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Tesla’s run-in with endangered bats could delay plans for Gigafactory 4
Tesla started clearing trees on the site where Gigafactory 4 will be built, and while there have been no World War II bombs discovered yet, CEO Elon Musk and his team might encounter an unlikely problem in the forest in Grunheide — endangered bat species that are currently hibernating.
Tesla promised to abide by the rules and the Gigafactory 4 environmental impact report details how the electric vehicle manufacturer plans to deal with trees, animals in the affected areas, among others. However, there’s a big issue with relocating the bats from the property in Brandenburg where the car factory will rise. There’s a species of endangered bats listed in the species protection law living in the forest and moving them to another location will not be that easy.
“The animals are in hibernation until the end of February and March. Then their mating season begins. Bats should not be disturbed during these phases,” said Christian Schröder, managing director of Nature Conservation Association (Nabu), a very active environmental group with around 18,000 members.
Tesla plans to start construction of the Gigafactory 4 in the first half of 2020 and it cannot avoid such delays if it wants to stick to its timeline. According to Schröder, there’s a work-around but Tesla must act quickly.
“In order to least disturb bats, they would have to be relocated to alternative areas during their hibernation. But this requires a special permit, which Tesla would also need,” Schröder said.
There’s more. Tesla must remove the trees by Feb. 27 or there will be another stumbling block since March is the time when birds in the said forest to breed. During that time, cutting and clearing trees are generally not permitted.
The authorities in Brandenburg have promised to exhaust all means within the legal framework to help the company.
Endangered bat species and breeding birds are not only the issues Tesla has to address before the factory construction can begin. Keen-eyed environmentalists are also taking note of actions to preserve the reptiles, wolves, deer, and wild boars, among others that will be displaced.
Tesla considered all issues and has started erecting the first reptile fences to isolate toads and other animals from the build site. It has also mapped locations for bird nests and forest ants to properly resettle.
With the mission to achieve sustainable transportation for humankind, Tesla is certainly doing well in the first stages of building the Gigafactory 4 in Brandenburg. Building a massive factory that will give jobs to around 8,000 individuals and produce electric vehicles that will help cut down emissions, it is much appreciated that it has been paying attention to the smallest of details and giving great importance even to the tiniest creatures such as the bats, birds, and forest ants in Grunheide.
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Armored Tesla Cybertruck “War Machine” debuts at Defense Expo 2025
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Tesla Megapacks chosen for 548 MWh energy storage project in Japan
Tesla plans to supply over 100 Megapack units to support a large stationary storage project in Japan, making it one of the country’s largest energy storage facilities.
Tesla’s Megapack grid-scale batteries have been selected to back an energy storage project in Japan, coming as the latest of the company’s continued deployment of the hardware.
As detailed in a report from Nikkei this week, Tesla plans to supply 142 Megapack units to support a 548 MWh storage project in Japan, set to become one of the country’s largest energy storage facilities. The project is being overseen by financial firm Orix, and it will be located at a facility Maibara in central Japan’s Shiga prefecture, and it aims to come online in early 2027.
The deal is just the latest of several Megapack deployments over the past few years, as the company continues to ramp production of the units. Tesla currently produces the Megapack at a facility in Lathrop, California, though the company also recently completed construction on its second so-called “Megafactory” in Shanghai China and is expected to begin production in the coming weeks.
READ MORE ON TESLA MEGAPACKS: Tesla Megapacks help power battery supplier Panasonic’s Kyoto test site
Tesla’s production of the Megapack has been ramping up at the Lathrop facility since initially opening in 2022, and both this site and the Shanghai Megafactory are aiming to eventually reach a volume production of 10,000 Megapack units per year. The company surpassed its 10,000th Megapack unit produced at Lathrop in November.
During Tesla’s Q4 earnings call last week, CEO Elon Musk also said that the company is looking to construct a third Megafactory, though he did not disclose where.
Last year, Tesla Energy also had record deployments of its Megapack and Powerwall home batteries with a total of 31.4 GWh of energy products deployed for a 114-percent increase from 2023.
Other recently deployed or announced Megapack projects include a massive 600 MW/1,600 MWh facility in Melbourne, a 75 MW/300 MWh energy storage site in Belgium, and a 228 MW/912 MWh storage project in Chile, along with many others still.
What are your thoughts? Let me know at zach@teslarati.com, find me on X at @zacharyvisconti, or send us tips at tips@teslarati.com.
Tesla highlights the Megapack site replacing Hawaii’s last coal plant
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Elon Musk responds to Ontario canceling $100M Starlink deal amid tariff drama
Ontario Premier Doug Ford said, opens new tab on February 3 that he was “ripping up” his province’s CA$100 million agreement with Starlink in response to the U.S. imposing tariffs on Canadian goods.
Elon Musk company SpaceX is set to lose a $100 million deal with the Canadian province of Ontario following a response to the Trump administration’s decision to apply 25 percent tariffs to the country.
Starlink, a satellite-based internet service launched by the Musk entity SpaceX, will lose a $100 million deal it had with Ontario, Premier Doug Ford announced today.
Starting today and until U.S. tariffs are removed, Ontario is banning American companies from provincial contracts.
Every year, the Ontario government and its agencies spend $30 billion on procurement, alongside our $200 billion plan to build Ontario. U.S.-based businesses will…
— Doug Ford (@fordnation) February 3, 2025
Ford said on X today that Ontario is banning American companies from provincial contracts:
“We’ll be ripping up the province’s contract with Starlink. Ontario won’t do business with people hellbent on destroying our economy. Canada didn’t start this fight with the U.S., but you better believe we’re ready to win it.”
It is a blow to the citizens of the province more than anything, as the Starlink internet constellation has provided people in rural areas across the globe stable and reliable access for several years.
Musk responded in simple terms, stating, “Oh well.”
Oh well https://t.co/1jpMu55T6s
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 3, 2025
It seems Musk is less than enthused about the fact that Starlink is being eliminated from the province, but it does not seem like all that big of a blow either.
As previously mentioned, this impacts citizens more than Starlink itself, which has established itself as a main player in reliable internet access. Starlink has signed several contracts with various airlines and maritime companies.
It is also expanding to new territories across the globe on an almost daily basis.
With Mexico already working to avoid the tariff situation with the United States, it will be interesting to see if Canada does the same.
The two have shared a pleasant relationship, but President Trump is putting his foot down in terms of what comes across the border, which could impact Americans in the short term.
Armored Tesla Cybertruck “War Machine” debuts at Defense Expo 2025
Tesla Megapacks chosen for 548 MWh energy storage project in Japan
