Tesla offered a view into its 'gigafactory' in the Nevada desert on Tuesday, the massive facility where the company plans to begin making battery cells early next year.

About 1.9 million square feet have been built out, a fraction of the 10 million total square feet it will have once completed. The factory is two stories high in some places, and other areas will stand as high as four floors.



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The company broke ground outside Sparks, Nevada, in 2014.

Tesla aims to produce as many as 500,000 cars per year before 2020. Meeting consumer demand will require that Tesla rapidly produce lithium-ion battery cells, which it currently buys from Panasonic in Japan.

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The company has been racing to begin producing battery cells in time for the launch of Tesla's $35,000 Model 3 sedan. Tesla has received almost 400,000 pre-orders for the car so far.

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