Tesla, Toyota Tap Central Texas For Major Industrial Expansions
Two of the world’s largest auto manufacturers are making big industrial real estate moves in Austin and San Antonio.
Tesla has reportedly signed a lease for greater Austin’s largest speculative industrial building just as Toyota plots a $3.6B expansion of its San Antonio manufacturing plant.
Tesla is leasing a 682K SF building at 11801 Decker Lake Road in the Austin Hills Commerce Center, the Austin Business Journal reported, citing unnamed sources.
The electric-vehicle manufacturer hasn't announced the transaction and didn't respond to Bisnow’s request for comment.
Missouri-based Sansone Group and its Iowa-based partner, Principal Asset Management, began building the structure in March. Work is expected to wrap up in January.
The new lease would push Tesla’s leased presence in the greater Austin industrial market to nearly 3M SF, the ABJ reported.
The company, helmed by Elon Musk, moved its headquarters from Silicon Valley to Austin in 2021. SpaceX, another Musk venture, which had a $75B initial public offering last month, also has a major presence in Texas.
The report of the Tesla lease came the same day Toyota announced plans to add 2.5M SF to its plant in San Antonio, which would double the size of the factory and add 2,000 jobs by 2030.
The Japanese company plans to transition production from Toyota Motor Manufacturing Baja California in Mexico to the expanded space over the next four years.
Other automakers have bolstered their U.S. manufacturing presence in recent years in response to President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Under the current policies, vehicles assembled in Mexico face a 25% tariff on the value of the parts not manufactured in the U.S.
Toyota’s investment in Texas was a reversal of a shift from San Antonio to two Mexican plants announced in 2020.
Trump hailed the announcement as a tariff success story in a Tuesday social media post.
“A really big deal. Tariffs at work!” the president said.
