First Tesla Cars Made in Berlin Hopefully in October, Says Elon Musk

As Tesla’s presence grows around the world, the company has had a few hold-ups trying to complete the construction of a production facility in Germany, though it has now reached the home stretch, according to a new statement from the company’s head.

In a recent visit to the currently under construction Grünheide factory, Tesla CEO Elon Musk said on Friday that he hopes Gigafactory Berlin will be making its first cars by October, according to Yahoo Finance. The news comes after months of regulatory approval delays from the German executive.

Musk made the visit to Germany to meet with German executives at Gigafactory Berlin’s site, in which he spoke with German Minister Armin Laschet, the conservative German candidate expected to succeed Angela Merkel as chancellor.

During the visit, which included a walk with Laschet through the Brandenburg-based facility, Musk said, “We’re looking forward to hopefully getting the approval to make the first cars maybe in October if we are fortunate.”

Musk also announced on Friday morning there will be a Giga Berlin-Brandenburg county fair and factory tour on October 9, with priority given to local residents first, “but also open to general public”.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lg1K00Kpkrc

Last month, German officials said that Gigafactory Berlin’s approval was expected to come in the fourth quarter. Rumors earlier this year held that the factory would start prototype production as soon as May, though the facility is just now preparing to produce its first production trials.