New Anti-Tesla Protest in Berlin

A few hundred people demonstrated near Tesla’s German Gigafactory as it prepares to restart its production.

Environmental activists are clearly determined to make life difficult for Tesla. An arson on a high-voltage electrical pole near the production site last Tuesday caused widespread power outages that also affected some neighborhoods in Berlin. Tesla had to immediately halt production at its German factory in Grünheide, in the outskirts of Berlin.

A small extremist German group called “Vulkan Gruppe” immediately claimed responsibility for the sabotage, aiming to pressure the American manufacturer to abandon its expansion project.

Widespread discontent is growing

This weekend, a coalition of associations again took to the streets to call for the withdrawal of the project. The protection of groundwater and climate was, of course, on the agenda, but more generally the opposition targeted Elon Musk and his capitalist vision. The jobs created were, of course, left out of the discussion, probably less important than the preservation of a wooded area that was left completely abandoned before Tesla’s arrival.

The American billionaire plans to expand the Grünheide plant by 170 hectares to double production, reaching one million electric vehicles per year. This Gigafactory, Tesla’s only one in Europe, currently covers about 300 hectares, employing around 12,000 people. The Tesla Model Y, the flagship SUV for the European market, is produced there in the meantime while waiting for the upcoming low-cost Tesla.

A local referendum rejected this expansion project with 60% against at the beginning of the month. Although non-binding, it clearly indicates that the honeymoon between Tesla and Germany is over and gives way to a period of concessions.