Tesla has passed one of the more significant hurdles on their quests to final get production at Giga Berlin up and running. On Friday the State of Brandenburg announced that the factory has officially received its final environmental approval.
Showing just how much paperwork was required, the Brandenburg Ministry of Agriculture, Environment, and Climate Protection shared a photo of the 536-page approval surrounded by the thousands of documents and pages Tesla had to submit.
UPDATE 11:28am PST: Elon Musk has thanked the ministry, saying on Twitter “I would like to thank you very much. The future is very exciting!”
Ich möchte mich recht herzlich bedanken. Die Zukunft ist sehr spannend! 🇩🇪 🇩🇪
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 4, 2022
According to the approval document, Tesla can now build up to 500,000 vehicles per year at the factory, along with various other processes including battery cell production.
“The project, which was approved with the 536-page decision , includes the plant for the production of up to 500,000 vehicles per year, aluminum smelting plants and an aluminum foundry, plants for surface treatment, heat generation and storage. The facility also includes battery cell production, an operational wastewater treatment plant, a fire brigade equipment house, a high-bay warehouse, as well as laboratories and workshops,” the ministry said in a statement.
However, Tesla still has to meet over 400 other “conditions and requirements” related to things like groundwater protection, species protection measures, and more before it can start production.
[The approval] contains more than 400 ancillary provisions (conditions and requirements) on around 80 pages and an approximately 400-page justification for the decision , in which the objections are acknowledged. The ancillary provisions include, among other things, requirements for groundwater protection as well as water-saving and wastewater-reducing measures, species protection measures, limit values ​​for air pollutants and regulations on their measurement as well as occupational safety requirements.”
Tesla still believes that those conditions and requirements will be met in a timely fashion. The company is reportedly planning a grand opening ceremony for March 22 or March 23 at which CEO Elon Musk is expected to deliver the first 30 Model Ys to new customers.
Giga Berlin poses no risk to local water supply: Brandenburg government
