Tesla (NASDAQ: TSLA) is once again facing delays in the construction of its Berlin Gigafactory after construction was ordered to be halted due to an unpaid fee. Construction has been stopped several times in the last few months due to ecological concerns and an outstanding utility fee.
For anyone that has paid close attention to business headlines in the latter half of the year, it seems like Tesla can't catch a break sometimes. On top of ongoing concerns like the company's massive overvaluation and the consequences that may follow, Tesla has ended up taking two blows to its reputation after both JD Power and Consumer Reports ranked Tesla worst and second-worst in quality in their recent surveys, respectively.
If Tesla is unlucky, it's Berlin Gigafactory is cursed, given its numerous run-ins with delays. Aside from administrative hiccups and protests against the factory in the months leading up to the beginning of construction, the site has been struck with numerous slowdowns. In October, the site had its water shut off by a local utility operator after Tesla failed to pay its water bill. Two weeks ago, construction was stopped due to concern for hibernating reptiles in the woods on the construction site, with the matter going to court to decide the animals' fate on-site.
The recent slowdown, however, has to do with an unpaid governmental fee. As the Berlin factory is being built with only partial approval, Tesla must pay a $100 million deposit to authorities as insurance against the event that final approval does not go through and the factory must be removed.
To further complicate matters, Tesla lost its court case regarding the hibernating reptiles in the uncleared forest on the property. Environmental groups were handed a victory by German courts, which decided that merely relocating the wildlife was not sufficient enough for conservation efforts and ruled that the forest will stay in place. The loss means that Tesla will have to reallocate space for storage facilities that were to inhabit the now unclearable land.
The numerous delays and the new order to conserve the remaining forest are yet more obstacles in the push to open Tesla's first European factory. Tesla's ambitious goal to open the factory in the Summer of 2021 may as of yet be achievable, given the rapid pace of construction, but legal losses and red tape are starting to compound and may threaten the lofty deadline.