Tesla Giga Berlin Needs To Undergo Another Public Review Rules State Office For Environment

Brandenburg State Office for Environment has confirmed Tesla's decision to add a battery plant to the Giga Berlin plans will necessitate a second public review and possibly a public hearing.

In a previous article, I discussed comments from Brandenburg State PM suggesting Tesla might need to undergo another public hearing for Giga Berlin before the EV maker is given the final permit that will allow it to start volume production.

This is expected to cause a minor delay however, in the meantime Tesla is planning to ship made-in-China Model Ys for customers in Europe who can’t wait to get their hands on the all-electric crossover.

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The reason for the additional hearing is Tesla amended the Giga Berlin plans to add a battery manufacturing plant at the site.

The battery factory when completed will be the largest cell factory in the world. For the initial phase, Tesla plans to have a production capacity of 100GWh per year.

And the plant will be producing the company’s newest 4680 cells announced at the Battery Day event.

However, in the second phase, Tesla plans to grow this number to 250-300GWh. This number is enough for 2.5 to 3 million vehicles per year. Cathie Wood and her firm ARK Invest believe Tesla can produce 5 to 10 million vehicles a year by 2025.

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And now according to the Brandenburg State Office for Environment, the magnitude of changes to Giga Berlin are big enough the plans will need to undergo a second public showing.

Tesla’s complete environmental assessment application will initially be displayed online and in four different offices starting this Friday, June 18.

The documents in display for the public will include immission forecasts for air pollutants, odors, and noise; the species protection expert report; the expert report on the water framework directive; vibration and oscillation expert reports; and other expert reports and statements.

The documents will be available for the public to review for 4 weeks and afterward another 4 weeks are granted until August 16 to file complaints or questions.

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And depending on the objections brought up the environmental agency will decide if the permit needs to undergo a public hearing where participants can voice their concerns.

This process however will not stop construction at Giga Berlin and Tesla can continue work as usual using the preliminary permits that the EV maker has already received.

Initial deliveries of Model Y produced at Giga Berlin are expected to begin by the end of this year.

We will keep you posted if any new issue comes up during the public hearing process.

So what do you think? Is the second public showing of Tesla’s plans necessary? Or do you think this is too much bureaucracy? Let me know your thoughts down in the comments below.

For more information check out: Elon Musk Frustrated With China Tesla Brake Failure FUD Also, see Stunning Aerial Footage of Giga Shanghai

Tinsae Aregay has been following Tesla and The evolution of the EV space on a daily basis for several years. He covers everything about Tesla from the cars to Elon Musk, the energy business, and autonomy. Follow Tinsae on Twitter at @TinsaeAregay for daily Tesla news.