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Tesla factory in Brandenburg: around 500,000 cars are expected to be built here every year
Photo: Patrick Pleul / dpa
The Frankfurt (Oder) administrative court has rejected an urgent application from the Green League and Nabu against the construction of the Tesla factory in Grünheide.
The nature conservation associations had turned against a premature partial approval of the Gigafactory in Brandenburg.
However, the Frankfurt (Oder) administrative court rejected the application, as stated in a message.
The challenged pre-approval concerns tests of the functionality of systems in the paint shop, foundry and body shop.
In addition, the installation of tanks for wastewater treatment and the refueling system has been approved in advance.
The US company Tesla wants to produce around 500,000 cars of the compact Model 3 and Model Y series in Grünheide every year.
The final environmental permit is missing for the construction.
Tesla is therefore building with early approvals.
The timing of the final decision is unclear.
Court: Actual dangerous situation not to be expected
The function tests attacked by the environmental associations were not a trial run, the Ministry of the Environment had declared.
In the function tests, only small amounts of substances that are hazardous to water and significant in the event of an accident are used, it said.
Therefore, the knowledge gained from the incident report submitted would not conflict with this decision.
The court saw it the same way.
In its reasoning, the court stated that it was not evident that the function tests, which were limited in time, would pose a risk within the meaning of the Hazardous Incident Ordinance, which could no longer be accepted in the general interest.
The scope of the approval by the State Office for the Environment (LfU) only includes the short-term commissioning of individual system parts for test purposes and specifically no regular operational activities.
An actual risk situation due to significant and irreversible disadvantages for the environment, mainly in the form of harmful emissions, is not to be expected with regard to the trial operation of the plant components.
The conservationists can appeal against the decision to the Higher Administrative Court of Berlin-Brandenburg (OVG).
apr / dpa