Tesla & Panasonic battery cell factory profitable
Tesla and Panasonic’s Gigafactory 1 in Nevada was profitable in Q1/2020, the CFO of Panasonic stated in the announcement of the current business figures.
The plant, which the partners had begun building in 2014, was in the black for the second consecutive quarter.
Tesla as an electric carmaker had recently
posted a profit for the third consecutive quarter.
Meanwhile, first battery partner Panasonic has indicated that talks are underway with Tesla to expand production capacity at the Giga Nevada plant beyond the existing 35 GWh of battery cells per year.
There is strong demand from Tesla that exceeds the factory’s current capacity, said Panasonic CFO Hirokazu Umeda at the meeting.
Panasonic and Tesla would be “working to improve materials and technologies throughout this financial year,” Umeda continued. This sounds like a new generation of batteries that both partners are aiming for.
At the same time, they recently abandoned the idea of building a joint battery plant in China.
According to Umeda, the Tesla plant in Shanghai will be supplied with batteries from the USA.
One must add an “as well” here though, as Tesla has scored partners from China as well as they expect demand to increase.
For the partnership between Panasonic and Tesla, the past few months have been unstable: Panasonic recently lost its status as Tesla’s exclusive battery supplier.
The Californians have entered into partnerships with LG Chem and CATL to supply them with cells in China as mentioned.
Nevertheless, Gigafactory 1 has succeeded in making a profit – thanks in particular to the substantial increase in demand for Tesla cars.
For the Japanese, this means that their investment of 1.6 billion dollars in the Nevada plant is finally yielding profits. Years of losses were the main reason why Panasonic has always been reluctant to expand its partnership with Tesla.
Another reason, of course, is that Tesla has recently aired plans to mass-produce its battery cells, again most likely with partners from China, namely CATL.
Tesla’s project Roadrunner aims to
reduce costs to $100 per kilowatt-hour.
According to the latest report, this new battery technology is to be introduced at the beginning of 2021 at the latest.
Tesla is aiming for an even larger scale of production than the Gigafactories and speaks of Terra measures.
Details have not been provided, and Elon Musk just postponed the Tesla Battery Day set this May to an undisclosed future date.
www.electrive.com/2020/05/19/tesla-panaconic-in-the-black-with-gigafactory-1/
*This article below would be Music to the ears of Musk 
*Have them Kicking up their Heels at CATL
*Make Merry at Manono
*Rejoicing at Yibin
Tesla Sales Will Benefit From The Latest Europe’s Green Recovery Plan
The European Commission intends to facilitate the transition to electric cars as part of the greening of the economic recovery plan.
EU executive is considering incentives for car makers to produce and sell clean cars and investment in charging infrastructure for electric vehicles, according to a draft EU document seen by Bloomberg News.
“Massive support for the automotive industry will put significant debt on future generations,” the commission said in the document.
“That support must respect our youth’s expectations on climate change and for a healthier and cleaner future.”
Commission may propose an EU-wide Purchasing Facility for Clean Vehicles, that reduces CO2 and pollutant emissions in line with EU standards, amounting to €20 billion in the next 2 years.
Clean Automotive Investment Fund of €40-60 million would accelerate investments in zero-emission drive trains.
Commission is considering doubling of the EU investment package for recharging to build 2 million public charging and alternative refuelling stations by 2025.
According to the document, cars with zero emissions will be exempted from the Value Added Tax (VAD).
This policy will encourage people to switch to EV, and automakers, to accelerate their efforts to develop and increase the production of EV.
Until then, automakers such as Tesla will have a leading position and enjoy incredibly high demand.
This will support the goal of the American automaker to accelerate the transition to cars with zero emissions.
Each year, the EU tightens CO2 emissions standards for vehicles, which encourages automakers to accelerate the "cleansing" of their fleets by filling them with environmentally friendly vehicles.
Incentives, assistance and loyal policies of states towards EVs and for their manufacturers are key points in the matter of the mass transition of the world to environmentally friendly vehicles.
*Most of all, Excited at AVZ
www.tesmanian.com
*To Remind
CATL plans to better serve European market with Germany plant
China's largest power battery maker CATL is ready to make deeper inroads into the European market with its Erfurt, Germany, plant. The plant will produce both battery cells and modules for the region's partners.
CATL has partnered with BMW, Daimler, Volvo and Volkswagen to offer batteries for their electric vehicles.
The Chinese battery maker is also in advanced talks with Porsche and will supply battery cells for Bosch's 48-volt battery system.
"Europe is a key market for CATL, and many of our partners are based in Europe," said Matthias Zentgraf, president of CATL's European operations, during the ongoing Frankfurt motor show.
"Our new manufacturing plant in Erfurt, Germany, will allow us to combine Germany's industrial tradition and CATL's tradition of innovative battery technology in a strategically central location," he added.
The company also showcased its latest cell-to-pack technology at the Frankfurt motor show.
http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/
