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Tesla Giga Canada makes sense: Canadian Minister emphasizes auto industry’s new “supplier of choice” [Opinion]
Tesla Giga Canada is starting to make more sense. At the 2022 Shareholders Round-Up, Elon Musk announced that Tesla might share the location of its next gigafactory by the end of the year. Musk teased that Canada could be a potential location.
Just last week, Canada’s Minister of Innovation, Science, and Industry François-Philippe Champagne visited Tesla’s Markham facility to talk to Tesla. Champagne’s visit suggested that Tesla Giga Canada has some potential to reach fruition.
There are two main reasons Canada would be a good location for Tesla’s next gigafactory. CDN seems to be hyper-focused on developing its green supply chain and catering to the auto industry. Also, the recently signed Inflation Reduction Act encourages automakers—legacy and startup alike—to secure supply chains in North America.
Canada becoming EV “supplier of choice”
Recently, Volkswagen and Mercedes Benz signed separate agreements with Canada for battery EV materials.
Volkswagen’s deal with Canada involves sustainable battery manufacturing, cathode active material production, critical mineral supply, and others. It also includes a Canadian office for VW’s PowerCo, its battery company. Through PowerCo, Volkswagen plans to develop and research EV batteries and ramp in-house cell production and recycling.
Canada’s agreement with Mercedes Benz seems more open-ended. However, it will focus on enhancing collaborations between the legacy OEM and Canadians companies along EV and battery supply chains.
Minister Champagne explained that talks between Canada and the two legacy automakers started in May when he visited Germany.
“Canada is quickly becoming the green supplier of choice for major auto companies, including leading European manufacturers, as we transition to a cleaner, greener future. By partnering with Volkswagen and Mercedes, Canada is strengthening its leadership role as a world-class automotive innovation ecosystem for clean transportation solutions. Canada is committed to building a strong and reliable automotive and battery supply chain here in North America to help the world meet global climate goals,” said Champagne.
The 2022 Inflation Reduction Act
VW and Mercedes Benz signed deals with Canada a week after President Joe Biden signed the Inflation Reduction Act, and it doesn’t seem to be a coincidence.
The Inflation Reduction Act takes effect in December 2022, but EV automakers and suppliers have already started preparing for it. For instance, South Korean battery suppliers have also started preparing to move production to the United States. The law introduces a new system of EV tax credits with a specific set of requirements. It includes a battery requirement that would affect automakers and suppliers directly.
Under the Inflation Reduction Act, 40% of materials used in batteries should be sourced from North America or a U.S. trading partner by 2024. By 2029, 100% of materials used in batteries should come from North America or U.S. trading partners; otherwise, the vehicles will not qualify for EV tax credits.
The law would affect automakers like Volkswagen. VW, for instance, aims to break into the U.S. pickup truck market with an all-electric Scout vehicle. EV tax credits would help VW’s EV Scout sales in the future.
What about Tesla?
The U.S. Department of Energy’s Alternative Fuels Data (DOE) published a list of electric vehicles eligible for the new EV tax credit of $7,500. According to DOE’s list, Tesla’s entire S3XY line will qualify for the tax credits starting January 1, 2023.
Tesla hasn’t qualified for EV tax credits for quite some time since it already hit the 200,000 cap in the old system. The strong demand for Tesla cars suggests that the lack of subsidies isn’t really hurting the company. But, EV tax credits would help the company’s primary goal: accelerating the advent of sustainability.
Tesla has become a leader in the global EV space and market. It has shown legacy automakers that electric vehicles are the future. To keep traditional OEMs motivated, Tesla needs to keep pushing forward. Complying with the Inflation Reduction Act would be a good way of keeping legacy OEMs on their toes.
Tesla’s aims to produce 20 million vehicles annually by 2030. Elon Musk explained that Tesla would need about a dozen gigafactories to make 2 million vehicles per year and achieve its 20M goal.
Currently, Tesla has Giga Texas, Giga Berlin, Giga Shanghai, and the Fremont Factory producing cars. It would make sense for Tesla to choose Canada as the next location of its newest gigafactory given the Inflation Reduction Act’s requirements. By choosing Canada, Tesla could produce more cars and qualify for the EV tax credits in the United States–hitting two birds with one stone.
The Teslarati team would appreciate hearing from you. If you have any tips, contact me at maria@teslarati.com or via Twitter @Writer_01001101.
The Tesla Model X has always been one of the company’s most loved vehicles, despite its low sales figures, which can be attributed to its high price tag.
However, the Model X has been a signature item on Tesla’s menu of cars, most notably recognized by its Falcon Wing Doors, which are aware of its surroundings and open according to what’s around it.
But recent improvements to the Model X were looking slim to none, but it appears most of the fixes actually happened under the body, at least according to Tesla’s Vice President of Powertrain, Lars Moravy.
In a recent interview with Car and Driver, Moravy detailed all of the changes to the 2026 iteration of the vehicle, which was about 400 pounds lighter than it was originally. The biggest change is a modification with the rear motor, switching from an induction-type motor to a permanent-magnet design and optimizing the half-shafts, which shed about 100 pounds.
Tesla also got “almost 80 pounds out of the interior bits and pieces,” which “included making parts thinner, different manufacturing process choices, and incorporating airbag-deployment requirements into the headliner fabric,” the report said.
Additionally, the standard five-passenger, bench seat configuration saved 50 pounds by ditching pedestal mounting. This also helped with practicality, as it helped the seat fold flat. Engineers at Tesla also saved 44 pounds from the high-voltage wiring through optimizing the wiring from the charge-port DC/DC converter and switching from copper to aluminum wiring.
Tesla makes a decision on the future of its flagship Model S and Model X
Tesla also simplified the cooling system by reducing the number of radiators. It also incorporated Nürburgring cooling requirements for the Plaid variant, which saved nearly 30 pounds.
Many Tesla fans will be familiar with the megacastings, manufactured in-house by presses from IDRA, which also saves more than 20 pounds and boosts torsional stiffness by around 10 percent. Tweaks to the suspension also saved 10 pounds.
People were truly disappointed with what Tesla did with the Model S and Model X, arguing that the cars needed a more severe exterior overhaul, which might be true. However, Tesla really did a lot to reduce the weight of the vehicle, which helps increase range and efficiency. According to Grok, every 200 pounds removed adds between 7 and 15 percent to range estimations.
This makes sense considering the range estimations both increased by 7 percent from the Model X’s 2025 configuration to the 2026 builds. Range increased on the All-Wheel-Drive trim from 329 miles to 352 miles, while the Plaid went from 314 miles to 335 miles.
Tesla has officially launched its first branded Supercharger just months after initiating a new program that allows third-party companies to brand their own charging piles.
The site opened in Land O’ Lakes, Florida, and features eight V4 Supercharging stalls offering up to 325 kW of charging speed. It appears it was purchased by a company called Suncoast Credit Union. This particular branch is located Northeast of Tampa, which is on the Gulf of Mexico.
It features graphics of Florida animals, like alligators:
Here’s a video of the graphics being installed on the Tesla Superchargers at this site: https://t.co/oIfEPNZjAH pic.twitter.com/ENWakZ2qT9
— TESLARATI (@Teslarati) November 20, 2025
Tesla launched this program back in September, and it basically was a way to expand its Supercharger presence and also allow companies to pay for the infrastructure. Tesla maintains it. When it announced the “Supercharger for Business,” it said:
“Purchase and install Superchargers at your business. Superchargers are compatible with all electric vehicles, bringing EV drivers to your business by offering convenient, reliable charging.”
The program does a few things. Initially, it expands EV charging infrastructure and makes charging solutions more readily available for drivers. It can also attract people to those businesses specifically.
Tesla launches new Supercharger program that business owners will love
The chargers can also be branded with any logo that the business chooses, which makes them more personalized and also acts as an advertisement.
The best part is that the customers do not have to maintain anything about the Supercharger. Tesla still takes care of it and resolves any issues:
“We treat your site like we treat our sites. By providing you with a full-service package that includes network operations, preventative maintenance, and driver support, we’re able to guarantee 97% uptime–the highest in the industry.”
It appears the Superchargers will also appear within the in-car nav during routing, so they’ll be publicly available to anyone who needs to use them. They are still available to all EVs that have worked with Tesla to utilize its infrastructure, and they are not restricted to people who are only visiting the business.
Tesla has revealed its Cybertruck light bar installation fix after a recall exposed a serious issue with the accessory.
Tesla and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) initiated a recall of 6,197 Cybertrucks back in October to resolve an issue with the Cybertruck light bar accessory. It was an issue with the adhesive that was provided by a Romanian company called Hella Romania S.R.L.
Tesla recalls 6,197 Cybertrucks for light bar adhesive issue
The issue was with the primer quality, as the recall report from the NHTSA had stated the light bar had “inadvertently attached to the windshield using the incorrect surface primer.”
Instead of trying to adhere the light bar to the Cybertruck with an adhesive, Tesla is now going to attach it with a bracketing system, which will physically mount it to the vehicle instead of relying on adhesive strips or glue.
Tesla outlines this in its new Service Bulletin, labeled SB-25-90-001, (spotted by Not a Tesla App) where it shows the light bar will be remounted more securely:
The entire process will take a few hours, but it can be completed by the Mobile Service techs, so if you have a Cybertruck that needs a light bar adjustment, it can be done without taking the vehicle to the Service Center for repair.
However, the repair will only happen if there is no delamination or damage present; then Tesla could “retrofit the service-installed optional off-road light bar accessory with a positive mechanical attachment.”
The company said it would repair the light bar at no charge to customers. The light bar issue was one that did not result in any accidents or injuries, according to the NHTSA’s report.
This was the third recall on Cybertruck this year, as one was highlighted in March for exterior trim panels detaching during operation. Another had to do with front parking lights being too bright, which was fixed with an Over-the-Air update last month.
Tesla Model X lost 400 pounds thanks to these changes
Tesla launches its new branded Supercharger for Business with first active station
