Tesla battery supplier Panasonic wants to remove cobalt in its battery cells for electric vehicles within two to three years, which will reduce costs and increase the company’s ability to keep up with the car manufacturer’s high plans.
Over the past few years, Tesla has really put a focus on manufacturing electric vehicle batteries and sourcing materials for its cells in large quantities. The carmaker has also focused on battery life, which helps cobalt as it ensures each battery’s stability and life cycle. However, cobalt is an extremely controversial mineral. It is usually mined in the Republic of Congo, where child labor is used, and many companies have tried to get rid of cobalt completely in their cells. Panasonic is one of the companies, Nikkei Asia report.
Shawn Watanabe, head of energy technology and manufacturing at Panasonic of Japan, on Wednesday outlined his plan to remove cobalt from its cells during a virtual session for the Consumer Electronics Show, which is the world’s largest consumer electronics and technology expo. “In two or three years, we will be able to set up a cobalt-free cell with high energy density,” he said.
Getting rid of cobalt in cells will not only reduce the cost of cells but also lower the price of electric vehicles. The battery pack of an EV is the most expensive part of the car and covers between 30 and 40% of the vehicle. Panasonic, which has been in partnership with Tesla since 2014 and recently signed a new battery supply agreement with the Elon Musk parent company, is helping with the operation of the Tesla Gigafactory in Sparks, Nevada.
Ultimately, the cost of batteries is the price of electric cars. Tesla worked tirelessly to determine the restrictions on EV cells and manufactured its own 4680 cell internally. The way to reduce costs is to manufacture cells en masse, which require large material contracts, and Tesla focuses on nickel for the future, not cobalt.
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“I just want to emphasize again that any mining companies out there need to extract more nickel,” Musk said during the company’s Q2 2020 earnings call. “Tesla gives you a giant contract for a long period of time if you exploit nickel efficiently and in an environmentally sensitive way.”
Panasonic follows the same strategy, according to Celin Mikolajczak, VP of Battery Technology for Panasonic North America. “Reducing cobalt makes us more difficult to manufacture, but ultimately reduces the negative environmental impacts of batteries and reduces costs.”
Panasonic is also trying to save costs by recycling its batteries and materials. It was recently linked to JB Straubel, a founder of Tesla who started Redwood Materials. “The materials we use are very valuable. We have always recycled. It is a steady stream of raw materials, and it can become a significant part of our supply chain, ”Mikolajczak said.