Tesla Gigafactory Hit by Fire, Report Says. It's More Bad Luck for the Site. -- Barrons.com

Dow Jones08-21

By George Glover

Tesla has closed parts of its gigafactory in Germany since Monday after a fire broke out, according to a report.

Employees were evacuated from the battery-pack manufacturing part of its factory near Grünheide and parts of the premises remain cordoned off, German newspaper Handelsblatt reported Thursday, citing a local government spokeswoman.

Tesla didn't immediately respond to a request for comment from Barron's.

This isn't the first time a fire has broken out at the German gigafactory. In March 2024, Tesla halted production at the plant after an arson attack on an electricity pylon. A far-left activist group claimed responsibility to the attack.

Separately, hundreds of environmental protesters clashed with police at the site last year over plans to expand the factory.

Shares didn't react to Thursday's news. They were down 0.1% at $323.45 ahead of Thursday's opening bell. Futures tracking the S&P 500 were down 0.3%.

Tesla opened the Grünheide factory in March 2022, as its first manufacturing hub in Europe. In March 2025, the company said it had manufactured 500,000 vehicles at the site since it opened.

European Tesla sales plunged 44% over the first half of this year, according to data from the European Automobile Manufacturers' Association. The slump has stoked investors' fears that CEO Elon Musk's political activities may be putting off some buyers.

The EV maker's shares have dropped 20% in 2025. Investors did get some good news on Thursday, though: Tesla stock cracked Goldman Sachs' " Hedge Fund VIP" list for the first time since 2022. The analysis is based on 13-F filings to find the positions that appear most frequently among the top 10 holdings of hedge-fund portfolios.

Write to George Glover at george.glover@dowjones.com

This content was created by Barron's, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. Barron's is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

August 21, 2025 06:41 ET (10:41 GMT)

Copyright (c) 2025 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.

At the request of the copyright holder, you need to log in to view this content

Disclaimer: Investing carries risk. This is not financial advice. The above content should not be regarded as an offer, recommendation, or solicitation on acquiring or disposing of any financial products, any associated discussions, comments, or posts by author or other users should not be considered as such either. It is solely for general information purpose only, which does not consider your own investment objectives, financial situations or needs. TTM assumes no responsibility or warranty for the accuracy and completeness of the information, investors should do their own research and may seek professional advice before investing.

Comments

  • Imthiyas
    08-21
    Imthiyas
    You believe in luck, but talking about the most richest persons company , is it luck or buisness genius,  I already mentioned earlier too , please stop your idiocy article,
Leave a comment
1
1