Japanese electronics maker has been developing a bigger ‘4680’ cell that will improve vehicle range
Panasonic is moving closer to bringing next generation lithium-ion batteries to the market, which is expected to substantially cut the cost of electric vehicles such as Tesla.
The Japanese electronics maker has been developing a bigger “4680” battery that Tesla chief executive Elon Musk believes is key to placing EVs in the $25,000 price bracket.
Tesla’s Model 3 starts at about $41,000 with tax incentives.
The battery, about five times bigger than those currently supplied to Tesla, would allow the US car maker to lower production costs and improve vehicle range.
The 4680 battery will have a “considerable impact” in lowering the cost of EVs, enabling them to spread more widely and, in turn, lower carbon emissions, said Kazuo Tadanobu, chief executive of Panasonic’s energy business.
However, surging costs of raw materials, made worse by Russia’s military offensive in Ukraine, are expected to slow and even temporarily reverse the long-term trend of falling costs of batteries, according to Gregory Miller, an analyst at industry forecaster Benchmark Mineral Intelligence.
This year could mark the first yearly increase in the average price of lithium-ion battery cells, Mr Miller said.
High EV prices matter because mainstream consumers are not going to pay a large premium for technology that many do not yet fully embrace, research company Cox Automotive told Reuters on Tuesday.
Panasonic is reportedly looking to purchase land in the US for a mega-factory to manufacture the new battery, according to Japanese public broadcaster NHK.
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