Sources say Tesla encountered multiple problems with its 4680 battery and asked for help from Chinese suppliers

Panasonic showcases 4680 battery cell

Beijing time on March 10th, Tesla CEO Elon Musk (Elon Mus) is looking to crack the code to make better and cheaper batteries, but at this critical moment, the company is working on 4680 battery cells. Got into trouble.

Tesla is recruiting material suppliers from China and South Korea to help reduce the cost of its 4680 battery cells and increase their energy, people familiar with the matter said. The move comes as the company struggles to resolve battery-related performance and production issues that have contributed to delays in the launch of its Cybertruck electric pickup truck.

According to people familiar with the matter, Tesla has hired China's Ningbo Rongbai New Energy Technology Company and Suzhou Dongshan Precision Manufacturing Company to help reduce material costs. The company is increasing production of 4680 battery cells in the United States. Details of these arrangements have never been reported before. At the same time, Tesla also signed an agreement with South Korean battery materials manufacturer L&F Co to provide it with high-nickel cathodes to increase the energy density of its 4680 battery cells.

If Tesla can solve the battery's performance and process issues and meet its ambitious production goals, the 4680 cell could end up being the key, rather than the bottleneck, to Musk's dream of producing 20 million cars per year by 2030.

Tesla plans to use South Korea's LG Energy Solutions and Japan's Panasonic's 4680 battery cells to increase its own vehicle production, people familiar with the matter said, which is an insurance policy to ensure future electric vehicle production. LG and Panasonic are expected to supply batteries for the Cybertruck, people familiar with the matter said. The new battery is expected to play a key role in the electric pickup when it goes on sale later this year. The Cybertruck is Tesla's first new model in more than three years.

To ensure that the launch of the Cybertruck is not delayed again, Tesla had considered three battery options: the smaller 2170 cells widely used in other Tesla models, the 4680 cells, and the cheaper lithium iron phosphate cells, but this The company prefers to wait until the 4680 battery cells are ready. Musk said in 2022 that the 4680 battery cell would not be a "limiting factor on the Cybertruck or any other vehicle."

Tesla's design of the 4680 battery cell is critical to its future production plans. Tesla plans to produce the batteries at factories in Texas, California, Nevada and Berlin for use in models ranging from the Model Y to the Cybertruck, people familiar with the matter said. However, Musk admitted at Tesla’s Investor Day on March 1 that Tesla was still unable to increase the first wave of production.

Although solutions to these problems are imminent, some analysts remain optimistic that Tesla can solve them. "While execution risks remain and many details are unclear, Tesla's impact on the global battery industry may still be underestimated." Morgan Stanley said after the investor day.

Tesla and Musk have yet to comment.