[wildbill]

I heard some radio talk show host comment on this the other day. It seems no one bothers to pencil whip the numbers.

Remember this is just a location and plant for batteries, not for the production of autos.

1. They want 1000 acres suitable for industrial development free. Stop and think about the probable size of a battery factory plus parking. Maybe 100 acres at the outside, ya think?

2. Divide $5 billion by any reasonable cost of batteries for a production run of a luxury electric car. At $5000 per Tesla, they’d have to sell a million cars to amortize the initial cost of the battery plant. I don’t know if 5K is a reasonable figure for a car battery.

3. Does it really take over 6000 workers to produce this number of batteries for a million cars, give or take?

[jazusamo]

I don’t see how a lithium ion battery can be produced for $5K in the foreseeable future that’ll power a cheaper Tesla or even a Chevy Volt. As far as the Model S it’s out of the question.

I’m no engineer but people who are seem to think a battery breakthrough is in the distant future if at all.

[21twelve]

Yeah - those numbers don't seem to add up. Estimated 2014 deliveries are 21,000 cars. Reminds me of some of the restaurants in New Jersey that somehow managed to thrive, in spite of vacant parking lots except for the odd black limousine.

[catnipman]

This factory is nothing but a scam, just like Elon’s highly publicized “battery swapping” stations that never got built.

I’d be surprised if any battery factory at all gets built, much less on with this supposed capacity.

BTW, global annual sales of Teslas in 2013 was 25,000, a far cry from the million cars you projected.

Yeah, the numbers say the factory is a scam for sure.