Tesla is ramping up hiring for its $200 million Megapack battery factory in Brookshire, Texas, just outside Houston, with 41 positions currently posted and a job fair scheduled for the week of November 10, 2025. The facility represents Tesla’s aggressive push into utility-scale energy storage at a time when its automotive division faces mounting challenges from expired tax credits and intensifying competition.

The Houston-area factory will mirror Tesla’s successful Lathrop, California facility, producing 10,000 utility-scale Megapack batteries annually—equivalent to 40 gigawatt hours (GWh) of energy storage capacity. This expansion comes as Tesla’s energy business has emerged as a bright spot in the company’s portfolio, with recent quarters showing the division outperforming the struggling automotive segment.

1,500 Advanced Manufacturing Jobs Coming to Waller County

Tesla has committed to employ at least 375 people at the new facility in Empire West Business Park by the end of 2026, according to tax abatement agreements approved by the Waller County Commissioners Court in March 2025. That figure increases to at least 750 by the end of 2027 and must reach 1,500 by the end of 2028, a level the company must maintain for a decade to qualify for its tax breaks.

Current job openings span the full manufacturing spectrum, from welders and technical writers to senior manufacturing engineers and various management roles. Ramiro Bautista, project manager for the city of Brookshire’s economic development department, told the Houston Business Journal that Tesla will hold a job fair the week of November 10 to accelerate hiring.

“We are building the future of energy right here in Waller County,” a Tesla representative stated at the March commissioners court meeting. “This facility will not only bring cutting-edge technology to the region but will also create long-term, high-quality jobs that support families and communities.”

Massive Investment in Automation and Robotics

Tesla is investing heavily in advanced manufacturing technology for the Brookshire facility. The company plans to spend $44 million on real estate improvements and $150 million on cutting-edge manufacturing equipment, including automated robotic welding cells and robotic assembly stations.

The facility will lease two massive buildings in Empire West Business Park, a thriving industrial development by Dallas-based Stream Realty Partners. Tesla has been leasing the 1.04 million-square-foot Building 9 since 2022, though a third-party logistics company previously occupied the space. The company is now taking full control to manufacture Megapacks for global distribution.

As part of the tax abatement agreement, Tesla must maintain a minimum of $75 million in taxable inventory by January 1, 2026, which will increase to $300 million after three years—ensuring long-term economic benefits for schools, public services, and infrastructure projects in Waller County.

Energy Business Emerges as Tesla’s Growth Engine

The Houston Megafactory expansion comes as Tesla’s energy storage business has become one of the company’s strongest performers. In the third quarter of 2025, Tesla deployed a record 12.5 GWh of energy storage products, with the energy division now representing approximately 25% of overall company revenue.

The contrast with Tesla’s automotive business is stark. While EV deliveries are down 6% year-to-date through September 2025, energy storage deployments have surged. The energy division achieved gross margins of 30% in recent quarters—significantly higher than the 17% margins in automotive—making it Tesla’s most profitable business segment on a percentage basis.

“The energy business is doing extremely well, and the opportunity ahead is gigantic,” CEO Elon Musk said during a recent earnings call, predicting the division will eventually surpass automotive in total gigawatt hours deployed.

Shanghai Megafactory Already Ramping Production

Tesla’s Houston facility will be the company’s third major Megapack manufacturing plant, following its original Lathrop, California facility and the recently operational Shanghai Megafactory. The Shanghai plant began production in February 2025 and produced over 100 Megapacks in the first quarter, with the company stating it’s on track to match the 40 GWh annual capacity of the Lathrop facility.

The rapid expansion of Megapack manufacturing capacity reflects surging global demand for utility-scale battery energy storage systems. These massive batteries help stabilize electrical grids by storing energy from intermittent renewable sources like solar and wind, then dispatching that power when needed. Each Megapack can store over 3 megawatt hours (MWh) of energy—enough to power approximately 3,600 homes for one hour.

Major customers for Tesla’s Megapacks include utility providers like Intersect Power and even Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company xAI, which purchased $191 million in Megapack products in 2024 to power its data centers.

Texas Cements Position as Tesla’s Manufacturing Hub

The Houston-area Megafactory reinforces Texas’s status as Tesla’s primary U.S. manufacturing base. The company relocated its corporate headquarters from California to Texas in December 2021, and its Gigafactoría de Texas in Austin has become a critical production hub for the Model Y, Cybertruck, and the upcoming Cybercab robotaxi.

Justin Beckendorff, Waller County Precinct 4 Commissioner, expressed enthusiasm about the economic impact during the March commissioners court meeting.

“We are super excited about this opportunity—1,500 advanced manufacturing jobs in the county and in the city,” he said.

The facility is expected to generate significant spillover benefits for the region. Local suppliers, logistics companies, and retail businesses will benefit from Tesla’s workforce spending, while the Empire West Business Park could attract additional high-tech tenants, reinforcing Brookshire’s emergence as an innovation hub west of Houston.

EVXL’s Take

Here’s what the mainstream coverage is missing: this hiring push reveals where Tesla sees its actual future, and it’s not primarily in selling cars. While the automotive division struggles with collapsing European sales, executive departures, and post-tax-credit demand erosion, the energy storage business is absolutely printing money with those 30% gross margins.

The timing is particularly revealing. Tesla is launching a major manufacturing hiring initiative just as the September 30, 2025 federal EV tax credit expiration makes its vehicles instantly $7,500 more expensive. That’s not coincidence—that’s strategic allocation of capital toward the business line that doesn’t depend on government subsidies or consumer sentiment about Elon Musk’s political activities.

The Houston Megafactory also represents Tesla’s response to a genuine market need. As battery makers pivot to energy storage amid soft EV demand, Tesla is already years ahead with operational Megafactories and a proven product. The company’s Q2 2025 earnings showed energy storage revenue hit $3.04 billion, up 176% year-over-year, while automotive revenue declined.

But let’s be clear about the competitive landscape: Tesla faces intense pressure from Chinese manufacturers in energy storage just as it does in EVs. The Shanghai Megafactory is already dealing with Chinese competitors offering complete battery systems at prices 60-70% lower than Tesla’s. The company’s Megapack pricing has dropped 51% in China over the past year, from approximately $1.15/Wh to $0.56/Wh, while Chinese manufacturers quote as low as $0.15/Wh for some systems.

The Houston facility’s success will depend on whether Tesla can leverage automation and American manufacturing incentives to compete on cost while maintaining the quality and integration advantages that have made Megapacks the preferred choice for major utility-scale projects. With 1,500 high-paying manufacturing jobs on the line and Waller County’s economic future partly riding on this facility, the stakes extend well beyond Tesla’s corporate balance sheet.

For EV enthusiasts watching Tesla’s evolution, this Houston expansion crystallizes a truth we’ve been tracking: Tesla is transforming from an automotive company that sells batteries into an energy infrastructure company that also happens to make cars. The question is whether that transformation happens fast enough to offset the challenges mounting in the vehicle business.

What do you think? Is Tesla’s energy storage bet the right move, or should the company be doubling down on affordable EVs instead? Share your thoughts in the comments below.