Tesla will hold a groundbreaking ceremony for their upcoming lithium refinery in Texas on Monday. When complete the $375 million facility will refine battery-grade lithium hydroxide and be the first facility of its kind in North America.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk and Texas Governor Greg Abbott will be at the groundbreaking ceremony on Monday, which is scheduled to start at 3:00pm in Robstown, just outside of Corpus Christi. The event will also include other local, state and federal leaders, according to a report by KIIITV.
We first learned about Tesla’s plans for a lithium refinery in Texas in September last year when local regulatory filings revealed Tesla was planning a battery-grade lithium hydroxide refining facility to support the processing, refining and manufacturing of battery materials for the automaker’s battery production. Tesla then began working with Nueces County Commissioners to negotiate further on approvals for the facility. The company was also seeking up to $16.2 million in tax breaks over ten years from the Robstown Independent School District.
While all of this was going on Tesla was already publishing job postings for the project, including an Area Construction Manager and Area Superintendent last November.
Tesla’s $375 million lithium refinery will have a big impact on the local economy. During construction the facility will create 250 jobs and once the site is up and running it will create another 162 high-paying permanent jobs in the area.
Elon Musk has been quite vocal about the need for more lithium refineries, calling out entrepreneurs to take up the challenge, saying it would be a “license to print money.”
