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Showdown over the new Tesla Gigafactory in Grünheide, but with distance and lots of emotions: Under strict security precautions from the crown, residents, citizen initiatives and environmental associations that are critical of the project have been listening in the Erkner city hall since Wednesday. The 414 objectors who had submitted critical statements against the car factory were invited as part of the formal approval process for the main emissions control, which is stopping at record speed near the Berlin motorway ring near Freienbrink. 116 criticisms came, more than usual. And he got down to work in Erkner town hall from the first minute, with every detail. When Ulrich Stock, chair of the meeting, appeared before the press after a good three hours, they were still bogged down with procedural questions. “The schedule has been canceled,” Stock said. I was afraid it wouldn’t be possible in three days. And if so, the appointment may need to be repeated in its entirety. The 62-year-old man is in charge of the technical department for emission control at the State Environment Agency, which is responsible for the approval process of the Gigafactory. Stock again emphasized that, despite the ongoing works, the result was completely open, “there is also the possibility of a negative decision.”
At the hearing required by the law, critics can directly explain their concerns to the Brandenburg State Environmental Agency, the responsible approval authority, this week – the Tesla Group, in turn, which is represented by a team and offices. planning participants, you can respond immediately. Participating Brandenburg authorities were also invited.
From the beginning, Stock noted that the audience only discussed topics relevant to the decision-making process. “We will not discuss whether lithium production in Bolivia is environmentally friendly,” he said. The objective of the hearing is for the authority to obtain more factual bases for the decision. But the distrust and resentment in the room were great. Christiane Schröder, Managing Director of the Brandenburg Union for Conservation of Nature, criticized the fact that, in general, the audience cannot be followed publicly on a live broadcast, “which should not be a problem for an innovative company like Tesla. ” “It is not the intention of the audience to present innovative technologies,” Stock replied. It is a meeting with the authorities, “not a congress or a citizen meeting.”
The mood was irritable and he was irritated minute by minute. Representatives of citizen groups complained, for example, that bottles of water had been taken from them at the entrance, but not the representatives of Tesla. Stock cited security reasons because citizens with more than just peaceful intentions may have also arrived. “I’m not afraid that Tesla will drop bottles,” he said.
Tesla employees named – 45 minute break
The upset arose when Stock admitted that Tesla had hired the company that kept the minutes of the event. It was presented by the musician and lawyer Julia Neigel, who was on site for the Bavarian environmental association VLAB, who had sued in vain against the clearing and starting construction of the factory. Stock noted that this was a common procedure, Tesla, as the developer of the project, had also rented the room and ordered the security service. The State Environmental Agency receives an original recording of the event from the company, of which there will now be a verbatim transcript.
The hearing was interrupted again after 45 minutes because a motion of partiality had been filed against Stock due to an interview. A biased president would not hold the court hearing, according to a conservationist. The request was rejected, as was another request for bias, because Stock Neigel had withdrawn from the floor. Stock himself took the censure motions calmly: “I expected it.”
National interest in the audience
The date arouses interest at the national level, around 40 journalists are accredited. You are allowed to view the event in a separate press tent on a broadcast, but you are not allowed to make any image or sound recording. The hearing itself is not public, which was justified by the limited space due to Corona’s precautions.
This is the main approval still pending from the factory, from which Tesla wants to supply the European market from July 2021. Even in the current first stage of expansion, 500,000 electric cars of the new model Y series will come out of the assembly line per year, 12,000 jobs have been announced.
The project is part of the corporate strategy that CEO Elon Musk had affirmed Wednesday night to investors on “Battery Day,” namely to build cheap electric cars for the mass market. The goal is to be able to offer a self-contained Tesla model for $ 25,000 in three years, according to Musk. The group needs gigafactories directly on all continents. At the hearing, Tesla project manager Alexander Riederer assured that the Gigafactory would be the most beautiful and technologically advanced in the world. You want to be part of the solution. They were more general messages about the mission propagated by Tesla, so Stock advised Riederer to give “an overview of the system configuration.”
The Gigafactory for Europe, which is being built in Grünheide, is the largest private investment in the state of Brandenburg since 1990. With 414 objections, in which, according to the authorities, 895 points were attacked, the project is still at a point intermediate by Brandenburg standards. There have been much larger procedures, Stock said. The largest was a Vatenfall waste incineration plant in Rüdersdorf, where there were 2300 objections. There were 1,000 at the Hassleben pig farm, where the hearing had lasted 11 days. There were even 134,000 objections to the new BER capital airport.
All cleared from the association: the factory’s water supply is now secured
According to the dramaturgy, the focus of the first day of hearing should be above all the controversial approval process and the water consumption of the future Gigafactory. But after two hours it still wasn’t ready because the pros and cons of the process and procedure were added. Criticisms were voiced that the State Environment Agency in the run-up to Berlin, despite the nearby city limits, had only listened to the water company. Stock tried to stay calm sarcastically. “Is anyone still right? Oh God,” he once said.
As reported, Tesla is building the factory, for which 90 hectares of pine forest have been cut down, at its own financial risk in the way of advance permits – the first shell structures have already been completed. Critics accuse the company and the authorities involved that a fait accompli will be created even before the factory is approved.
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Erkner gave the go-ahead on water usage just in time for the showdown: the Strausberg-Erkner water association, which had sounded the alarm several times before, has now approved Tesla’s request for the factory development with Tesla. . The associative assembly of the participating municipalities that lead the association gave the green light on Tuesday night, which was first reported by the RBB. Grünheide Mayor Arne Christiani was relieved: “That was a crucial question.” Tesla itself initially declared that the maximum consumption of the plant was 3.3 million cubic meters per year, which corresponds to that of a city of 60,000 inhabitants, and has since reduced it to 1.4 million cubic meters per year. At the same time, residents and environmental groups fear that this could have negative effects on the region.
Musk announces its own production of battery cells in the region
On the other hand, Elon Musk, who recently visited the construction site, had assured that the exposure would be limited and that Tesla would do everything possible to minimize it. Tesla promises to build “the world’s most progressive series production of electric vehicles” in Grünheide.
Musk announced again on “Battery Day” that the Gigafactory near Berlin will be expanded to include its own battery cell factory. It brought additional tension to the audience, and it was immediately asked: a battery factory is not part of the current approval process, according to Riederer. “There will be no battery production in the system as has now been requested.”
What is the additional procedure after the hearing, which is recorded and evaluated in the approval process? Before the Brandenburg State Environment Agency decides on the approval of the Gigafactory, the Grünheide community development plan must also be changed, which should be done before November. Brandenburg Economy Minister Jörg Steinbach (SPD) recently declared in the state parliament that the approval process can be expected to be completed by the end of the year. The world’s fourth Tesla Gigafactory, for which the first go-ahead was given in November a year ago, will largely be in place. During his visit, Musk had stated that there should be a ravecave, a techno club, on site. “We are trying to find a suitable place that deserves this name.” That is, on the factory site.
