Tesla is planning to expand its factory in Grünheide, Germany, but the timing of the billion-euro investment remains uncertain as the company awaits an increase in sales. According to André Thierig, Plant Manager of the German Tesla factory, the expansion will proceed only when market demand signals are clear.
“We will not spend several billion on the expansion of the factory without the signals being very clear that the market will demand it,” Thierig said in an interview with the German press agency dpa. “We firmly believe that the market will pick up again. It’s certainly a question of how quickly and when.”
Tesla’s annual report for the second quarter of 2024 maintains an unchanged production capacity of 375,000 vehicles per year for Giga Berlin. The Brandenburg facility produces various versions of the Model Y, primarily for the European market. Thierig confirmed that right-hand drive models are now also being manufactured in Brandenburg, expanding the market to the UK and Ireland. “The fact that we now also serve the right-hand drive market in the UK and Ireland from Berlin means that we have a larger sales market that we can access directly,” he said. Thierig did not comment on rumors about exporting right-hand drive models to India.
While the facility has a production capacity of 375,000 vehicles, actual production is currently around 250,000 cars per year. Tesla aims to increase production to one million units annually in Grünheide, which will require expanding the current plant—a plan that has faced protests.
In May 2024, local councillors in Grünheide approved the construction of a railway freight depot on the site, which will expand by 118 hectares to the east, necessitating the clearance of 50 hectares of forest. The new depot will facilitate vehicle transport via rail, reducing reliance on trucks and significantly lowering traffic, according to the municipality. However, environmental organisations have raised concerns about the environmental impact, pointing to a February referendum in which 62.1% of participants voted against the expansion.
Two years after its commissioning, the Tesla factory has become a significant factor for local employment, with around 12,000 people currently working at Giga Berlin. Despite global job cuts announced in the spring, Grünheide saw only 400 jobs eliminated.
