Photo: Tesla
By now, Tesla should know it cannot be innovative and unpredictable about building its German factory as it is with making cars. Yet, Brandenburg’s Ministry of the Environment announced the company would be fined for tanks that were not in its construction plans. According to Der Tagesspiegel, some politicians are now asking for a building halt for Giga Grünheide.
Ironically, the issue would have started when Tesla fans made drone shots of the construction site that presented a tank farm. After seeing the pictures, the environment associations Grüne Liga Brandenburg and NABU (Naturschutzbund, or Nature Conservation Association) denounced Tesla to the ministry. Yet, they would have considered that fines are a lighter punishment than the EV manufacturer deserves.
Michael Ganschow, managing director of the Grüne Liga, said that the tanks were not included in the construction plans and should therefore be dismantled. He told Der Tagesspiegel that it is a scandal that Tesla crossed this red line without proper permission. Ganschow also said that it goes against the “transparent, reasonable level of approval” the building process should follow.
He was sided by Christian Görke, a Die Linke (The Left) politician that was a minister in Brandenburg from 2014 up to 2019. For him, Tesla not getting a general construction freeze for the tanks is "a declaration of bankruptcy against one of the richest men in the world." Brandenburg’s Landesumweltamt (State Environment Agency) said it is checking if further measures are necessary but did not mention which they could be.
If Tesla faces any other restriction, even the idea that it could only produce cars by May 2022 may be optimistic. That timeframe has to do with the development of the 4680 cells, which is still not complete. The Model Y to be made in Grünheide will need these batteries because it will not use the same structure as the other electric crossovers Tesla builds in Fremont and Shanghai.
The EV manufacturer is also facing difficulties in hiring employees in Germany. Reports that its factories are modern-day sweatshops are driving candidates away. According to Automotive News, Tesla is trying to overcome that with training and apprenticeships.
Michael Ganschow, managing director of the Grüne Liga, said that the tanks were not included in the construction plans and should therefore be dismantled. He told Der Tagesspiegel that it is a scandal that Tesla crossed this red line without proper permission. Ganschow also said that it goes against the “transparent, reasonable level of approval” the building process should follow.
#GigaBerlin
— @GF4Tesla ???????? ???????? ??????????.build #GigaBerlin. (@Gf4Tesla) June 26, 2021
Some screenshots from the drone flight on Friday 25 June.
#1 Exhaust stacks of the aluminum smelting furnaces are built #Gigapress ( CA )
#2 Tank farm
#3 RTO ( regenerative thermal oxidizer ) (PT) 'Painting'
#4 Waste water treatment plant under construction. pic.twitter.com/ah5KZRRObZ
He was sided by Christian Görke, a Die Linke (The Left) politician that was a minister in Brandenburg from 2014 up to 2019. For him, Tesla not getting a general construction freeze for the tanks is "a declaration of bankruptcy against one of the richest men in the world." Brandenburg’s Landesumweltamt (State Environment Agency) said it is checking if further measures are necessary but did not mention which they could be.
If Tesla faces any other restriction, even the idea that it could only produce cars by May 2022 may be optimistic. That timeframe has to do with the development of the 4680 cells, which is still not complete. The Model Y to be made in Grünheide will need these batteries because it will not use the same structure as the other electric crossovers Tesla builds in Fremont and Shanghai.
The EV manufacturer is also facing difficulties in hiring employees in Germany. Reports that its factories are modern-day sweatshops are driving candidates away. According to Automotive News, Tesla is trying to overcome that with training and apprenticeships.
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