The 4680 battery, which Tesla bet on, has been released for four years now, but it has not been able to be put into mass production and installed in vehicles.
According to three informed sources cited by The Information, Tesla CEO Elon Musk issued an "ultimatum" to the 4680 battery development team in May this year, requiring them to solve the technical problem of battery crashes during use by the end of the year and further reduce costs.
Two of them claimed that they were not informed of the consequences of not being able to complete the task on schedule. But they all believe that if it cannot be completed on schedule, Musk may abandon the company's plan to expand the production of 4680 batteries internally and rely mainly on external suppliers to provide this technology.
In September 2020, Tesla first released the 4680 Poleless Ear Battery on Battery Day, claiming that the single cell energy density increased by 5 times, the vehicle's range increased by 16%, and the power was 6 times higher than that of a Poleless Ear Battery.
Musk has high hopes for the 4680 battery, believing that it can reduce battery costs by 50%, giving Tesla's electric vehicles a cost advantage in the competition.
Four years have passed, and the 4680 battery has been experiencing low yield and high cost due to technical issues, making it impossible to achieve large-scale production. The production capacity target has been pushed back and forth, leading to multiple delays in Tesla's planned "$25000 electric car". Elon Musk, who gradually lost patience, underwent a major overhaul of the 4680 battery team. Project leader Bagrino resigned, and the entire team was laid off by 25%, leaving only 800 people.
The 4680 battery project has also made progress. In fact, Tesla has already adopted 4680 batteries on Cybertruck this year, which is just a "low-end version" and still falls short of Musk's ideal state. At present, the 4680 project has expanded two assembly lines on the basis of one production line and one assembly line, and is also conducting experiments to improve the production and performance of 4680 batteries.
Tesla's Vice President of Supply Chain, Karn Budhiraj, said, "We have one production line undergoing debugging, and four more will begin installation in the third quarter of this year. Therefore, there is no doubt that this year is an important year for the mass production of 4680 batteries
In addition, according to the financial media "LatePost", Tesla plans to mass produce and install 4680 batteries that fully use dry electrodes before the end of the year, which is the "complete body" version of the 4680 battery.
It is reported that the dry cathode is the most important and difficult part to break through in the entire 4680 process, and the cathode material is also the most expensive component in batteries, accounting for over 35% of the cost. The above report stated that after Bagrino's resignation, Tesla adjusted its technology route and achieved a breakthrough in mass production of dry cathode.
The battery is the most important component of electric vehicles and also has the highest cost proportion, usually accounting for more than one-third of a vehicle. Tesla's battery supply heavily relies on external sources, causing Tesla to lose the initiative in reducing costs and increasing efficiency, and launching low-priced models is also very passive. In addition, the 4680 battery also has advantages such as ultra fast charging, high density, and standardization, which are all reasons why Musk strongly advocates self-produced 4680 batteries.