Tesla ramps up US restart after defying county orders at California plant
Musk ignited debate about the lockdown when he reopened Fremont
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Tesla is reportedly making moves to reopen its Nevada battery factory after gaining the upper hand in CEO Elon Musk's battle with county officials over restarting the carmaker's Fremont, California, assembly plant.
SPAT OVER REOPENING CALIFORNIA TESLA FACTORY COMES TO AN END
Tesla North American HR boss Valerie Workman shared plans for employees to return to work in Nevada in a Monday email, The Verge reported. Those employees would be contacted within 24 hours and given a return-to-work date, Workman said, according to the outlet.
In California, Alameda County officials who said Musk restarted the Fremont plant too early agreed that Tesla could go beyond basic operations there this week. It wasn't clear from a press release whether Tesla would face any punishment for reopening Monday in defiance of county orders.
MUSK THANKS TRUMP FOR SUPPORTING TESLA PLANT REOPENING IN CALIFORNIA
The restart came two days after Tesla sued the county health department seeking to overturn its order. Musk threatened to move Tesla's manufacturing operations and headquarters from the state, prompting state leaders like Colorado Gov. Jared Polis to reach out.
A masked man walks in the Tesla plant parking lot Monday, May 11, 2020, in Fremont, Calif. (AP Photo/Ben Margot)
"We want you here Elon Musk in Colorado, we are the best of all worlds," Polis wrote on Twitter on Wednesday. "We’re very pro-business, low taxes, also pro-immigration, pro-LGBT, globally-minded. Bright, smart, motivated [people] love to live here. Tesla HQ, Cybertruck, gigafactory look no further!"
| Ticker | Security | Last | Change | Change % |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| TSLA | TESLA INC. | 341.85 | -0.18 | -0.05% |
"Hi Jared, Colorado is great! I think your policies make a lot of sense," Musk responded.
Musk sent an email to Fremont employees on Monday thanking them, CleanTechnica reported.
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"Just wanted to send you a note of appreciation for working hard to make Tesla successful," Musk wrote according to CleanTechnica. "It is so cool seeing the factory come back to life and you are making it happen!!"
"An honest day’s work spent building products or providing services of use to others is extremely honorable," he continued. "I have vastly more respect for someone who takes pride in doing a good job, whatever the profession, than some rich or famous person who does nothing useful."
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FOX Business' inquiry to Tesla was not returned at the time of publication.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.