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Tesla‘s planned $10.1 billion solar cell and module factory in Texas has moved past a key local regulatory barrier after a Houston-area school board gave its unanimous backing, pv magazine reported. Trustees for the Lamar Consolidated Independent School District cast a 7-0 vote in favor of a property tax incentive deal for the clean energy venture.
Known by the code name Project Crystal Sun, the application describes a 1,234-hectare manufacturing site close to Richmond in Fort Bend County. Consulting firm Kroll prepared the submission, which was signed on July 22 and became publicly visible in early August.
With the school district’s green light, Tesla gains a temporary valuation cap under the state’s Jobs, Energy, Technology and Innovation Act. The arrangement limits property taxes on the taxable value of qualifying property for school district maintenance and operations over a decade, running from 2029 through 2038, and satisfies a crucial location criterion Tesla set out in its filings.
Should the project proceed as envisioned, it would represent the biggest single manufacturing commitment Tesla has put forward on paper. State filings confirm a total capital outlay of $10.1 billion, comprising $1.5 billion for real property and $8.6 billion for manufacturing equipment and personal property. Tesla anticipates 9,712 permanent full-time roles once the plant reaches full operation, plus 1,147 construction jobs at peak.
The paperwork describes a completely vertically integrated solar cell and module production chain. Equipment inventories filed with the application cover machines for ingot pulling, wafer slicing, chemical coating, metallization, printing lines, cleanroom systems, and automated material handling. The $8.6 billion designated for manufacturing equipment points to high-volume automated cell and wafer lines, not merely downstream module assembly.
Although much of the historical growth in U.S. solar manufacturing has involved module assembly with imported cells, Project Crystal Sun would place cell and wafer fabrication on American soil. The effort dovetails with prior public goals from Tesla’s leadership to build out substantial domestic solar supply chain capacity.
Building work is slated to run from 2026 through 2028, with commercial output beginning in the first quarter of 2029. Tesla did note in the documents, however, that it is weighing a rival site in another state, which makes securing local tax incentives a decisive element in where the project ultimately lands.
A economic impact study appended to the filing projects that full construction could add $107 billion to Texas gross domestic product and generate $6.4 billion in state and local tax revenue across a 38-year period.
Although the Project Crystal Sun tax application does not state a precise annual nameplate capacity in gigawatts for the Fort Bend County site, industry analysts regard the $10.1 billion outlay as the cornerstone of Tesla’s earlier announced goal of 100 GW in yearly domestic solar manufacturing capacity.
By way of comparison, overall U.S. solar module manufacturing capacity among all producers was about 60 GW as of early 2026, while solar cell manufacturing capacity trailed well behind at less than 15 GW, even as capacity expands quickly.
Interactive table based on the Store Companies dataset for this report.
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Former Cree LED business, now part of SGH
Independent from Philips
Major lighting solutions provider
Former GE Lighting business
Specializes in military & maritime
Commercial & industrial LED lighting
Non-US, placeholder for accurate count
LED technology and IP licensing
Specialty & horticultural lighting
Part of Hubbell Incorporated
Non-US, placeholder for accurate count
Now focused on semiconductors, not LEDs
High-flux LEDs for projection
Luxiun division, specialty colors
Includes LED components in portfolio
Signal & industrial LED fixtures
Lighting division includes LED products
Energy-efficient LED lighting
Major LED bulb manufacturer
Consumer LED lighting
Lighting supplier with LED lines
Commercial lighting solutions
Energy-efficient outdoor LED
Commercial & industrial LED
Specialty LED components
Specializes in UVC LEDs
LED linear lighting
Distributor & manufacturer
LED materials & components
Non-US, final placeholder
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