News
Tesla Gigafactory 3 Phase 2 area rises as onsite Supercharger takes shape
Tesla’s Gigafactory 3 in China is reportedly set to start the first production runs of the Made-in-China Model 3 within this month. Amidst these developments, construction activities in the complex’s Phase 2 area have begun accelerating, and other projects in the site, such as a Supercharger station, are also taking form.
Drone flyovers of the Gigafactory 3 complex reveal that a large section of land in the site’s Phase 2 area is being prepared for construction. Based on footage taken by drone operator Jason Yang and Tesla enthusiast Chao Zhou, the pile drivers that were deployed in the Phase 2 section have been removed. In their place is a large, paved plot of land and a series of pillars. Roof trusses are also being installed at initial sections of the Phase 2 area.
The pace of Phase 2’s construction shows that the buildout in the new area appears to be faster than the construction of the general assembly building, which is part of the Phase 1 zone. Roof trusses in the Phase 1 area took months, after all, yet it only seemed to take a few weeks for workers to begin the setup of the same pillars and roof trusses for Phase 2.
Apart from the flurry of activity in the Phase 2 area, Tesla and its construction partner also appear to be making great progress in the buildout of an onsite Supercharger station for the electric car production facility. Recent images taken of the Supercharger reveal that several parts of the station have mostly been finished, save for the installation of the actual charging stalls.
Reports from China suggest that Tesla is gaining momentum in the country’s local electric vehicle market. Even before Gigafactory 3 is activated, import data from Tesla China showed that the electric car maker imported 168% more vehicles year-over-year, thanks in no small part to the Model 3. In August 2019 alone, China imported over 3,700 vehicles, a 468% growth year-over-year. This was with Tesla importing every single vehicle into the country.
Recent leaks from China suggest that Gigafactory 3 will start production runs for the Model 3 sometime this month. Trial Model 3 production runs appear to have been started, as shown in leaks from the facility’s interior and a sighting of a completed vehicle in Gigafactory 3’s test track. Leaked images from the general assembly building have also shown vehicles that were fully painted, suggesting that the facility’s paint shop is already operational.
China is a key market for Tesla in the same way that Tesla is a key electric car maker for China. The country is currently attempting an aggressive push towards sustainability, and it needs prominent EV companies to accelerate the adoption of electric cars to its car-buying public. With a well-known EV brand like Tesla offering vehicles that are reasonably priced due to their local production, the pace of EV adoption in China could very well take several steps forward with Gigafactory 3’s activation.
Watch a drone flyover of the Gigafactory 3 site in the video below.
Elon Musk
Brazil Supreme Court orders Elon Musk and X investigation closed
The decision was issued by Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes following a recommendation from Brazil’s Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet.
Brazil’s Supreme Federal Court has ordered the closure of an investigation involving Elon Musk and social media platform X. The inquiry had been pending for about two years and examined whether the platform was used to coordinate attacks against members of the judiciary.
The decision was issued by Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes following a recommendation from Brazil’s Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet.
According to a report from Agencia Brasil, the investigation conducted by the Federal Police did not find evidence that X deliberately attempted to attack the judiciary or circumvent court orders.
Prosecutor-General Paulo Gonet concluded that the irregularities identified during the probe did not indicate fraudulent intent.
Justice Moraes accepted the prosecutor’s recommendation and ruled that the investigation should be closed. Under the ruling, the case will remain closed unless new evidence emerges.
The inquiry stemmed from concerns that content on X may have enabled online attacks against Supreme Court justices or violated rulings requiring the suspension of certain accounts under investigation.
Justice Moraes had previously taken several enforcement actions related to the platform during the broader dispute involving social media regulation in Brazil.
These included ordering a nationwide block of the platform, freezing Starlink accounts, and imposing fines on X totaling about $5.2 million. Authorities also froze financial assets linked to X and SpaceX through Starlink to collect unpaid penalties and seized roughly $3.3 million from the companies’ accounts.
Moraes also imposed daily fines of up to R$5 million, about $920,000, for alleged evasion of the X ban and established penalties of R$50,000 per day for VPN users who attempted to bypass the restriction.
Brazil remains an important market for X, with roughly 17 million users, making it one of the platform’s larger user bases globally.
The country is also a major market for Starlink, SpaceX’s satellite internet service, which has surpassed one million subscribers in Brazil.
Elon Musk
FCC chair criticizes Amazon over opposition to SpaceX satellite plan
Carr made the remarks in a post on social media platform X.
U.S. Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Chairman Brendan Carr criticized Amazon after the company opposed SpaceX’s proposal to launch a large satellite constellation that could function as an orbital data center network.
Carr made the remarks in a post on social media platform X.
Amazon recently urged the FCC to reject SpaceX’s application to deploy a constellation of up to 1 million low Earth orbit satellites that could serve as artificial intelligence data centers in space.
The company described the proposal as a “lofty ambition rather than a real plan,” arguing that SpaceX had not provided sufficient details about how the system would operate.
Carr responded by pointing to Amazon’s own satellite deployment progress.
“Amazon should focus on the fact that it will fall roughly 1,000 satellites short of meeting its upcoming deployment milestone, rather than spending their time and resources filing petitions against companies that are putting thousands of satellites in orbit,” Carr wrote on X.
Amazon has declined to comment on the statement.
Amazon has been working to deploy its Project Kuiper satellite network, which is intended to compete with SpaceX’s Starlink service. The company has invested more than $10 billion in the program and has launched more than 200 satellites since April of last year.
Amazon has also asked the FCC for a 24-month extension, until July 2028, to meet a requirement to deploy roughly 1,600 satellites by July 2026, as noted in a CNBC report.
SpaceX’s Starlink network currently has nearly 10,000 satellites in orbit and serves roughly 10 million customers. The FCC has also authorized SpaceX to deploy 7,500 additional satellites as the company continues expanding its global satellite internet network.
Energy
Tesla Energy gains UK license to sell electricity to homes and businesses
The license was granted to Tesla Energy Ventures Ltd. by UK energy regulator Ofgem after a seven-month review process.
Tesla Energy has received a license to supply electricity in the United Kingdom, opening the door for the company to serve homes and businesses in the country.
The license was granted to Tesla Energy Ventures Ltd. by UK energy regulator Ofgem after a seven-month review process.
According to Ofgem, the license took effect at 6 p.m. local time on Wednesday and applies to Great Britain.
The approval allows Tesla’s energy business to sell electricity directly to customers in the region, as noted in a Bloomberg News report.
Tesla has already expanded similar services in the United States. In Texas, the company offers electricity plans that allow Tesla owners to charge their vehicles at a lower cost while also feeding excess electricity back into the grid.
Tesla already has a sizable presence in the UK market. According to price comparison website U-switch, there are more than 250,000 Tesla electric vehicles in the country and thousands of Tesla home energy storage systems.
Ofgem also noted that Tesla Motors Ltd., a separate entity incorporated in England and Wales, received an electricity generation license in June 2020.
The new UK license arrives as Tesla continues expanding its global energy business.
Last year, Tesla Energy retained the top position in the global battery energy storage system (BESS) integrator market for the second consecutive year. According to Wood Mackenzie’s latest rankings, Tesla held about 15% of global market share in 2024.
The company also maintained a dominant position in North America, where it captured roughly 39% market share in the region.
At the same time, competition in the energy storage sector is increasing. Chinese companies such as Sungrow have been expanding their presence globally, particularly in Europe.
Brazil Supreme Court orders Elon Musk and X investigation closed
FCC chair criticizes Amazon over opposition to SpaceX satellite plan
