The construction of Tesla's new Gigafactory in Berlin has just been temporarily suspended following an order from a German court. Works to prepare the ground for the new manufacturing facility has been put on hold pending a thorough of its possible environmental impact.
The order was given by the Higher Administrative Court for Berlin-Brandenburg, which had ruled that the clearing of the forest in Tesla's proposed sites would have to be examined based on several complaints. Tesla was previously given the green light by a judge to clear 227 acres of forested area to make room for its first manufacturing facility in Europe.
The complaints were brought up by the Green League Brandenburg group, which raised concerns over the development's effects on the forest, its wildlife population, and the surrounding drinking water reserves. Despite not yet getting government permission to construct its facility, Tesla has pushed forward with site preparations. The facility is meant to mainly produce batteries and electric vehicles for the European market.
The order to temporarily suspend all activities on the site was given on Sunday. It is not yet clear if work on the site has been fully suspended as of this writing. The site will be the home of Tesla's third Gigafactory, with the first one being in the United States and the second one in Shanghai, China.
Tesla CEO Elon Musk originally announced plans of establishing a Gigafactory in Germany in November. Reports also revealed that the US electric vehicle manufacturer could be planning a second European facility in the UK. Musk previously mentioned that he chose Germany as the location of the company's third facility simply because some of the best cars ever made were made in Germany.
The site for Tesla's proposed new facility is located near the German village of Grunheide, just 23 miles from Berlin; a town with a total the population of just 9,000 people. Locals who were against the establishment of the facility have argued that the facility could cause massive damage to the environment and likely contaminate the town's water supply.
The protester's claims were based on a report made by a water association representing the German state of Brandenberg, which claimed that the factory would likely require around 300 cubic meters of water per hour once it is fully operational. If this is true, the factory would effectively deplete local reserves. Last month, more than 250 protesters had gathered in Grunheide to protest Tesla's plans.
