Tesla Starts Volume Production of Semi Electric Truck in Nevada
Initial deliveries begin nine years after the vehicle was unveiled, backed by fleet orders and megawatt charging infrastructure.
Tesla has begun volume production of its Class 8 electric Semi truck at Gigafactory Nevada, initiating first customer deliveries this week, according to a report by The Next Web (https://thenextweb.com/news/tesla-semi-production-europe-2027). The manufacturing milestone comes nine years after the commercial vehicle was first unveiled in 2017.
The automaker rates the Long Range model at 500 miles and the Standard Range at 325 miles, with both configurations calculated at an efficiency baseline of 1.7 kilowatt-hours per mile. Tesla measured those range figures under test parameters of 82,000 pounds gross vehicle weight traveling at 55 miles per hour on flat ground at 20 degrees Celsius, using a compliant dry van trailer equipped with a tandem axle aero kit. The tri-motor powertrain delivers drive power of up to 800 kilowatts.
Filings submitted to the California Air Resources Board indicate usable battery capacities that Tesla has not officially published: 822 kilowatt-hours for the Long Range variant and 548 kilowatt-hours for the Standard Range model. The Semi uses proprietary 4680 battery cells manufactured at Gigafactory Texas.
The platform supports peak charging rates of up to 1.2 megawatts using the MCS 3.2 connector, a rate Tesla states can restore 60 percent of range in 30 minutes. Ahead of a scheduled European market introduction in 2027, Tesla has already installed more than 100 megawatt-capable charging stalls across 21 sites spanning Germany, France, Britain, Sweden, and the Benelux region. That charging network exceeds the European Union mandate documented by the International Council on Clean Transportation, which requires heavy-vehicle charging stations of at least 350 kilowatts every 60 kilometers along core corridors.
Fleet adoption is accelerating amid elevated operating costs, with U.S. pump prices averaging more than $6.50 per gallon driven by conflicts in Ukraine and Iran. A commercial shipping coalition placed an order for 2,500 Semis this week—a volume that would roughly double the current American electric truck fleet. That follows a 500-unit commitment last month from Swedish freight company Einride, in which Amazon holds roughly 12 percent in warrants, to operate freight corridors in California, Texas, New Jersey, Illinois, and Georgia.
Tesla aims to produce 50,000 Semis annually once Gigafactory Nevada reaches full operating capacity.
Sources
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