Tesla's operations at its European Gigafactory in Berlin, Germany, came to a halt yesterday following a suspected arson attack on a nearby electrical transformer. The incident, reported by the German publication BZ, led to the factory's evacuation and subsequent power loss, affecting not only Tesla but also causing power outages in parts of Berlin and towns in Brandenburg.

The transformer fire occurred at 4:50 am CET, resulting in Tesla's factory losing power an hour before the start of its scheduled shift. As a consequence, several companies based at the industrial estate adjacent to the Tesla factory also had to suspend their operations. Fortunately, the fire did not spread to the Tesla facility itself, but the outage has forced production to halt until further notice.

The outage is expected to cost Tesla significant losses, with an estimated high hundred million euros and around 1,000 vehicles left unfinished on Tuesday alone. While Tesla officials remain noncommittal about the incident affecting their plans to double the factory's capacity, the suspected arson attack has drawn condemnation from various quarters, with Brandenburg's economy minister describing it as having "terrorist markings" affecting tens of thousands of people.

Emergency services managed to extinguish the blaze, and power to the affected communities has mostly been restored. However, investigations are ongoing, with police looking into a letter purportedly from a far-left activist group called the Volcano Group claiming responsibility for the incident. Meanwhile, Tesla's ambitions to expand its plant face challenges from environmental protests, complicating its path towards dominating the European market.

Source: reuters.com