Germany investigating doable arson assault on Tesla plant | EUROtoday

In a letter posted on-line, the acute leftist Vulkangruppe (Volcano Group) claimed accountability for the suspected assault on Musk’s Gigafactory.

At Tesla’s ‘Gigafactory’ web site in Germany, Elon Musk comes up towards inexperienced activism and crimson tape

“We sabotaged Tesla,” the letter learn. It mentioned the assault was a “gift” for March 8 — International Women’s Day. The letter described the assault on the manufacturing facility and “technofascists” like Musk as a step towards “liberation from patriarchy.”

Authorities are checking the authenticity of the letter.

Musk tweeted that “these are either the dumbest eco-terrorists on Earth or they’re puppets of those who don’t have good environmental goals.”

Emergency providers have been known as within the early hours of Tuesday following studies of a burning electrical energy transmission tower near the location of the electrical automotive producer. Firefighters have been in a position to extinguish the blaze, however native residents have been with out electrical energy for a number of hours.

In an announcement, Tesla mentioned that the manufacturing services have been in a “safe state” and that staff have been despatched dwelling. The manufacturing cease pushed Tesla inventory into the crimson, nevertheless, with shares at a 2.5 p.c loss in premarket buying and selling on Wall Street.

Michael Stübgen, regional inside minister for the state of Brandenburg, warned of penalties if the suspicions of arson change into true.

“If the initial findings are confirmed, it will be a perfidious attack on our electricity infrastructure,” mentioned Stübgen. “This will have consequences. Thousands of people here have been cut off from basic services and put in danger.”

Tuesday’s blackout got here as Tesla assesses its plans to develop its solely European web site by 170 hectares (420 acres) and double manufacturing to as many as 1 million automobiles per 12 months.

The growth has been met with criticism from locals and environmentalists, nevertheless. Since Thursday, dozens of protesters have constructed treehouses and occupied a part of a forest that must be razed to make method for the mission. Local residents additionally rejected the plans in a nonbinding February poll.

The electrical carmaker, which started manufacturing on the web site in 2022 after an uphill two-year approval and development course of, isn’t any stranger to opposition within the space.

In 2021, the identical Volcano Group was suspected of finishing up an arson assault on the facility provide on the Tesla development web site. At the time, the group accused Tesla of not being environmentally aware.