Panasonic Seeks to Improve Performance of 4680 Tesla Batteries; Production Later than Planned

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Panasonic is ramping up efforts to increase the performance of its 4680 Tesla-designed battery cells. The company announced that the start of cell production will be delayed.

Panasonic said Wednesday it will postpone commercial production of its 4680 battery cells, first introduced by Tesla. The manufacturer said the delay is due to an effort to improve the performance of the battery cells. The company had previously planned to begin mass production from April 2023 to March 2024. Now, the estimated start date for mass production is set for April - September 2024. Panasonic's fiscal year begins on April 1 of each year.

“Mass production rescheduled to begin during 1H FY3/25 to introduce performance improvement measures that will further enhance competitiveness,” Panasonic said on its earnings presentation materials, referring to the first half of the fiscal year ending March 2025, according to Reuters.

Panasonic is launching a pilot production line for 4680 cells at its Wakayama plant in Japan. However, the company is also going to build a battery factory in the U.S. The announced factory in Kansas will start production with 2170 battery cells. It is possible, however, that its operations will be expanded to produce other battery sizes.

In addition, Panasonic has hinted at a factory in Oklahoma. The company has entered into an agreement with the State of Oklahoma that defines the eligibility and terms of the incentives under Oklahoma's LEAD Act. No official announcement has been made, but if a factory is indeed built there, it could also begin production of 4680 battery cells.

© 2023, Eva Fox | Tesmanian. All rights reserved.

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