Panasonic has completed preparations to start production Lithium-ion battery cells have a 4680 format at a Japanese factory, Reuters reported on Monday.
The company is reportedly sending samples of cells produced at a factory in Japan's western Wakayama region to automaker customers for approval, and production will begin once that approval is received.
Comparing the 4680 vs. 2170 – Panasonic
Panasonic supplies batteries to Teslawho was one of the main proponents of the 4680 cells, so named because they measure 46 millimeters in diameter and 80 centimeters in length, compared to 21 millimeters and 70 millimeters, respectively, in Panasonic's current 2170 cylindrical cells.
Large cells have been promoted by Tesla CEO Elon Musk since 2020 as the key to unlocking cheap electric cars, as well as a key component in ore-powered applications such as the Tesla Semi and Cybertruck. Tesla has started production of its 4680 cells, but still has them difficulty increasing the volume. Musk in July reportedly told Tesla's battery team that problems needed to be fixed or large-format cells would be abandoned.
The Tesla cell of the future will make energy, gain energy
Panasonic expected difficulties with the new cell format, warns in 2021 that mass producing the Tesla 4680 cells will require “new techniques” and expresses doubt that potential problems with overheating can be overcome. However, the start of production has been somewhat delayed since Panasonic's announced target of 2022. At the time, the company said mass production would begin in the fiscal year ending March 2024.
Other battery suppliers have shown interest in large-format cells, but none have been able to scale them up faster than Panasonic and Tesla. CATL went a completely different route as well cell-to-pack techwhich eliminates the modules used in most current battery pack designs. By 2022, CATL said the current version of the cell-to-pack could deliver 13% more power than Tesla's 4680 cells, given the same volume. But cell-to-pack has also been slow to rise.