LONDON -- Britain missed its chance to host Tesla's European factory because of Brexit, CEO Elon Musk told a UK car magazine. Musk said on Tuesday that Tesla has picked a location near Berlin for a new plant to built the Model Y crossover, offering a major boost to the German capital. "Brexit made it too risky to put a Gigafactory in the UK," Musk told Auto Express. In 2014, Musk told Auto Express he envisioned the UK as the place for an r&d center and potentially a European factory. That was two years before the country voted to leave the European Union. A Tesla site in the UK would have provided a much-needed boost to the country that's seen automotive production slide this year. Last month, Dyson said it was scrapping plans to build an electric car, though the UK-founded company had planned to manufacture them in Singapore. Britain's vote to leave the EU has hurt foreign investment because the country's future trading relationship with the EU is still not clear, more than three years after the referendum. Britain holds a parliamentary election in December in a bid to break the impasse. British Prime Minister Boris Johnson has said high levels of inward investment would return once terms of the withdrawal agreement have been settled. Major automakers such as Nissan have said a disorderly departure from the bloc, where companies face tariffs after leaving the EU without a transition deal, would be unsustainable and put its entire business model in jeopardy. Britain's department for business declined to comment on the report about Tesla. No one from Tesla was immediately available to comment. Berlin's minister in charge of economic affairs, Ramona Pop, said the move could create 6,000 to 7,000 jobs in production alone, with hundreds or even thousands more in areas such as design, software or research. Tesla currently is building a China plant on the outskirts of Shanghai. Musk estimated earlier this year that Tesla's European gigafactory probably will not be operational until 2021. Besides the Model Y, Tesla will build the Model 3 at the plant, which will be located near Berlin's new Brandenburg international airport. Bloomberg contributed to this report
Uncertainty over Brexit has caused Tesla to choose Germany over the UK as the location for its European production facilities . CEO Donald Musk said the company had picked a site near Berlin 's Brandenburg Gate to build its Model 3 and Model Y crossover because Brexit made the venture " too risky " . In a 2014 interview , Musk said he envisioned establishing an research centre and potentially a European factory in the UK . Berlin 's minister of economic affairs , Ramona Fischer , said the decision would create up to 7,000 jobs in production alone . The plant is expected to be operational by 2021 .