Jakarta –
Elon Musk’s super-large electric car factory, Tesla Gigafactory, in Grünheide near Berlin was evacuated on Tuesday (05/03) following a massive power outage incident.
The left-wing extremist Volcano Group said it was responsible for the attack on the power grid that supplies the automaker.
“We sabotaged Tesla today,” said a statement from Volcano Group, citing “an attack on the power supply.”
On Tuesday evening, police said they were aware of the letter from Volcano Group and were checking its authenticity. This check will take several days.
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Police previously said they were investigating initial suspicions of arson after a power pole caught fire.
The Minister of the Interior of the State of Brandenburg, Michael Stübgen (CDU), spoke about “dangerous attacks” on the electricity infrastructure. Unknown people had set fire to a high-voltage electricity pole between Steinfurt and Hartmannsdorf on Tuesday morning, the ministry said.
What is Elon Musk’s response?
Environmental activists had protested plans to expand the factory last week and said they planned to occupy nearby forests for a week. The factory is the only factory run by billionaire Elon Musk’s electric vehicle company in Europe.
“Stopping production of electric vehicles, rather than fossil fuel vehicles, is incredibly stupid,” Musk wrote on the X social media platform he owns. The Tesla boss uses German for “very stupid.”
German Economy Minister Robert Habeck responded to the incident by saying: “An attack on electricity supplies is an attack on our critical infrastructure. It must be investigated and punished quickly. Violence and sabotage must never be used in conflict.”
Meanwhile Berlin’s Stromnetz electricity operator said there were also power outages in the Berlin districts of Müggelheim, Rahnsdorf and parts of Neukölln. About 2,000 households were affected.
It is estimated that electricity supply will not return to normal
Tesla says all measures have been taken to secure their production facilities. However, after consulting with electricity provider EDIS, Tesla does not expect production to restart immediately.
The local fire department was called at around 05:15 Berlin time and began extinguishing the fire on the electricity pole. A police helicopter was also deployed after the alarm was raised.
A police spokesman previously said he could not comment on a report in the Berliner Zeitung newspaper that said the fire was set by activists.
The spokesman added that a bomb disposal unit had been called in after emergency services found a sign saying “weapons buried here.”
Tesla’s factory expansion is opposed
The car manufacturer intends to expand the factory, which currently has a production capacity of around 500,000 cars per year. This plan was opposed by local residents who did not agree with cutting down trees in the surrounding forest to expand the factory.
Tesla wants to double its site capacity to 100 gigawatt hours of battery production and one million cars per year. If this plan is realized, Tesla has the potential to become a major player in the European car market.
The existing production facility has been experiencing problems even before it opens in 2022. Local residents are concerned about the amount of water needed and the slow progress of construction.
ae/hp (dpa, Reuters)
(ita/ita)
2024-03-06 11:25:37
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