The Tesla factory expansion project has just been voted on by the municipal council of Grünheide, the town near Berlin which already hosts the factory. The extension is controversial, residents and activists are opposed to it.
The plan to expand the Tesla factory in Grünheide, near Berlin, continues to be disrupted. But this Thursday, May 16, the municipal council has just given the green light, with eleven votes in favor for nineteen elected officials.
Elon Musk’s company plans to expand the site by building a freight yard and storage area. Problem: this will lead to partial deforestation of the area in which the factory is located of around 50 hectares.
Many residents and opponents of Tesla expressed their dissatisfaction during the council meeting which turned out to be particularly agitated according to the website of the German television channel ZDF. According to the journalist on site: “it was quite heated, the debates were heated. We must keep in mind that during the citizen consultation, 62 percent were against the extension.” Elected officials were attacked in a threatening manner.
Demonstrators had already tried to enter the factory site last Friday. Clashes with the police took place. Since February, environmental activists have settled near the site, setting up makeshift camps. According to the Tagesspeigel, further demonstrations took place today, but they remained peaceful.
The Grünheide factory is the electric car manufacturer’s only factory in Europe.
