Tesla has announced that it will close the Gigafactory Berlin for four days due to protests that are expected to take place. This situation follows other moments that, in the last quarter, led to an identical scenario and the reduction of production at the Gigafactory Berlin for serious reasons.
This seems to be just another situation like several that happened last quarter. The first was due to a fire set by environmentalists, and the last was due to supply chain issues related to the Red Sea conflict.
Although Tesla couldn't do much to avoid these situations, there were voices that suggested it was convenient for the company. Even without these situations, Tesla was reducing its production capacity due to falling sales.
Now, Tesla is again announcing the temporary closure of the Gigafactory Berlin. The reason is simple and is once again associated with the environmental groups that have protested against its expansion. These announced plans for protests at Tesla's Gigafactory Berlin this week.
Due to the announced multi-day protests against Tesla's expansion in Grünheide, the electric car manufacturer is sending all employees to work from home on Friday. Tesla shared this with its workforce in an email on Monday, which was made available to Handelsblatt. For vehicle production employees, Friday is considered bridge day.
In response to this situation, Tesla told employees not to come to the factory after the Wednesday night shift. The company revealed that it has been working with local authorities on the situation, but it is unclear whether it will have to close the factory due to authorities' concerns or whether it has decided to shut down production on its own.
The email sent to employees mentions that they will work from home, but many cannot perform their role at Gigafactory Berlin remotely, for obvious reasons. Tesla plans to restart production with the night shift on Sunday.
In this scenario, and with protests about to arrive, it is natural that production at Gigafactory Berlin is put on pause. The safety of employees and even the facilities themselves may be at stake, making this step logical.
Of course, other voices are arguing that this is another step by Tesla to slow down production. With sales decreasing in number, it is logical that you want to reduce production to have your stocks reduced to a minimum.
