German union leaders cry.

“He keeps investing in Giga Berlin and creating more jobs!”

Tesla invests $250M more in Giga Berlin battery cells, boosting capacity to 18 GWh – Tesla announced today that it will invest almost $250 million more in battery cell production at its Grünheide factory outside Berlin, more than doubling planned capacity to 18 gigawatt hours per year and creating over 1,500 battery-related jobs…

In late February, Musk sent a pre-recorded video to Grünheide’s roughly 11,000 workers warning that expansion would not happen if IG Metall gained a majority in the upcoming works council election. He said that “things will certainly get more difficult if there are external organizations pushing Tesla in the wrong direction,” adding: “We will not close the factory, but realistically we will also not expand.”

The message was clear: vote for the union, lose the investment.

IG Metall’s vote share subsequently collapsed from 39.4% in 2024 to 31.1% in the March election. Tesla’s management-aligned list, Giga United, took 24 of 37 seats. IG Metall has since filed a legal challenge alleging unlawful interference in the election.