Brexit Chaos Had an Impact on Tesla

Automaker chose Berlin over Britain for its new factory
By Evann Gastaldo,  Newser Staff
Posted Nov 13, 2019 1:19 PM CST
Brexit Chaos Had an Impact on Tesla
In this April 15, 2018, file photo, the sun shines off the rear deck of a roadster on a Tesla dealer's lot in the south Denver suburb of Littleton, Colo.   (AP Photo/David Zalubowski, File)

One consequence of Brexit: Tesla has chosen Berlin as the site of its first European factory. The UK was under consideration, but "Brexit made it too risky to put a Gigafactory in the UK," CEO Elon Musk told industry website Auto Express after making the announcement Tuesday night. Reuters reports that carmakers including Nissan have said that if Britain exits the EU without a transition deal, companies could face tariffs and business models could be threatened. "We need a Conservative government to get Brexit done with a deal and end the uncertainty," Britain's business minister said, acknowledging that investment is being delayed thanks to said uncertainty. The Tesla factory is expected to be a boon to Germany, creating thousands of jobs.

Musk made the announcement at an industry awards ceremony hosted by German tabloid Bild, the Guardian reports. "Some of the best cars in the world are made in Germany," he said. "Everyone knows that German engineering is outstanding, for sure, and that’s part of the reason why we are locating our gigafactory Europe in Germany. We are also going to create an engineering and design center in Berlin." This will be Tesla's fourth Gigafactory, CNBC reports. It will produce batteries and powertrains, and both Model 3 and Model Y vehicles will also be built there. Production is expected to begin in 2021. (More Tesla stories.)

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