks, including a break in funding public schools. The measures did indeed pass, to the tune of $65 million for the electric carmaker. Since actual dollars-and-cents issues made their way to the public, Austin is the more obvious choice.

This new facility will assemble the highly anticipated Cybertruck and handle Model Y production for the eastern part of the US to take some strain off the plant in Fremont, California. Right now, Tesla builds every single car it sells in the US in its California-based facility.

According to past reports, Tesla wants to start production of the new site as soon as this year. The automaker echoed the time frame in its latest financial report and said preparations at the site are already underway. When complete, the facility should create 5,000 new jobs.

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