- Brandenburg approves Tesla’s Giga Berlin plant. It is expected to start car production in this year.
- The automaker’s first European plant is expected to produce approximately 500,000 vehicles per annum, most of which will be sold to buyers in western Europe.
- Tesla has delayed the launch of Cybertruck production in America, while it continues to increase its production capacity for its top-selling models abroad.
Tesla cleared the last hurdles in order to start production at its gigafactory, Brandenburg, Germany, in early March.
The State of Brandenburg has granted official environmental approval to the EV maker to operate the plant. The plant is expected to produce approximately 500,000 Tesla vehicles each year. Final approval was held up in what Elon Musk described last summer as “bureaucratic hell”, as Tesla faced several delays in completing the plant.
After meeting the stringent environmental requirements, the EV maker is expected in the next few weeks to start production at the plant known as Giga Berlin. Tesla will use the plant primarily for Model 3 and Model Y production to European customers.
The Brandenburg state government stated, “The project, which was approved in the 536-page décision, includes the plant to produce up to 500,000 cars per year, an aluminum smelting plant and an aluminum findry, plants for heat generation, surface treatment, and storage.” “The facility includes battery cell production, an operating wastewater treatment plant, a fire fighting equipment house, high-bay warehouses, as well as laboratories, workshops.”
The choice of Tesla’s factory location near Berlin was initially met with suspicion by environmental groups and industry observers. This was due to the unexpected proximity to a major European city as well as the high labor cost in Germany, which is different from other EU states like Slovakia or the Czech Republic.
German automakers had started building plants in several neighboring countries for vehicle assembly and component production over two decades ago. They were seeking lower labor costs. Tesla’s Giga Berlin plans challenged industry trends.
“As a high performing state administration, you have always concentrated on the technical requirements. The high level of environmental protection, the protection for the general public and the neighborhood from hazards and unreasonable nuisances, as also the legal certainty of this procedure, even under great public interest,” Alex Vogel, Environment Minister, said at the announcement of the grant of permit. “In times of crisis, water availability will play an increasing important role in future developments and settlements.”
Giga Berlin’s production will soon begin, which will allow the automaker to concentrate on China. Previously, Tesla was shipping cars from China to European buyers. The automaker will be able deliver more vehicles to European customers in a much shorter timeframe with the Giga Berlin facility, just as the demand for EVs is growing in Europe.
Tesla has rescheduled the production of the Cybertruck and Roadster in the U.S.A over the past year and instead focuses on new plants overseas and increased production capacity for the Model 3 and Model Y. The automaker knows exactly which side it is on.
Although Tesla’s Austin production has not reached its peak, it has achieved two rare victories in a time of unprecedented turmoil for the auto industry. The industry is still facing supply pressures from the pandemic and what could be a longer-term shortage of energy and raw materials.
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