Panasonic says new technology can increase battery density by 20% and extend Model Y's range by 100 kilometers

July 13 - Panasonic Energ, a major battery supplier for Tesla Motors, said today that it is developing a new technology that will increase battery energy density by 1/5 by 2030. By then, with the same battery pack volume, the technology could increase the range of Tesla Model Y electric vehicles by more than 100 kilometers. Alternatively, with the same range, automakers could design more spacious and lighter electric vehicles.

Currently, the battery system is the most expensive component of electric vehicles, so improving performance and reducing costs are seen as key to maintaining global sales growth.

The new technology will use a new combination of additives that will allow individual cells to run at higher voltages without compromising the performance of the battery pack, Shoichiro Watanabe, chief technology officer (CTO) of Panasonic Energy, a core subsidiary of Panasonic, said in an interview.

Shoichiro Watanabe also said: "The competition among battery manufacturers is to come up with higher-performance and more effective additives."

Currently, the batteries Panasonic produces for Tesla use a voltage of 4.2 volts, but the new technology can increase the voltage to 4.3 or 4.4 volts. Shoichiro Watanabe said: "If the voltage can be adjusted to 4.5 or 4.6 volts, the whole world's view of electric vehicles will change fundamentally."

A 20% improvement in energy density, essentially the ability of a battery to store energy within a specific volume, would mean that the new technology would have an energy density of 900 watt-hours per litre (Wh/l), compared with 750 Wh/l today.

Panasonic plans to achieve that goal within the next few years, Watanabe said, without saying when it would launch a battery pack based on the new technology.

Shirley Meng, a professor at the University of Chicago, said: "If Panasonic can achieve the improvements described, it is entirely possible to increase energy density by 20%. I am optimistic about this goal."

Tesla is already producing new, larger 4680 batteries, which are expected to reduce production costs and increase range compared to the current generation 2170 batteries.

A Panasonic spokesperson declined to comment on whether Panasonic's new battery technology will be introduced into 4680 or 2170 batteries in the future. Tesla has not yet commented on Panasonic's new technology.