Tesla got its water supply shut off at Gigafactory Berlin because they apparently didn’t pay their bill.
Several reports are coming of Germany stating that Tesla had to temporarily stop construction work at the site of Gigafactory Berlin due to water being shut off.
Heise reported (translated from German):
Tesla is temporarily unable to continue building its factory in Grünheide near Berlin. The Strausberg-Erkner water association turned off the water because Tesla did not pay the money, said association spokeswoman Sandra Ponesky on Thursday in Strausberg.
The water supply company said that it sent Tesla several warnings, but the company didn’t respond until they shut off the water. A water association spokesperson said that Tesla wouldn’t be treated differently.
On Wednesday, Tesla reportedly finally signed an official water supply contract for Gigafactory Berlin.
Locals initially expressed concern about water management at the project when it was first announced.
In response, Tesla changed its plan and cut water consumption to 1.4 million cubic meters a year for the first phase of the project.
Tesla has been moving at an extremely fast speed for the construction of the factory. Several massive buildings are already taking shape.
Tesla is planning to start production at the new factory in July 2021, and it needs to stick to a strict construction timeline in order to be ready in just 12 months. The start of production at the factory is also linked to the launch of the Model Y in Europe.
The automaker is also planning to produce its new 4680 battery cell at the location and use its new structural battery pack design to produce the European Model Y.
Electrek’s Take
That’s not surprising for Tesla at this point, and it highlights one of the company’s biggest problems: communications.
Obviously, it’s not a money problem. Tesla never had more money in the bank, but it does often let things slip things through the cracks.
It’s not clear how long it affected construction, but even if it just was just for a few hours, that was probably an extremely costly mistake.
Subscribe to Electrek on YouTube for exclusive videos and subscribe to the podcast.
Author: Fred Lambert
Source: Electrek
