Tesla Inc halted production at its German factory yesterday after high-voltage lines supplying the carmaker’s only European plant were set on fire in an act of “sabotage” claimed by a far-left group.
Emergency services were called in the early hours yesterday to reports of a burning electricity pylon southeast of Berlin, close to the Tesla plant.
The blaze was extinguished but damage to the lines knocked out power to the factory, as well as surrounding villages.
Photo: Reuters
After police said they had launched an investigation into suspected arson the act was claimed by far-left activists from the so-called Vulkangruppe (Volcano Group).
“With our sabotage, we have set ourselves the goal of achieving the biggest possible blackout of the Gigafactory,” the group said in a statement posted on a far-left Web site.
The group highlighted concerns about the environmental impact of the plant and the local water supply.
“We feel connected to all the people who won’t let Tesla turn the tap off,” the group said.
Michael Stuebgen, interior minister for Brandenburg state, said that if arson was confirmed, it would be “a perfidious attack on our electricity infrastructure.”
“Thousands of people have been cut off from their basic supply and put in danger. The rule of law will react to such an act of sabotage with the utmost severity.”
Tesla said the production facilities at the Gruenheide plant were in a “safe state” after the shutdown, and workers had been sent home.
“We are in close contact with the authorities and of course (electricity supplier) Edis. We are currently unable to say when production can be expected to resume,” the company said in a statement.
The power outage is the latest problem to hit the factory. In January, most production was halted at the site for two weeks due to a shortage of parts following shipping delays caused by Yemeni rebel attacks in the Red Sea, a vital trade route.
Tesla’s German plant started production in 2022 following an arduous two-year approval and construction process dogged by administrative and legal obstacles.
Tesla wants to expand the site by 170 hectares (420 acres) and boost production up to one million vehicles annually to feed Europe’s growing demand for electric cars and take on rivals who are shifting away from combustion engine vehicles.
But the plans have annoyed local residents, who voted against the project in a non-binding ballot last month.
After the vote, Tesla said it might have to rethink the plans.
“We recognize that the citizens of Gruenheide have concerns in connection with the planned expansion of the site,” the company said.
Environmental activists opposed to the expansion of the factory run by Elon Musk’s company recently set up a camp in a wooded area near the plant.
Protestors at the forest camp, situated in an area of forest that the carmaker will have to raze if the expansion goes ahead, share many of the locals’ objections to the factory.
As well as deforestation, the activists say there is a threat to local drinking water supplies.
Stop Tesla, the group behind the protest camp, said yesterday it had “no information” about the cause of the fire and shared its “solidarity with the workers at Tesla and the local residents.”
Real estate agent and property developer JSL Construction & Development Co (愛山林) led the average compensation rankings among companies listed on the Taiwan Stock Exchange (TWSE) last year, while contract chipmaker Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) finished 14th. JSL Construction paid its employees total average compensation of NT$4.78 million (US$159,701), down 13.5 percent from a year earlier, but still ahead of the most profitable listed tech giants, including TSMC, TWSE data showed. Last year, the average compensation (which includes salary, overtime, bonuses and allowances) paid by TSMC rose 21.6 percent to reach about NT$3.33 million, lifting its ranking by 10 notches
Popular vape brands such as Geek Bar might get more expensive in the US — if you can find them at all. Shipments of vapes from China to the US ground to a near halt last month from a year ago, official data showed, hit by US President Donald Trump’s tariffs and a crackdown on unauthorized e-cigarettes in the world’s biggest market for smoking alternatives. That includes Geek Bar, a brand of flavored vapes that is not authorized to sell in the US, but which had been widely available due to porous import controls. One retailer, who asked not to be named, because
SEASONAL WEAKNESS: The combined revenue of the top 10 foundries fell 5.4%, but rush orders and China’s subsidies partially offset slowing demand Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) further solidified its dominance in the global wafer foundry business in the first quarter of this year, remaining far ahead of its closest rival, Samsung Electronics Co, TrendForce Corp (集邦科技) said yesterday. TSMC posted US$25.52 billion in sales in the January-to-March period, down 5 percent from the previous quarter, but its market share rose from 67.1 percent the previous quarter to 67.6 percent, TrendForce said in a report. While smartphone-related wafer shipments declined in the first quarter due to seasonal factors, solid demand for artificial intelligence (AI) and high-performance computing (HPC) devices and urgent TV-related orders
MINERAL DIPLOMACY: The Chinese commerce ministry said it approved applications for the export of rare earths in a move that could help ease US-China trade tensions Chinese Vice Premier He Lifeng (何立峰) is today to meet a US delegation for talks in the UK, Beijing announced on Saturday amid a fragile truce in the trade dispute between the two powers. He is to visit the UK from yesterday to Friday at the invitation of the British government, the Chinese Ministry of Foreign Affairs said in a statement. He and US representatives are to cochair the first meeting of the US-China economic and trade consultation mechanism, it said. US President Donald Trump on Friday announced that a new round of trade talks with China would start in London beginning today,
RSS