Climate change crisis: Elon Musk laughed, but for Tesla, it is now a huge problem

tech.hindustantimes.com:

Climate change crisis has brewed up a massive problem for Elon Musk led Tesla in Germany and his flippant attitude did not help at all. When Elon Musk was asked last year whether the factory Tesla Inc. was constructing in Germany would deplete the area’s water supply, he broke out in bellowing laughter and called the notion “completely wrong.” Six months later, water is one of the primary reasons the plant still isn’t producing vehicles. While Musk in August flippantly pointed to water “everywhere” around Berlin, the region is suffering from falling groundwater levels and prolonged droughts due to climate change. That’s sparked a legal challenge that will go to court next week and an acknowledgment from local authorities that supplies won't suffice once Tesla ramps up the plant. The issue has the potential to further delay or even stop the 5 billion-euro ($5.7 billion) project in what could turn into a costly setback to the carmaker’s expansion.

“Tesla will increase the problem for sure,” said Irina Engelhardt, who heads the hydrogeology department at Technical University, Berlin. “There might not be enough water for everyone.”

Ramping up the factory in the eastern state of Brandenburg is key to Tesla’s global ambitions. The carmaker needs a manufacturing base in Europe to supply the region’s fast-growing electric-vehicle market, which is expected to remain much bigger and more competitive than the U.S. for years to come. While Tesla has erected the plant at breakneck speed, it’s still waiting for final approval from local authorities just as Volkswagen AG, Mercedes-Benz AG and Stellantis NV broaden their own EV lineups.

“The current water supply is sufficient for the first stage of the factory,” Brandenburg Economy