Climate activists are targeting the Gigafactory in Berlin Friday owned by electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla Inc TSLA. The factory was shut down in a precautionary measure ahead of the event.
Here's the latest.
What Happened: A planned expansion by Tesla in Germany is facing pushback from residents over concerns of eliminating portions of nearby forests.
On Friday, climate activists protested at the Tesla factory, with some trying to break into the property, according to local police.
"The situation is dynamic," a police spokesperson told CNBC.
The police said there were multiple roadblocks in the area near the factory.
"Multiple unauthorized people are trying to enter the ground of the Tesla factory," a tweet from Brandenburg police reads. "We are in the process of preventing this."
Protestors began setting up camp near the factory on Monday, according to the CNBC report.
An airfield in nearby Neuhardenberg was also targeted with protestors, which included the lighting of pyrotechnics and blocking access roads.
Multiple arrests have been made, according to the report.
Why It's Important: As images of the climate protestors racing toward the Tesla factory circulated online, Tesla CEO Elon Musk took to social media to express his concerns.
"Why are they not jailed for breaking and entering," Musk tweeted.
A social media post by X user Jeff Lutz Friday morning said Tesla should send a message by saying the company's growth in the region will be correlated to the speed of the response to the protestors by authorities. The user shared a post showing the activists had broken through the police lines.
Musk called this "fake news” in a reply to Lutz.
"Protestors did not manage to break through the fenceline. There are still 2 intact fence lines all around. Note this is ‘National Protest Week' in Germany, so there are a lot of protests for many different reasons,” Musk said in a tweet.
Musk previously criticized the activists, saying they are "dumber than a doorstop" or "puppets of sinister forces." Musk also said the arsonists who previously attacked the factory are "the dumbest eco-terrorists on Earth."
Tesla plans to expand the facility and push for a vote from officials, despite locals voting against the factory expansion. Local officials will have the final say.
Tesla's factory was closed Friday ahead of the planned protest and was also not operational on Thursday, which was a German national holiday.
The shutdown plan called for work to resume at the factory on Monday. The plant was previously temporarily shut down due to an arson attack.
TSLA Price Action: Tesla shares are down 2% to $168.07 on Friday versus a 52-week trading range of $138.80 to $299.29.
Read Next: Tesla Cybertrucks Stopped At Border On Suspicion Of Being Smuggled Into Russia: Report
Gigafactory Berlin photo courtesy of Tesla.
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