Tesla withdraws request for state funding for planned electric battery plant in Berlin

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Tesla withdraws request for state funding for planned electric battery plant in Berlin

BERLIN, Nov 26, Reuters - Tesla has withdrawn its application for state funding for its planned battery plant in Brandenburg, just outside Berlin, a spokeswoman for the economy ministry said on Friday.

The Tesla spokesperson said that European subsidies are allocated to so-called Important Projects of Common European Interest'' because of the plans for the battery factory in Berlin-Brandenburg, but will not do without state IPCEI funding.

Tesla was not immediately available for comment.

In January, the European Union approved a plan that included state aid to Tesla, BMW and others to support the production of electric vehicle batteries and help the bloc reduce imports from industry leader China.

COM business autos-transportation german-decision tesla subsidies are expected to be made by the end of the year, with a final decision likely by the end of the year.

According to the regional government's website, the electric vehicle maker applied for regional funding from Brandenburg in November 2020.

A Brandenburg economy ministry spokeswoman said the application had not been withdrawn.

The amount Tesla applied for isn't known, but investments worth over 100 million euros are generally given 6.8% of their value, the site says. According to the economy ministry, the company is investing 5 billion euros in the battery plant.

The construction at the factory site, where Tesla is building under pre-approval permits while it waits final approval from the regional government, has made good progress in the last few weeks, the spokesperson said.

Musk hopes to start production by the end of the year after the latest round of online consultations for the public to express concerns about the site closed last week.