Friday, May 21, 2010

Tesla Motors Bypasses Downey In Deal With Toyota

In a loss for Southern California's burgeoning electric car industry, Tesla Motors said Thursday evening that it has selected not Downey or Long Beach, but instead, Silicon Valley city Fremont as the location of its manufacturing facility for its Model S sedans. Tesla announced, along with Toyota Motor, that it will take over Toyota's New United Motor Manufacturing Inc (NUMMI) plant in Fremont to manufacture its Model S, selecting that location over Downey and Long Beach. Tesla had been hinting for months at its selection of Downey for its manufacturing plant. The NUMMI plant was previously used to produce Toyota's Corolla and Tacoma vehicles. The selection of Fremont was made in conjunction with a $50M investment in Tesla by Toyota. Tesla cited the location's nearness to Silicon Valley and short distance to its headquarters in Palo Alto for the choice. The loss of the plant means a corresponding loss in job opportunities here; Tesla said it expects to grow to around 2000 employees over the next few years, with at least half of those at its Fremont manufacturing plant.