Tesla presents plans to further expand Giga Berlin

Tesla has announced new plans to expand the plant in Grünheide, Germany, by 100 hectares at an event at the weekend. A train station as well as logistics and storage areas are to be built there in order to keep significantly more parts in stock on site than before.

Tesla had already initiated the expansion process in May 2022. At that time, an application was submitted with a development plan process for the 100 hectares. The new logistics areas shall not only expand the infrastructure on-site, but also simplify it. Twelve pairs of trains per day will transport finished cars and deliver components. The company also wants a training centre and a kindergarten.

Tesla also announced that from spring 2023 a new shuttle train would run from Erkner directly to the factory site – up to 40 times a day, with 400 passengers per train. The rail line financed by Tesla (550 metres of the new track) shall relieve the existing local train network. The company also informed about plans to save water; aiming to use so-called process water, Tesla aims to install a closed cycle.

The carmaker also said, that in times of global supply chain problems and because of the Ukraine war, the car industry’s classic “just-in-time logistics” were no longer possible, so additional logistics and storage space are needed. Still, the company planned the expansion with its own freight station before the Russian invasion of Ukraine. However, Tesla now seems to assume that the supply chains will remain volatile.

#GigaBerlinBrandenburg pic.twitter.com/sKe6t8rm9b

— Gigafactory Berlin News (@Gf4Tesla) September 11, 2022

In order for Tesla to implement the plans, an amendment to the development plan is necessary. According to a report, the Grünheide municipal council will decide on 29 September, i.e. in about two and a half weeks. A first vote, planned after the application in May, was cancelled at that time. Teslamag, on the other hand, reports that Grünheide’s mayor Arne Christiani, who attended the info event in Hangelsberg on Sunday, does not expect a vote this month.

It is unclear when Tesla will start producing batteries in Grünheide – supposedly it will be “soon” yet at the moment work is still going on. Regarding vehicle production, we expect an official announcement shortly that the 2,000 Model Y per week mark has been exceeded. As reported, Tesla plans to introduce a third shift in Grünheide before the end of the year.

tagesspiegel.de, teslamag.de  (both in German)