According to a recent article published by Electrek, Tesla may still be facing delays related to officially opening its new factory in Berlin, Germany. The most recent reported problems have come down to environmental approval, which will come from the Brandenburg State Environment Ministry. However, the department is making an exception to allow Tesla to manufacture 2,000 Model Y bodies in the meantime.

Tesla has been up against a whole host of issues in Germany as it has been trying to successfully open its factory for some time now. Every time it seems final approval is coming, there's another setback, typically brought forward by environmental groups, which leads to more talks and less forward momentum. It's been sort of a continuous "filibuster" if you will.

In this most recent delay, environmental groups once again extended that time available for public talks on the impact of Tesla Giga Berlin. However, even after a few extensions and a rescheduling of the conversations, it appeared all came to an end in November of 2021. Following that, some reports suggested it was missing paperwork from Tesla that was needed to finalize the official opening process.

Tesla was already allowed to build 250 Model Y bodies for testing, which we've reported on multiple times. The latest approval adds another 2,000 Model Y bodies to the exception – or 500 per week for four weeks. Sadly, the bodies that Tesla makes during this time won't be approved for sale to customers. 

Based on information related to the special approvals, Tesla explained that it wasn't happy with the first 250 bodies, and it hopes to manufacture more ahead of opening. Electrek shared the following statement from Brandenburg after translating it from German to English:

"The applicant has explained in detail – and also plausibly for the approval authority – their technical necessity. Because the results of the ongoing system tests show that the necessary quality and production efficiencies in relation to the above-mentioned operating units have not yet been achieved. The parts and/or bodies manufactured or joined as part of the system tests have a poor quality that deviates significantly from the system specifications. It is also understandable for the authority that the system tests are those that represent the indispensable minimum for the respective test procedures with a view to the specific system (parts) to be tested."

See More Tesla Giga Berlin Coverage:

Tesla's Giga Berlin May Not Be Open, But It's Producing Model Ys

Tesla Submits All Documents Needed For Giga Berlin's Final Approval

Since there have already been reports from the German government that Tesla has submitted all paperwork, the factory could still open at any time. At this point, it's still a waiting game.

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