Tesla plant to spark new generation of scientists, engineers

RENO — Energy technology is on the cusp of a renaissance that will change how the world generates and stores power, a top Tesla executive told a Nevada business conference on Tuesday.

Diarmuid O'Connell, vice president of business development for Tesla Motors, said the massive battery factory rising from the Nevada desert east of Reno will not only revolutionize energy storage but spark a new generation of scientists and engineers.

"This is really the future," O'Connell told more than 600 people attending the Governor's Business Conference held at the Atlantis in Reno.

O'Connell said the plant, a joint operation between Tesla and Panasonic, is on track to begin production next year. Production of the lithium-ion batteries is key to Tesla's goal to mass market Tesla electric cars and make them affordable to average car buyers by 2017.

But the factory will also make stationary storage packs, designed to capture green energy from solar panels for use when the sun doesn't shine.

"Tesla is a company that is giving life to a new generation of engineers," O'Connell said.

His remarks preceded Gov. Brian Sandoval's keynote address that highlighted the wave of economic activity that Tesla locating in Nevada has generated for the state around the world.

The $5 billion factory with 10 million square-feet of manufacturing space "will have the largest footprint for a building on Planet Earth," Sandoval said.

"Think about that. The largest building on Earth will be right here," he said.

Sandoval, who returned earlier this month from a two-week trade mission to Ireland, England, Germany, Poland and Italy, said the "T" word — Tesla — "came up in every conversation" with foreign dignitaries.

"They are saying, what's going on in Nevada?" Sandoval said. While visiting Parliament in London, he said the first question he was asked was, "How did you guys do that?"

The second-term Republican who pushed through a record $1.4 billion tax package to fund ambitious education reforms said he's "committed to defending" the measures passed by the 2015 Legislature.

Sandoval said his goal is to lay the foundation for the best education system in the country, starting with pre-kindergarten through universities, colleges and community colleges.

He said Tesla and the emerging high-tech industry Nevada is courting, from unmanned aerial vehicles to driverless cars, is pushing Nevada to lay the foundation of success and plan for a skilled work force.

Sandoval in his speech announced that two companies, ArrowData and Drone America, are partnering with Desert Research Institute to study using drone technology for cloud seeding. He also touted megadata center Switch, which is building a $1 billion expansion at its facility in Southern Nevada and building a second one in Northern Nevada.

"Nevada will be the most connected state in the nation," the governor said, noting Switch is connecting the state with fiber optics to provide broadband access to even the most remote locations.

"With all these new and exciting industries that are coming here, we have to develop the best and brightest," the governor said.

"I don't want to just catch up with other states," Sandoval said. "I want to beat them."

But Sandoval reminded the crowd "there's still a lot of wood to chop," and he thanked those who supported his legislative agenda.

"I know for some in this room it was a tough pill to swallow," he said.

Contact Sandra Chereb at 775-687-3901 or schereb@reviewjournal.com. Find her on Twitter: @SandraChereb