BERLIN — Tesla still plans to produce batteries in Germany, but the company is prioritizing the U.S. because of the prospect of tax incentives.
Tesla has paused plans for a 50 gigawatt-hour battery factory next to its car assembly plant in Gruenheide, near Berlin, while it looks into tapping into tax credits that will be offered to automakers who produce EV components, such as batteries, in North America, the Wall Street Journal reported earlier this month.
The U.S. electric-car maker has told local politicians that it still intends to open a battery factory in Gruenheide but it now aims to ramp up battery production in Austin, Texas, faster than planned.
This could be supported by using German engineers and German-built components, Automotive News Europe sister publication Automobilwoche reported.
Tesla confirmed that its plans to open a battery plant in Gruenheide are unchanged, the district’s mayor, Arne Cristiani, told Reuters on Monday.
“Tesla put everything reported in the American newspaper into perspective. The plant is still being built,” Cristiani said, referring to the Journal report.
Reuters contributed to this report