Elon Musk says Tesla's German Gigafactory should start producing electric cars by the end of the year - almost 6 months later than first planned

• Elon Musk said Tesla's German Gigafactory should start production in November or December.
• The factory was initially due to open July 1, but was delayed, partly over environmental concerns.

Elon Musk said on Saturday that Tesla's upcoming Gigafactory in Germany should begin producing electric vehicles by the end of 2021, six months later than initially planned, Bloomberg first reported.

The factory is scheduled to start production of Tesla's Model Y cars in November or December, Musk said during the "Giga-Fest" county fair at the site near Berlin, per reports by Bloomberg and Reuters. Volume production was "the hard part" and would take longer, Musk said, per Bloomberg.

The factory was originally slated to open on July 1, but permit issues and environmental concerns that came to light last year, including worries about endangering the local lizard population, delayed the opening. Local environmental groups also argued that the Gigafactory could damage the area's water supply.

Tesla is still waiting for the final approval to start production at the site. Germany's Environment Ministry is set to make a decision after a consultation on public concerns about Tesla's Gigafactory closes on October 14, per Reuters.

Musk said that Tesla planned to make between 5,000 and 10,000 vehicles per week at the Gigafactory by the end of 2022, per Bloomberg.

"It will take longer to reach volume production than it took to build the factory," Musk said, as reported by Reuters.

The factory will likely use batteries made by Tesla in China until it builds a separate plant in Germany, Musk said, per Bloomberg.

In May, Musk gave his German team six more months to start production at the factory, Automobilwoche first reported, citing company sources. A month before, Tesla said that production would start towards the end of 2021.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk also said at the festival that he was "worried" about staffing at the factory, Reuters reported. "We really need great talent to come here from all over Europe," he added, per the report.