Elon Musk gets his way: Tesla factory partially reopens

After CEO Elon Musk threw a temper tantrum over coronavirus restrictions, Tesla told workers its California factory is back in business.  

The company said its Bay Area factory would resume operations on Friday with 30 percent of the usual workforce per shift, according to an HR email obtained by CNBC. Its other Gigafactories in Nevada and New York are also opening with “limited operations.”

Mashable reached out to Tesla to confirm the report, and will update this story if it hears back. 

Originally, California officials said non-essential businesses wouldn’t open until the end of May. Musk called shelter-in-place measures “fascist” and spread dangerous misinformation about the virus. 

But on Thursday, Gov. Gavin Newsom said some non-essential businesses, including bookstores and warehouses, could partially reopen on Friday. Musk promptly responded on Twitter with an enthusiastic, “Yeah!!”

But it’s not like Musk can flip the switch on his Fremont plant. The state has an eight-page guide specifically for manufacturing facilities on how they can operate with proper safety procedures, social distancing measures, and plenty of hand sanitizer. Workers are even encouraged to bring food from home to avoid congested take-out spots during breaks.

The Fremont plant is in Alameda County, which still has a shelter-in-place order effective through May 31. So it’s unclear if Tesla can technically start even limited operations while the county remains closed.

On Joe Rogan’s podcast this week, Musk lamented that the coronavirus pandemic was affecting production of his Cybertruck, Model Y SUV, and next-gen Roadster sports car. 

“This COVID thing is throwing us for a loop,” he said. “It certainly set us back a couple months.”