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Grünheide Mayor shares update on Tesla Giga Berlin’s proposed expansion plan
Grünheide Mayor Arne Christiani has written a letter outlining an updated proposal for Tesla Giga Berlin’s planned expansion. The new proposal would involve Tesla cutting significantly fewer trees than initially intended, among other things. The proposal comes after the residents of Grünheide voted to deny Tesla’s request to clear out another 100 hectares of monoculture forest from the area.
Giga Berlin’s forest clearing activities have attracted criticism since the facility’s earliest days. More recently, anti-Tesla protesters have even gone so far as to build treehouses to show their defiance of the EV maker’s tree-clearing plans. What has been lost over the years, however, is the fact that the trees in the Giga Berlin complex are not a natural forest. Instead, it is a tree farm that’s originally intended to be used for cardboard, as noted by Elon Musk back in 2020.
Giga Berlin / GF4 will absolutely be designed with sustainability and the environment in mind— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 25, 2020
Despite this, Tesla’s tree-clearing activities have remained controversial. This came to a head recently when Grünheide residents were asked to vote for or against Giga Berlin’s planned expansion, which would, unsurprisingly, involve more of the monoculture forest being cut down. Ultimately, residents decided to vote against the EV maker’s plans. But in his letter, Grünheide Mayor Christiani noted that Tesla could adjust its plans so that less of the tree farm would be cut down.
Following is a translated version of the Grünheide Mayor’s letter.
After the vote of the citizens of #Grünheide against clearing another 100 ha at #GigaBerlin, a new sketch for an adjusted development plan has been published.
This would make all planned infrastructure projects possible, while saving 70 ha of forest.https://t.co/ID3FDn5z0n pic.twitter.com/0A7g611MsI— Tobias Lindh (@tobilindh) March 14, 2024
Dear residents,
Dear municipal representatives,
First of all, I would like to thank you all for the high level of participation in the residents’ survey.
The result of the residents’ survey on the submitted B-Plan No. 60 was clear to us, and we respect the opinions expressed.
Why is B-Plan No. 60 so important?
In my view, B-Plan No. 60 is urgently needed, as otherwise, the necessary transport infrastructure projects cannot be implemented in the foreseeable future, which would have considerable negative consequences for our community and the environment.
What has been adapted?
1. Preservation of 70.3 ha of Forest
The primary planning objective is to preserve as much of the forest as possible on the area covered by development Plan No. 60. To this end, around 47 ha, which was originally planned as industrial land, is now designated as forest land. In addition to further forest areas, which are secured by a planting commitment, a total of around 70.3 ha of forest will now be preserved. The adjusted planning is thus intended to take account of your wishes and ensure that the forest is preserved as far as possible under planning law.
2. State Roads and Goods Station
The existing traffic infrastructure cannot cope with the foreseeable volume of traffic. The other primary planning objectives are the creation of a planning law for the adapted and optimized planning of the state roads L 386 (as a relief for the existing L 38) and L 23, as well as for the possible realization of a company-owned goods station. This freight depot is the necessary prerequisite for the fact that significant volumes of traffic can be handled by rail, which will considerably reduce the volume of traffic on the roads in our districts.
Contrary to the frequent assertion that the construction of a freight station would also be possible on the existing site of the electric car manufacturer, it must be said that this is not possible due to the relocation of a Deutsche Bahn switch to the east and therefore due to technical railroad requirements. This also requires an adjustment to the planning for the L 386 already established in B-Plan No. 13, 1st amendment.
The original intention of the planning to significantly expand the operational area for the Gigafactory is now reduced to a small extent and only made possible to the extent that the connection of the factory premises to the L 386 can take place.
Another frequently voiced assertion that the establishment of development Plan no. 60 was intended to create a prerequisite for increasing production capacities must also be rejected! This was never the aim of the planning! It was merely a matter of creating additional storage and logistics space as well as the possibility of accommodating employee-related facilities. The latter facilities have now been completely omitted. Areas for storage and logistics will be significantly reduced in size.
The public and authorities will be consulted again on the amended draft of B-Plan No. 60 from 21.03.2024 to 04.04.2024 in accordance with Section 4a (3) BauGB.
For you and our municipality of Grünheide (Mark).
Arne Christiani
Mayor
Below are the updated plans for Tesla Giga Berlin’s proposed expansion.
Entwurf BPlan Gemeinde Gr Nheide Mark by Simon Alvarez on Scribd
Mayor Christiani’s letter can be viewed below.
Erkl Rung B Plan Gem.gr Nheide Mark by Simon Alvarez on Scribd
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Tesla has made two big interior changes to several Model Y vehicles in its lineup, and the changes come just as the new model year begins production.
Last year, Tesla launched the Model Y Standard, which separated the previous models into the “Premium” category. The Standard vehicles lack several features, including more premium interior materials, acoustic-lined glass, and storage.
@teslarati There are some BIG differences between the Tesla Model Y Standard and Tesla Model Y Premium #tesla #teslamodely ♬ Sia – Xeptemper
The Model Y “Premium” trims are now getting several new upgrades, which come after the company launched a seven-seat configuration of the vehicle last night in the North American market for an upcharge of $2,500.
The new Model Y seven-seat configuration did not come with just an additional row of seating; it also came with a slew of other goodies that now come standard and were previously only available on the Model Y Performance, which was launched late last year.
All Black Headliner
The new Tesla Model Y Premium trims will now come standard with a black headliner, something that many owners have been requesting for some time.
The previous grey headliner and trim within the vehicle is now gone; it will be all black on all of the Premium trims from here on out, a welcome change:
Credit: Tesla
Larger and Higher Resolution Center Touchscreen
The center touchscreen in the new Model Y Premium configuration is now larger and has a higher resolution than the previous version.
In last year’s Model Y configurations (apart from the Performance), the center touchscreen was 15.4″. Now, Tesla has decided to go with the 16″ version across all Premium trims, which is a nice step up. It was nice to see this in the Performance, but it is really great to see Tesla include this in the Model Y’s more Premium trim levels.
Tesla Model Y Seven Seater
Tesla launched the latest iteration of the seven-seater for the Model Y on Monday night. Traditionally, the Model Y seats five passengers in total, but there were calls for a more spacious version several years ago.
Tesla released it, but it was extremely tight in the back, basically reserving those back seats for only small people or children.
Credit: Tesla
The new configuration looks to be slightly more spacious in the third row, but not as much space as most would require or want. Instead,
Elon Musk
Lufthansa Group to equip Starlink on its 850-aircraft fleet
Under the collaboration, Lufthansa Group will install Starlink technology on both its existing fleet and all newly delivered aircraft, as noted by the group in a press release.
Lufthansa Group has announced a partnership with Starlink that will bring high-speed internet connectivity to every aircraft across all its carriers.
This means that aircraft across the group’s brands, from Lufthansa, SWISS, and Austrian Airlines to Brussels Airlines, would be able to enjoy high-speed internet access using the industry-leading satellite internet solution.
Starlink in-flight internet
Under the collaboration, Lufthansa Group will install Starlink technology on both its existing fleet and all newly delivered aircraft, as noted by the group in a press release.
Starlink’s low-Earth orbit satellites are expected to provide significantly higher bandwidth and lower latency than traditional in-flight Wi-Fi, which should enable streaming, online work, and other data-intensive applications for passengers during flights.
Starlink-powered internet is expected to be available on the first commercial flights as early as the second half of 2026. The rollout will continue through the decade, with the entire Lufthansa Group fleet scheduled to be fully equipped with Starlink by 2029. Once complete, no other European airline group will operate more Starlink-connected aircraft.
Free high-speed access
As part of the initiative, Lufthansa Group will offer the new high-speed internet free of charge to all status customers and Travel ID users, regardless of cabin class. Chief Commercial Officer Dieter Vranckx shared his expectations for the program.
“In our anniversary year, in which we are celebrating Lufthansa’s 100th birthday, we have decided to introduce a new high-speed internet solution from Starlink for all our airlines. The Lufthansa Group is taking the next step and setting an essential milestone for the premium travel experience of our customers.
“Connectivity on board plays an important role today, and with Starlink, we are not only investing in the best product on the market, but also in the satisfaction of our passengers,” Vranckx said.
Elon Musk
Tesla locks in Elon Musk’s top problem solver as it enters its most ambitious era
The generous equity award was disclosed by the electric vehicle maker in a recent regulatory filing.
Tesla has granted Senior Vice President of Automotive Tom Zhu more than 520,000 stock options, tying a significant portion of his compensation to the company’s long-term performance.
The generous equity award was disclosed by the electric vehicle maker in a recent regulatory filing.
Tesla secures top talent
According to a Form 4 filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, Tom Zhu received 520,021 stock options with an exercise price of $435.80 per share. Since the award will not fully vest until March 5, 2031, Zhu must remain at Tesla for more than five years to realize the award’s full benefit.
Considering that Tesla shares are currently trading at around the $445 to $450 per share level, Zhu will really only see gains in his equity award if Tesla’s stock price sees a notable rise over the years, as noted in a Sina Finance report.
Still, even at today’s prices, Zhu’s stock award is already worth over $230 million. If Tesla reaches the market cap targets set forth in Elon Musk’s 2025 CEO Performance Award, Zhu would become a billionaire from this equity award alone.
Tesla’s problem solver
Zhu joined Tesla in April 2014 and initially led the company’s Supercharger rollout in China. Later that year, he assumed the leadership of Tesla’s China business, where he played a central role in Tesla’s localization efforts, including expanding retail and service networks, and later, overseeing the development of Gigafactory Shanghai.
Zhu’s efforts helped transform China into one of Tesla’s most important markets and production hubs. In 2023, Tesla promoted Zhu to Senior Vice President of Automotive, placing him among the company’s core global executives and expanding his influence beyond China. He has since garnered a reputation as the company’s problem solver, being tapped by Elon Musk to help ramp Giga Texas’s vehicle production.
With this in mind, Tesla’s recent filing seems to suggest that the company is locking in its top talent as it enters its newest, most ambitious era to date. As could be seen in the targets of Elon Musk’s 2025 pay package, Tesla is now aiming to be the world’s largest company by market cap, and it is aiming to achieve production levels that are unheard of. Zhu’s talents would definitely be of use in this stage of the company’s growth.
Tesla makes two big interior changes to several Model Y vehicles
Lufthansa Group to equip Starlink on its 850-aircraft fleet
