As of: March 5, 2024, 5:22 p.m
Comments
Press
Split
A power generator runs on a door at the Tesla Gigafactory.
© Sebastian Gollnow/dpa
Car manufacturer Tesla has been producing electric vehicles in Grünheide near Berlin for almost two years.
Now a power pole is burning, causing a power outage - with far-reaching consequences for Elon Musk's factory.
Grünheide - A suspected attack paralyzed the only Tesla car factory in Europe with a power outage.
The police assume arson and are examining a letter of responsibility.
Elon Musk's company is suspending production for at least this week.
The “Vulcan group,” which is classified as left-wing extremist, announced on Tuesday: “We sabotaged Tesla today.” In an email, the group accused Tesla of “extreme conditions of exploitation” and called for the “complete destruction of the Gigafactory.”
The fire of an electricity pylon near the factory in Grünheide near Berlin, which led to the cessation of production at the Tesla factory and a power outage for tens of thousands of residents in the region, caused horror right up to the federal government.
Production in Tesla boss Elon Musk's factory is temporarily at a standstill after the power outage.
It was evacuated early in the morning.
The company expects economic damage in the “high nine-figure range”.
“We are deeply shocked by what happened today,” said factory manager André Thierig at a press conference in front of the factory in Grünheide.
He spoke of two other attacks in the area in recent years.
“We are currently not expecting that we will be able to ramp up production again this week.” He assumed that over 1,000 cars were lost in production on Tuesday alone.
“We are prepared for such cases, but if the entire power line is interrupted, there are no plans to prevent it.”
Tesla boss Elon Musk reacted angrily to the production stop at his factory.
“These are either the stupidest eco-terrorists in the world or they are puppets of those who do not have good environmental goals,” Musk wrote on Tuesday in English on the X portal (formerly Twitter).
“Stopping the production of electric vehicles instead of fossil fuel vehicles is extremely stupid.” The Tesla boss wrote the words “extremely stupid” in German.
The federal government sharply criticizes the alleged attack
Federal Interior Minister Nancy Faeser (SPD) condemned the alleged arson attack.
“Such an attack on our electricity infrastructure is a serious crime that cannot be justified by anything,” said Faeser in Berlin.
“If a left-wing extremist motive is confirmed, then that is further evidence that the left-wing extremist scene does not shy away from attacks on critical energy infrastructure.” This could affect thousands of uninvolved people.
Federal Minister of Economics Robert Habeck called for rapid clarification and punishment.
“Violence and sabotage must not be a means of conflict,” said the Green politician.
According to the Interior Ministry, unknown perpetrators set fire to a high-voltage pylon near Steinfurt, a district of Gosen-Neu Zittau in eastern Brandenburg, early on Tuesday morning.
The police were informed about the fire at around 5:15 a.m.
The Firefighters put out the fire.
The electricity pylon was standing freely in a field and was not fenced in.
The police were deployed with helicopter squadrons, drone squadrons, operational units and service dogs, among other things.
The power supply to the surrounding communities has been running again since late Tuesday morning - with the exception of the Tesla factory and a logistics center, as utility Edis announced.
The State Security Office of the State Criminal Police Office began the investigation.
Left-wing extremist group is already known
“We have received knowledge of a letter of responsibility that we are currently examining,” said a police spokeswoman.
The authenticity is being checked.
The “Vulkangruppe”, classified as left-wing extremist and claiming responsibility for an “attack on the electricity supply” as a protest, is known to the Office for the Protection of the Constitution.
She was already suspected of carrying out an arson attack on the power supply at the Tesla construction site in 2021.
The Brandenburg Office for the Protection of the Constitution wrote about the confession letter in its 2021 report.
It also said: “In recent years, left-wing extremists have carried out arson attacks in Berlin as “volcano groups” several times.”
My news
Coalition factions: plans for constitutional loyalty check reading
Left-wing extremist group claims responsibility for Tesla attack
After fire at electricity pylon: Tesla area supplied again read
1 hour ago
Faeser condemns the alleged attack on the electricity supply system
1 hour ago
Tesla after attack on electricity: nine-digit damage amount read
57 mins ago
Standstill at Tesla after power outage: arson attack?read
Resistance to Tesla is growing
This year, Tesla not only had to shut down production for almost two weeks due to the uncertain situation in the Red Sea and missing parts.
In a citizen survey in Grünheide, a clear majority voted against the planned expansion of the company premises, which would require clearing the forest.
Since Thursday, around 80 to 100 environmental activists have been occupying part of the state forest near the factory, which Tesla plans to clear if its site is expanded.
Brandenburg's Prime Minister Dietmar Woidke (SPD) warned of a form of terrorism and sees the economy in danger.
“If the background is really to cause damage to a business company - namely Tesla - then of course it also has consequences for the entire economy in Germany,” said Woidke in Potsdam.
The alleged attack on the electricity infrastructure was “an unacceptable act of violence”.
Economics Minister Jörg Steinbach (SPD) demonstratively stood in front of Tesla and condemned the alleged arson attack.
“Those who carried out this attack accepted that people would be injured as a result,” he said.
“I think this is a new quality that we have here.” Interior Minister Michael Stübgen (CDU) spoke of a perfidious attack on the electricity infrastructure if the initial findings are confirmed.
“This will have consequences.
Here, thousands of people were cut off from basic services and put in danger.”
Environmental activists protesting in a forest near the factory against the planned expansion of the Tesla site denied any connection with the alleged attack.
“We oppose the expansion of the factory with our bodies and tree houses.
“We are not putting any lives at risk,” said the Teslastoppen initiative.
You have to expect eviction: The state government is checking whether it will reassess the protest camp.
“That can also mean the end of toleration,” said Steinbach.
The Association for Nature and Landscape in Brandenburg - the citizens' initiative against Tesla - distanced itself from the alleged attack: "This attack damages our work."
The Tesla Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg plant.
© Patrick Pleul/dpa
Tesla has been manufacturing electric cars in Grünheide for almost two years.
According to the company, around 12,500 employees work there.
Environmentalists criticize, among other things, the fact that the site is in a water protection area.
Tesla also wants to expand production from the planned 500,000 cars per year to one million.
dpa