Electrek confirms that Tesla(TSLA)is developing a major solar panel manufacturing facility in Brookshire,near Houston,Texas,alongside its existing Megapack gigafactory.This site represents the company's first tangible step towards achieving its goal of 100GW of annual solar manufacturing capacity.This objective was first outlined by Elon Musk at the World Economic Forum in Davos in January 2026,where he announced that Tesla and SpaceX would independently establish the entire supply chain,from raw materials to finished panels,within the US.
A key milestone was reached on 31 March,when China’s Ministry of Commerce officially approved the export of HJT turnkey lines and screen printing equipment to Tesla and SpaceX by Maxwell.This aligns with a March report by CNBC that Tesla was negotiating a$2.9 billion deal for Chinese solar manufacturing equipment,including supplies from Suzhou Maxwell Technologies,a company specialising in equipment for the production of vertically integrated solar cells.
Tesla’s solar manufacturing efforts have a chequered history.Following its acquisition of SolarCity in 2016,Tesla inherited a public subsidy agreement with New York State worth nearly$1 billion,committing to creating 1,500 jobs and investing$5 billion over 10 years in a Buffalo factory.Originally planned to be the largest solar plant in the Western Hemisphere,this project was outsourced to Panasonic,who withdrew in 2020.As a result,the site's focus shifted to supercharger components and Autopilot labels,and solar deployments dropped out of standalone reporting.
A modest revival began in late 2025 with the production of TSP-420 solar panels at the Gigafactory in New York,which was commercially launched in January 2026.However,with an annual capacity of just 300MW,this is negligible compared to the 100GW target.This makes the Brookshire facility critical,as Tesla plans to achieve full vertical integration there,covering ingot growth,wafer slicing,PV cell production,and panel assembly,with over$250 million in capital expenditure.
Tesla already occupies 1.65 million square feet of space in Buildings 9 and 10 at Brookshire’s Imperial West Business Park,which is located 35 miles west of Houston.The company has plans to take an additional 600,000 square feet of space under a long-term lease.Located next to the$200 million Megapack Gigafactory,this expansion reflects the growing integration of Tesla’s solar and energy storage businesses,streamlining logistics.
Houston has several advantages over Austin,including a key import port for Chinese equipment,a large industrial workforce,and well-established infrastructure.Tesla’s ambition to reach 100GW of capacity in under three years represents a 300-fold increase on Buffalo’s current capacity,dwarfing First Solar’s target of 17.7GW by 2027 and exceeding the total US solar installations in 2023 by threefold.
Unlike the Buffalo site,which largely served New York employment obligations,Brookshire is purpose-built for large-scale production.If successful,Tesla would establish itself as one of the world’s leading solar manufacturers,though transitioning from a modest revival to a capacity of 100GW remains a significant undertaking.
