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Panasonic President Kazuhiro Tsuga recently discussed some details about the Japanese company's current activities with US electric car manufacturer Tesla. According to the executive, Panasonic expects Gigafactory 1 to optimize returns and optimize its operations. Demand for the S and X models could also increase, as Tesla is taking steps to make its flagship vehicles more attractive to consumers.
Tsuga's comments about Tesla were a response to a request for information during a Q & A session following Panasonic's release of financial results for fiscal year 2019. Tsuga has pretty much Nearly confirmed what Elon Musk had mentioned on Twitter last month, indicating that Gigafactory 1 was currently operating at around 24 GWh, while the facility had a theoretical capacity of 35 GWh. "For Tesla, the initial investment of 35 GWh is already completed and its use according to Elon may be 24 GWh currently. This year, we want to increase this use significantly, " he said.
Tsuga explained that the efficiency of Gigafactory 1 should improve in the near future, especially as its high-speed production lines are optimized. "By counting the lines that have yet to start, we have three fast high speed lines and, once they are operational, we will see increased efficiency. And when we changed tools, we had not really been able to check the facilities enough. We have seen disturbances and we now know the reasons. So, in June, we will begin to replace the templates and, as a result, the number of cells and the yield will improve a bit ", Said Tsuga.
Among the improvements mentioned by the president of Panasonic, it was necessary to tap into the local workforce of Nevada Gigafactory. According to the executive, this will ultimately reduce fixed costs. Tsuga also indicated that it expects Tesla's application to be sufficient to fully utilize all production lines in the chain.
"Thanks to the localization of the workforce, we will have fewer Japanese expats (on Gigafactory 1), and this is progressing. And we see an increase in the number of lines that can only be managed by local staff, which can also reduce fixed costs. So overall, we can expect an improvement. Of course, the demand for Tesla will be sufficient for the full capacity (of our equipment), that is the assumption. If that assumption were true, the Tesla battery sector could pay for itself this year (for Panasonic), "he added.
Tsuga's comments on the demand for batteries used in Tesla's flagship vehicles, Model S and Model X, both using 18650 cells, are particularly compelling. While sales of the flagship sedan and SUV have seen a decline in recent months, the president of Panasonic said that demand for the S and X models could rise again, especially when Tesla takes the initiative to to offer to its customers. "For Model X (and S), we saw a decline in the last quarter, but Tesla is already making efforts and taking steps to reorganize this demand. We are talking to Tesla about this and so there is a potential upside, " Said Tsuga.
Panasonic's comments on the Japanese company's partnership with Tesla almost suggest that the two companies will continue to work closely to improve the production of Gigafactory 1. Speculation that Panasonic is abandoning its partnership with Tesla has been around the world. the press last month, fueled by a report from Nikkei Asian Review who said the Japanese company is freezing its investments in Nevada-based facilities. Tesla responded to the Nikkei report at the time of publication, explaining that the improvement of the existing lines of the facility would achieve much more results than expected. These comments seem to correspond to the recent statements of the president of Panasonic.
Panasonic President Kazuhiro Tsuga's discussion on Tesla can be viewed here (please go to 33:28 in the video).
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