Tesla’s Gigafactory expansion in Germany delayed indefinitely (update)

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A vote on the expansion of Tesla’s Gigafactory in Germany has been delayed, according to German news portal RBB24.

The outlet cited the mayor of Grünheide, where the factory is located, as the source confirming the delay. The delay of the vote reverses course from June, when a municipal committee initially gave the expansion project a green light. For the time being, the vote on expansion has simply been removed from the committee agenda, with no timeline for the topic to be discussed again.

Despite the setback, Tesla (NASDAQ:TSLA) shares traded positively on Wednesday.

Update: Per the Wall Street Journal, Tesla (TSLA) sought to halt battery cell manufacturing plans in Germany order to qualify for tax credits in the United States. Citing “people familiar with the matter”, the paper said the Texas-based automaker is aiming to take advantage of clauses within the Inflation Reduction Act that it could qualify for if domestic battery production is increased.

Update 2: German economy minister Robert Habeck told Reuters he has "no information" on a change of plans for the Berlin Gigafactory on Tesla's end.

Read more on recently updated goals set for the Nevada Gigafactory.