Tesla requests $68m property tax abatement to build Texas gigafactory

Tesla is seeking up to $68m in property tax abatement from a Texas school district to build a factory that will be used to produce Model Y crossovers for the East Coast market as well as its upcoming Cybertruck pickup.

The application was made public by the Texas comptroller’s office late on Thursday and first reported by the Austin Statesman.

With the proposal, Tesla would receive up to $68m property tax abatement over a 10-year period and in return, the company would build a 4 to 5 million-square-foot factory that would employ over 5,000 people.

The property tax abatement proposal is one of several potential incentives deals aimed at attracting the automaker to the state to build its next gigafactory there.

The application was filed by Colorado River Project LLC, a new subsidiary of Tesla that was likely created to help keep its activity away from the public eye.

Tesla does not yet own the land, according to the application.

According to a tweet by Tesla's chief, Elon Musk, the company does have permission to acquire the land but corrected reports that Tesla had already done so.

The application comes a few months after Musk tweeted that Tesla was scouting locations for a so-called “Cybertruck Gigafactory.”

If approved, Tesla said it will begin construction in the third quarter of 2020.

Other locations eyed by the company were Nashville and Tulsa in Oklahoma.