Tesla 3 has one battery supplier
Panasonic will be the only provider for the new model, CEO Elon Musk tweets.
Tesla Motors Inc. is working exclusively with Panasonic Corp. for its Model 3 electric car battery cells, Chief Executive Elon Musk said, adding that news stories reporting otherwise were “incorrect.”
Musk made the statement in a tweet Tuesday night. He also said the cells for the higher-end Model S sedan and Model X sport utility vehicle were by Panasonic too.
Reuters reported Tuesday that Tesla probably would add Samsung SDI as a supplier for the Model 3 if Tesla’s battery plant could not meet demand.
Reuters said a Tesla spokeswoman had responded to its inquires Tuesday by saying the company works with “all leading battery manufacturers around the world” but doesn’t comment on details of the programs with specific suppliers.
In a tweet Wednesday, Musk indicated that Samsung could be involved with Tesla Energy, which is focused on batteries designed to store energy for homes, businesses and utility companies.
A bill of lading shows that a nearly 125-ton shipment of Samsung lithium-ion cells arrived for Tesla at the Port of Oakland in April. A Tesla spokeswoman did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In the same tweet, Musk confirmed to a Bloomberg reporter that South Korean battery maker LG Chem Ltd. was involved with the Tesla Roadster. News of a contract between LG Chem and Tesla for upgrades to the now-discontinued Roadster was reported in 2015 by the Wall Street Journal.
Tesla said in 2014 that it would partner with Panasonic to build its “gigafactory” battery plant in Sparks, Nev. The companies said at the time that Panasonic would manufacture and supply cylindrical lithium-ion cells and also invest in the necessary equipment and machinery. Tesla would then take the cells and other components and assemble them into battery packs and modules.
The Palo Alto electric car maker says it plans to start cell production at the gigafactory next year and expects to reach full capacity by 2020.
This timetable is crucial to Tesla’s plans to churn out its Model 3 sedan, which has a proposed base price of $35,000. Tesla received more than 325,000 pre-orders within a week of unveiling the car in March. Pre-orders involve a $1,000 down payment that can be canceled at any time for a full refund.
Tesla has said it hopes to begin delivering cars in late 2017, though analysts have questioned whether the automaker can meet this goal, based on its history of laterthan-expected delivery times.
The exclusive work with Tesla is “great news” for Japan-based Panasonic, said Darrell West, director of the Center for Technology Innovation at the Brookings Institution, a public policy think tank in Washington.
“It’s a respected brand and they have invested a lot in battery technology,” he said. “That’s crucial for the future of this particular vehicle. It’s really all about the battery.”
But it also means Tesla is relying on a single supplier for its cells, an uncommon practice in the auto industry. Most major automakers rely on two or three suppliers for any given part.
samantha.masunaga @latimes.com