Row between Tesla and environmentalists could be turning point for Germany's struggle with megaprojects

Pine logs are piled up on the site where US electric car giant Tesla is set to build its Gigafactory, near Berlin, on Feb 17, 2020. PHOTO: AFP
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BERLIN - When Tesla boss Elon Musk announced in November the setting up of a new European "gigafactory" in Grünheide, a small community east of Berlin, German politicians euphorically hailed the news.

Producing green cars, powered by batteries instead of combustion engines, was just what the region needed.

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