Substation blown up

Arson attack on Tesla: factory paralyzed

Unknown persons have paralyzed the Tesla Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg with an arson attack. A substation near the factory was apparently blown up. After a loud bang around an hour before the start of the shift, the power went out not only in the huge factory, but also in the small town of Erkner and parts of Berlin. The factory had to be evacuated.

The Steinfurt substation near the Tesla factory was set on fire by a loud bang shortly before 5 a.m., as "Bild" reported. "The nearby small town of Erkner (12,000 inhabitants) and parts of Berlin have also been without power since then," the responsible control center told the paper. 

Warning about tent: "Explosive ordnance buried here!"
Three volunteer fire departments, employees of the electricity supplier and the police were deployed to repair the damage when a tent was discovered near the burning transformer. This proclaimed "Explosive ordnance buried here!" Specialists from the Brandenburg Explosive Ordnance Disposal Service were called out. The other emergency services had to clear the site of the fire.

More than 12,000 employees work at the mega-factory in Grünheide near Berlin.(Bild: dpa-Zentralbild/Patrick Pleul)

Damage due to failure can quickly cost millions
The bomb experts now have to search the scene thoroughly before the emergency services can return. However, this could take hours, according to Bild. The machines at the Tesla plant are also at a standstill for this long. The company recently announced that a production stoppage causes millions in damage per day.

Pictures of the protest camp in the occupied forest:

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The car manufacturer's expansion plans for its plant in Grünheide near Berlin have long since attracted the attention of environmental activists. They have entrenched themselves in dozens of tree houses and tents in a forest that is to be cleared for the expansion of the factory. The activists are tolerated by the police under strict conditions until mid-March. Lighting fires and leaving garbage behind is prohibited. It is not known whether the activists from the forest occupation are responsible for the current arson attack.