Tesla boss Elon Musk has opened a huge electric car “gigafactory” near Berlin which is the first European hub for the firm, the BBC reports.
The plant was delayed for eight months after local authority licensing problems.
The more than €5bn factory is the biggest investment in a German car plant in recent history.
Tesla said more than 3,000 of the factory’s expected 12,000 workers had been hired so far.
Mr Musk said: “This is a great day for the factory,” describing it as “another step in the direction of a sustainable future”.
German Chancellor Olaf Scholz said the plant was a sign of progress and the future of the car industry.
But outside, environmental groups protested over concerns ranging from the plant’s water use to the trees felled to build it.
