German authorities reject Tesla's Gigafactory Berlin expansion

27 July 2023

Tesla shared its plans to expand its Gigafactory in Berlin not long ago and even filed a request for a permit back in March this year. However, it wasn't clear at the time whether Tesla plans to produce battery cells or just assemble them into battery packs for its vehicles. Now we know it's about production. And that's where the issues with authorities arise.

The Water Management Department of Brandenburg State Office for the Environment came out with a decision to reject Tesla's expansion for now. Tesla's original plan involves doubling the production of its cars as well as doubling the energy storage production from 50 to 100 gigawatts.

The authority rejected Tesla's plan due to the production and the wastewater recycling plants being partially located in the water protection area.

To obtain a partial permit, though, Tesla would have to contact the lower water authority, which is responsible for the enforcement of the water protection area ordinance. The good news for Tesla is that the authority is already looking into Tesla's documents, but it will take time.

At the end of the day, Tesla might have to adjust its plans and the plant in Grünheide would have to wait a bit longer.

Via