Tesla unveils battery with 5x density 

Tesla has unveiled its own battery that it will produce at its Battery Day event.

The battery is larger and has more energy density while costing 56% less to make compared to its predecessors.

Tesla also said it plans to launch a US$25,000 electric vehicle in 2022.

The US car company plans to produce 100GWh per year by 2022 through its factories in Berlin and Texas. BY 2030, it plans to produce 3TWh on its own.

The new battery is 46800 (46mm diameter, 80mm length) as opposed to 21700 (21mm diamter, 70mm length) batteries that are currently used. It has 5 times the energy density and can increase travel distance per charge by 16%, Tesla said.

The new battery will have high-nickel anode materials and silicon coating cathode materials. Formation time has been lessened to increase production speed. The battery pack price is 56% lower per kWh. 

NCM (nickel, cobalt and manganese) using battery pack this year costs US$135kWh per pack, which means Tesla’s will be under US$100.

Tesla will also showoff a fully automated vehicle software within a month. CEO Elon Musk said the company was the only electric vehicle maker that posted growth during the COVID-19 pandemic.

Tesla expects to ship up to 514,500 vehicles this year __ level to that of its forecast of around 500,000 units earlier this year. Last year, the company moved 367,500 vehicles.

Musk said it will continue to collaborate with battery makers such as LG Chem and CATL. Tesla will also sell its batteries to other vendors.