Tesla receives 4680 battery from Panasonic prior to mass production

Electric car maker Tesla has received samples of its 4680 battery cell from its long-time battery partner Panasonic ahead of the manufacturers plans for mass production of the new battery that is designed to power its Cybertruck and more.

Kazuo Tadanobu, CEO of Panasonic’s energy business, confirmed the delivery of 4680 battery cell samples to Tesla on 1st of June 2022 and credited all the large-scale production of the prototype started in May to the first pilot line created in Japan.

Tadanobu announced that the mass production is scheduled to commence in March of next fiscal year, and confirmed ongoing speculations associated with Panasonic’s search for a new location to set up a new 4680 production factory in the U.S.

Unveiled in 2020, Tesla’s 4680 battery cell is a novel tab-less battery cell that packs new chemistry in a bigger format, designed for cheaper and/or longer-range electric vehicles.

After making it to the Model Y – that is being manufactured at Gigafactory Texas – the automaker has, for the first time incorporated self-designed cells for its own electric vehicle production.

However, considering the large-scale requirement for these cells, Tesla is proactively partnering with its existing battery suppliers to deploy their own production lines of the new 4680 cell.

For now, Panasonic has come forward after announcing the deployment of a prototype production line for the novel battery cell, which was later confirmed by Panasonic’s new CEO, Yuki Kusumi.

Kusumi stated that the company is ready to make a large investment to support production requirements of Tesla’s new battery technology, considering the test production outcomes are successful.

It has been reported that, the Japanese manufacturer launched its own 4680 cell developed in collaboration with Tesla in October 2021 followed by a gigantic $700 million investment to start 4680 cell production in Japan.

Source Credit: https://electrek.co/2022/06/01/tesla-4680-battery-cell-samples-panasonic/

Photo of Rashi Thakkar

Rashi Thakkar

Rashi started her journey in content when she was completing her MBA. Since then, she has helped well-known startups and businesses boost their online presence. Currently Rashi pens downs insightful articles for AlpenHornNews and various other websites, covering an array of sectors from finance and business to technology and healthcare.