Following protests and a deliberate arson attack against its power grid that leaves the gigafactory at a standstill, Tesla (TSLA) has issued a rebuttal against local opposition of its expansion plans.
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In a post on X, formerly known as Twitter, reposted as "The truth about Giga Berlin" by Tesla's official account, Tesla Public Policy and Business Development Vice President Rohan Patel attempted to address some of the concerns raised by activists against the expansion of the Berlin-Brandenburg Gigafactory.
The truth about Giga Berlin https://t.co/rPG0Lo4Cwc
— Tesla (@Tesla) March 6, 2024
"The entire point of [Tesla] is to create innovative zero emissions products and accelerate sustainable energy/transport," Patel wrote on X. "But in order to do that well, we also focus on creating the most sustainable factories along with a culture to do the right thing in our community."
According to Patel, the Gigafactory does not suck up as much water as other factories, and that the factory recycles "up to 100%" of industrial water.
He also boasts that the gigafactory has "8 [megawatts] of installed solar capacity and source renewable electricity, and that the team at Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg has rapidly reforested its current site and has ecologically improved 340 hectares of forest, "making Grünheide, Spreenhagen & Gosen-Neu Zittau forests more diverse and therefore more resilient."
Additionally, Patel mentioned figures that support the factory's impact to the local community. According to him, the factory employs "more than 12,000 people," where 45% commute via public transport, and that 13 different schools partner with the factory and is the largest employer of apprenticeships in the region.
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Despite all of the positive that Tesla representatives mention, the company is going to be reeling in the losses for the stoppage triggered by the arson on March 5.
As per a report by Reuters, Tesla representatives say that the plant is expected to be without electricity until about March 17.
In a statement, local utility company E.DIS said that it is working to fix the electrical pylon that suffered damage during the arson. E.DIS did not offer an exact timeline, but said it is hoping to restore power as soon as possible.
"The E.DIS grid experts are closely coordinating with the industrial and commercial units that have not yet been resupplied, in particular Tesla, as well as the authorities," E.DIS said.
In the meantime, Tesla is expects losses in the "high hundreds of millions of Euros," as over 1,000 vehicles were left in various states of unfinished assembly when the plant shut down.
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