Tesla could face delays at Gigafactory Berlin due to lack of permits, Elon Musk gets involved

A new report from Germany says Tesla could face delays at Gigafactory Berlin due to difficulties in obtaining permits.

Elon Musk gets involved.

As we previously reported, Tesla continued with the construction of the Gigafactory Berlin without final approval of the project.

Instead, the automaker was able to move ahead with construction through individual permits, but its luck may now be running out.

Of Germany Automobile week released a new report claiming that ‘Tesla is currently unable to continue building as planned’ due to lack of permits for further forest clearing and paint shop (translated from German):

Construction work on the new Tesla factory in Grünheide is currently not progressing as planned. The reason is the lack of permits for land clearing and the paint shop.

However, the magazine also said that those familiar with the project are still aiming for a production start in July 2021.

Recently, we reported that Tesla had fired “Mister Gigafactory”, the engineer in charge of the Gigafactory Berlin project.

Now Elon Musk apparently gets involved.

As we reported last week, Musk traveled to Tesla Gigafactory Berlin to boost recruiting efforts and personally interview candidates.

We now learn that he also met with Brandenburg Economic Affairs Minister Jörg Steinbach (SPD) to discuss the situation with permits and timing.

Tesla’s completion of the Gigafactory Berlin is extremely important to the automaker.

It will allow Tesla to launch Model Y in Europe after it has already been in production in the United States for more than a year.

In addition, Tesla also plans to introduce new technologies in the Model Y produced in Berlin, including its 4,680 battery cells and a new structural battery pack design.

Subscribe to Electrek on YouTube for exclusive videos and subscribe to the podcast.