Tesla is officially opening its first factory for high-volume production of the Semi, a heavy-duty electric truck, in Sparks, Nevada, as CEO Elon Musk aims to push into big rigs.

The company first unveiled its Semi in 2017, and started selling the trucks in very limited quantities to early customers, including anchor client PepsiCo., in 2022. A livestream of Thursday's ribbon-cutting event is scheduled for 9 p.m. ET, or 6 p.m. local time.

The factory opening comes as Tesla's core business of electric vehicles faces increased competition across the globe, and as soaring diesel costs present a potential opening for a transition to EVs in commercial trucking.

Tesla has struggled to gain much traction with its angular steel Cybertruck, a smaller pickup that it first delivered to customers in 2023.

On Tuesday, industry coalition ZET SCALE said it "selected Tesla as its primary original equipment manufacturer" for an initial order of 2,500 trucks, with the aim of ordering more than 10,000 electric trucks from an array of providers.

Trucking firm Einride also recently said it agreed to order 500 Tesla Semi trucks for its fleet with some deployments planned this month.

On Tesla's last earnings call in July, Musk told investors that the company's automated driving systems (known as FSD, or Full Self-Driving) would be available for the Semi in the near future, but he declined to give a specific date. Musk said at the time that he sees driverless systems as essential for the trucking industry.

"There just aren't enough people around who want to drive trucks, which are crucial for transport throughout America," Musk said. "An autonomous Semi is actually going to be very important to address the shortage of truck drivers."

Musk, who has a long history of missing his stated deadlines when it comes to driverless vehicles, added that the company expects "to get self-driving working on the Tesla Semi probably around the end of this year or early next year."

Meanwhile, competitors Aurora Innovation and Kodiak AI are already conducting driverless testing with their trucks and hauling cargo for partners.

For now, Tesla's primary selling point for the Semi is its battery range and charging network. A long-range version of the Tesla Semi can travel an estimated 500 miles on a full battery, while its standard variant gets an estimated 325 miles, the company says.

According to the International Council on Clean Transportation, trucks and buses represent less than 10% of road vehicles globally yet account for nearly half of transport-related air pollution. Switching to efficient zero-emission commercial vehicles can reduce pollution levels and bring "savings to fleet operators through lower costs," the group said in a 2025 report.

Tesla also plans to bring the Semi to Europe, where rivals like Volvo and Daimler Truck already sell battery-powered models.

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