The head of Tesla’s Semi-truck program Dan Priestly gave a presentation at the ACT Expo clean commercial transportation expo yesterday.
In his presentation, Dan updated the audience on the progress of Tesla Semi production status. He also provided new information on the development of the Megacharger network that the automaker is building to support Semi charging across North America.
Tesla Semi is Tesla’s class-8 heavy-duty electric truck that’s available for individual and corporate customers in 300-mile (480+ km) and 500-mile (800+ km) range variants.
“Tesla remains just as committed and excited to bring Semi to scale—next year—in 2026,” Dan announced. “Now, if you’re hearing other industry players, reconsidering or scaling back some of their zero-emissions plans, I’m here to tell you that Tesla is charging forward,” he stated.
Tesla Semi Factory Construction Update
Tesla is building the first Semi factory at Giga Nevada, with an annual production capacity of 50,000 trucks. The plan for the construction of the Tesla Semi factory was revealed more than 2 years ago.
However, the automaker accelerated the construction after Elon Musk approved Semi’s volume production plans last year. In the latest official video of the Tesla Semi factory in Reno, Nevada, the automaker showed its current state of development.
“We’ve been spending the last several months constructing this building, mostly with the walls, all the pillars and columns you can see behind me, laying concrete, putting the roof on,” Dan Priestly said. “And now it’s time to populate the building”.
The Tesla Semi factory is built on an area of 1.7 million sq feet.
The structure of the building is almost complete. Tesla is currently working on installing internal utilities at the Semi factory.
According to Dan, Tesla is going to land manufacturing equipment, set up production lines, and tooling throughout the rest of 2025. The ramp-up of Tesla Semi production will begin next year in 2026.
“The first trucks off the line, as we’ve said before, will go into Tesla’s own logistics and operations,” Dan said.
46 Megacharger Stations Across the US by 2027
The head of the Tesla Semi program showed the above map of the United States in his presentation. The vertical light bars mark the 46 planned Megacharger locations across the US.
Tesla Semi-truck has the largest battery pack of any Tesla vehicle. The electric automaker never revealed the exact capacity or size of the Semi’s battery pack. However, the best guess is around 900 kWh for the 500-mile variant.
To charge such a large battery, Tesla needed to level up the power at its charging stations. Tesla innovated Megachargers to meet this specific requirement. The first Megacharger station at Giga Nevada has been functional and under testing since 2021.
Tesla Semi Testing Status (Data)
Tesla Semi development head Dan Priestly also shared some valuable data with the audience at ACT Expo and the entire world.
Pilot units of Tesla Semi class-8 heavy electric trucks have driven 7.9 million miles as the yesterday. There are 26 units in the overall fleet that have driven more than 100,000 miles (~161,000 km) each.
Over the years, Tesla has been testing the Semi in extreme cold weather, with heavy loads using concrete blocks, and as a car carrier delivering Tesla vehicles to customers.
PepsiCo long-haul drivers also shared their experience with the Tesla Semi in 2023. Tesla is not just testing the trucks in-house; the partners and customers are also cooperating in extended real-world testing of the Semi.
WattEV Orders 40 Tesla Semis
WattEV, a provider of heavy-duty freight electrification services and facilities, announced that it has placed an order of 40 Tesla Semi trucks. The delivery of these trucks is expected in 2026.
Tesla has already provided WattEV with two Semis, which the customer is using for zero-emission hauling and testing before getting the entire fleet of 40 trucks next year.
Related: Tesla Semi order tracker.
“We’re glad to see Tesla Semis deployed at Port of Long Beach,” Mario Cordero, CEO of the Port of Long Beach, said. “This is another step forward toward increased adoption and our commitment to elimination of heavy-duty freight emissions at the port.”
WattEV Press Release
Dan Priestly Tesla Semi Keynote at ACT Expo (video)
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