The American electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla announced Thursday that the project to expand its factory near Berlin had been approved by local authorities, despite opposition from local residents and environmental defenders.
Tesla said he was “extremely satisfied” with the green light from the municipality of Grünheide, about thirty kilometers southeast of the German capital. The manufacturer inaugurated this factory, the only one in Europe, in 2022 after two complicated years to obtain all the authorizations.
In 2023, Tesla announced that it wanted to double its production capacity to one million vehicles per year. This factory, which employs around 12,000 people, occupies 400 hectares (ha) and the extension was to cover 170 ha. But the project was scaled back due to protests, notably from environmental defenders who were protecting a forest.
In March, Tesla even had to interrupt production after the arson of high-voltage lines, claimed by a far-left group.
