Tesla Giga Berlin Gets Another Early Approval For Plant Construction

Featured Image Credit:@wolfpackberlin/Twitter

Tesla Giga Berlin received early approval to continue foundation work—including above the aquifier, earthworks, and structural works—and establish private traffic areas on site. The early approval came from the State Environment Agency and was in accordance with Section 8a of the Federal Immersion Control Act.

The latest early approval does not permit Tesla to build on top of planned pile foundations or place components and pipes below the aquifier. Tesla must also follow the noise protection, dust emissions, water protection, and monument protection requirements of the recent approval on top of the provisions required in the other early approvals granted before.

Giga Berlin has started placing concrete beams and the first walls of presumably the Model Y production plant. Construction on Giga Berlin’s advanced paint shop has started as well.

The State Environment Agency will convene on September 3 to discuss Tesla’s application. Until the meeting, objections about Tesla Giga Berlin can be raised by the public. Tesla will have to dismantle any work done on-site "at the expense of the developer" if its application is not approved.

Tesla’s construction on Gigafactory Berlin has received four early approvals since the American EV automaker submitted plans for the project. The early approvals does not guarantee that Tesla’s application to build a Gigafactory in Berlin will be granted, but it does hint at optimistic results.

Since the original application, Tesla has revised its Gigafactory Berlin application once. Details on the revisions to the documents have already been released to the public.

Tesla outlined its production plans more accurately in the new application. The company clarified that its short-term production goal for Giga Berlin was 100,000 vehicles per year, about 2,000 cars a week. For comparison, Giga Shanghai just exceeded a 4,000 per week production rate, six months after it ramped MIC Model 3 production.

Tesla estimated that it would need to expand Giga Berlin further to produce more than 150,000 vehicles per year. Tesla plans to hire 10,500 employees for its Gigafactory in Berlin. Giga Berlin will begin operations with Model Y production to meet demand in Europe. 

Hat Tip: @gigafactory_4/Twitter and @Gf4Tesla/Twitter