Tesla begins large-scale serial production of its Semi truck at Giga Nevada

With the message “First Semi off high-volume line” -the first Semi to come off the high-volume assembly line- alongside an image showing a large number of workers at the Nevada Gigafactory, Tesla recently announced on its official X account the start of large-scale serial production of its electric Semi truck.

First presented in 2017 with deliveries initially expected in 2019, the Semi has been a long time coming, and it will not be until this year, 2026, that it finally goes on sale without restrictions. To make this possible, Tesla has built new facilities dedicated to this purpose next to the Nevada Gigafactory, with a production capacity of up to 50,000 units per year.

Tesla offers two versions of its Semi truck: a base version with standard range that can travel up to 523 km -including payload- with a gross weight of 37.2 tonnes, and a second version at the top of the range with extended range that reaches 800 km per charge. Both versions feature three integrated electric motors delivering up to 800 kW of power.

Tesla also aims to attract the attention of freight transport professionals and fleet managers with really competitive prices. The base version of the Tesla Semi in the United States costs 260,000 dollars, while the extended-range version requires only an additional 30,000 dollars.

Tesla takes on traditional diesel trucks

A notable aspect of the Tesla Semi is its ability to charge at one megawatt, although it can actually handle up to 1.2 MW. Tesla is deploying charging infrastructure based on its V4 technology, with a decentralized system made up of satellite chargers and a separate power unit. The first Megacharger station is already operating in Ontario, California, and there are plans to open 66 additional locations across the United States. With this impressive charging power, the Semi can recover much of its 800 km range in about 30 minutes.