German Court Orders Tesla to Stop Factory Construction

A court has issued an order directing American car manufacturer Tesla to temporarily halt the clearing of land and forest for its new factory in Brandenburg, Germany. The order was issued by the Higher Administrative Court of Berlin-Brandenburg. This was after the Green League of Brandenburg, an environmental protection group, had filed a lawsuit opposing Tesla’s clearing of a 92-hectare forest land. When the lawsuit was filed, Tesla had not yet obtained a permit to start the actual construction of the factory. However, it had already cleared almost 50% of the trees at the site with permission granted by the state environment office. According to the court, the site would have been completely cleared if the order had been delayed further. Tesla announced its plan to build its first factory in Europe late last year, and the factory was scheduled to start operations in 2021. The court order put the company at risk of further delaying or totally halting the factory’s construction. However, by mid-February, the Berlin-Brandenburg court finally gave Tesla the green light to continue with the clearing. In response to the court order, Tesla CEO Elon Musk had explained that the new factory would benefit the environment because it would produce automobiles powered by renewable energy. The company also said it would replant trees in an area three times the size of its factory site. Several lawmakers in Germany had expressed their concern over the temporary cessation of Tesla’s construction. They were worried about the issue’s possible impact on Germany’s business development credentials and the country’s pro-business reputation.