Musk visits Tesla’s sabotage-hit German factory
Germany: Elon Musk travelled Wednesday to Tesla’s factory near Berlin to lend his workers ‘support’ after the plant was forced to halt production by a suspected arson attack on nearby power lines.
The Tesla CEO addressed thousands of employees on arrival at the site, accusing ‘ecoterrorists’ of the sabotage as he defended his company’s green credentials.
With his son X AE A-XII in his arms, Musk said: “I am here to support you.”
The billionaire’s visit came a week after power lines supplying the electric carmaker’s only European plant were set on fire in an act of sabotage claimed by a far-left group called the Vulkangruppe (Volcano Group).
Musk had said then that the attack was ‘extremely dumb’, while the company said it would cost it several hundred million euros.
A week on, the lights have come back on at the site, but Andre Thierig, who heads the site, said on LinkedIn that it would “take a bit of time” before production is back to full speed.
Industry experts have warned that the reputational impact caused by the sabotage on the region could be more severe than the losses suffered by Tesla.
Tesla’s German plant started production in 2022 following an arduous two-year approval and construction process dogged by administrative and legal obstacles.
Tesla wants to expand the site by 170 hectares and boost production up to one million vehicles annually to feed Europe’s growing demand for electric cars and take on rivals who are shifting away from combustion engine vehicles.
But the plans have annoyed local residents, who voted against the project in a nonbinding ballot last month.
After the vote, Tesla said it might have to rethink the plans.
Environmental activists opposed to the expansion of the factory have recently also set up a camp in a wooded area near the plant.
Meanwhile, in FRANKFURT, several hundred people demonstrated against Tesla’s expansion plans, citing environmental concerns.
The protest came days after Tesla’s Gruenheide site was forced to halt production after a nearby electricity pylon was set on fire in a suspected arson attack, causing a power outage at the plant.
The protest was organised by a coalition of environmental protection groups including Extinction Rebellion, Nabu and Robin Hood.
Organisers said more than a thousand demonstrators joined the protest, with local media putting the number at around 800 people.
Organisers said they were calling for ‘a secure water supply’ and ‘real climate protection’ and were protesting against Tesla owner Elon Musk’s ‘capitalist sham solutions’.
Protesters oppose Musk’s plan to expand the Gruenheide plant, south of Berlin, by 170 hectares, from a current size of 300 hectares.
The US company aims to double production to a million electric vehicles annually. The Gruenheide site is Tesla’s only European factory.
But the plans have annoyed environmentalists and residents who worry about the deforestation required for the expansion, the impact on local water supply and an increase in road traffic in the area.
A local referendum recently saw more than 60 per cent of respondents vote against the proposed expansion, though the vote was not legally binding.
Annika Fuchs, a member of the Robin Hood environmental group who took part in the protest, said she wanted local authorities to respect the vote outcome.
“It’s really important to us that we take the opinion of citizens here seriously,” she told AFP.
Not all locals are against Tesla’s plans however.
A smaller counter-protest was held Sunday in support of the Tesla factory, with participants citing economic benefits for the region.
Regional news outlet RBB quoted police as saying some 200 people took part.