The new 2021 Tesla Model 3 electric car will be fitted with a new 82 kWh battery pack. This is thanks to new, more energy-dense battery cells that are produced by Panasonic. The Japanese battery producer has been working in partnership with Tesla and invested $100 million in the Gigafactory Nevada earlier this year to produce batteries exclusively for them.
Panasonic has said that it will increase the energy density of cells produced at the Gigafactory Nevada by five percent that will offer a total output increase of 10 percent. The new batteries being produced at the Gigafactory for Tesla will also enable fast charging.
Panasonic said: “The investment (of $100 million) will be made in Gigafactory 1, a battery plant in Nevada with 13 production lines. Panasonic will add another line, increasing capacity by 10 percent to 39 gigawatt-hours per year.
“This is the first capacity expansion at Gigafactory since it opened in 2017. Panasonic is also upgrading the batteries being produced at Gigafactory, raising each battery’s storage capacity by five percent, starting in September.”
These will not be the new 4680 cells developed by Tesla that were revealed at Battery Day back in September. These new cells are still 2170 battery cells but will provide the new Model 3 Long Range with a reported range of 353 miles (558km).
