Three months ago, an attack temporarily halted car production at US carmaker Tesla. A letter of confession was issued and the Attorney General took over the case. How far has it progressed?
Three months after the attack on the power supply of US electric car manufacturer Tesla, there is still no end in sight to the investigation. The investigation is ongoing, a spokeswoman for the Attorney General at the Federal Court of Justice told the German Press Agency.
According to their information, there is still initial suspicion of membership in a terrorist organization, anti-constitutional sabotage and joint arson. It is not possible to predict when the proceedings will be concluded.
On March 5, as yet unknown perpetrators set fire to a power pole that is part of the Tesla factory’s power supply. This led to a power outage. Tesla’s car production was on hold for almost a week. The outage also affected an Edeka distribution center, and there were delivery problems with fresh goods in Berlin and Brandenburg.
The left-wing extremist “Vulkangruppe” declared that it was responsible for the attack. The Federal Prosecutor General took over the investigation a few days after the attack. The regional grid operator Edis estimated that the cost of restoring the power supply to the Tesla factory was more than one million euros.
The protest against Tesla is increasing
Tesla is facing increasing resistance. Tesla boss Elon Musk’s only car factory in Europe opened in Grünheide around two years ago. Environmentalists and residents had concerns even during construction. This year, protests increased dramatically. Environmental activists have been camping in the forest near the factory since the end of February. They are protesting against a planned expansion of the factory site to build a freight station and logistics areas. Forests are to be cleared for this purpose.
In a public survey in Grünheide, the clear majority voted against the expansion. The development plan was changed so that less forest would have to be cleared. The community representatives of the town of 9,000 residents ultimately voted for the expansion. In May, environmental activists attempted to storm the Tesla site during days of protest, but the police prevented them. Riots broke out.
Musk continues to focus on expansion
During a factory visit in mid-March, Tesla CEO Musk made it clear that he is sticking to the planned expansion of his plant despite the attack on the power supply and ongoing protests.
The car manufacturer is completely shutting down car production in Grünheide for five days in June. Tesla justifies the planned breaks with upgrades to the production facilities to increase efficiency and optimize availability and cycle times.
Source: Stern
