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Elon Musk in Grünheide: Looking for 7000 employees
Photo: Sebastian Gabsch / imago images / Future Image
Tesla's new gigafactory is being built south of Berlin, and company boss Elon Musk is now paying a spontaneous visit to the construction site in Grünheide.
According to the Reuters news agency, he has already landed in a private jet at the recently opened BER airport.
Musk said on Twitter that he would personally interview people interested in engineering positions in the new factory on Friday.
He asked applicants to send him their documents by email.
In an interview with the "Berliner Zeitung", the head of the employment agency in Frankfurt an der Oder was confident that Tesla would be able to hire the 7,000 employees necessary to start car production in good time.
Jochem Freyer told the newspaper that the company was ready to take on career changers and further qualify them at the plant.
The starting wage at Tesla is around 2700 euros gross per month.
Musk: "Germany rocks"
The head of the company was already at the construction site for the topping-out ceremony at the beginning of September.
He examined the progress of the construction work - and said: "Germany rocks".
Although the gigafactory is taking on more shape every day, there has been no final building permit yet.
But Tesla is building with several preliminary approvals for individual construction steps.
Just recently, critics took eight days to request information about the construction plans and their effects on the water supply, flora and fauna, noise pollution and much more.
The objections are currently being examined, said the spokeswoman for the Brandenburg Ministry of the Environment, Frauke Zelt.
When a decision will be made is still unclear.
That means Tesla continues to build "at your own risk".
In October, the site hit the headlines because of unpaid water bills.
The Strausberg-Erkner water association then turned off the water on the construction site.
Most recently, the world's largest electric car manufacturer in Germany made headlines with the publication of its quarterly figures.
Not only was the profit doubling, but also the reference to a possible fine of twelve million euros in connection with the return of batteries.
The Americans have objected to this.
The responsible Federal Environment Agency confirmed that there is an ongoing procedure.
The US electric car manufacturer's production in Grünheide is scheduled to start as early as July 2021;
Up to 500,000 electric cars are expected to roll off the assembly line there every year.
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apr / AFP / Reuters