Tesla To Get Battery Production Equipment From Hanwha

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Update: A representative from Hanwha Group asked us to delete this article, telling us the article “contains incorrect information.” I asked for clarification about what is incorrect in the piece and did not get a response. So, something is reportedly not accurate here — maybe the whole partnership, maybe a minor matter — but we haven’t gotten any details to indicate what.


I think it’s safe to say that the one thing from Tesla people have been waiting for more than any other these past several months is Tesla Battery Day. This is where Tesla will presumably tell us some of its battery secrets, grandiose battery plans, and mind-blowing battery milestones. There are many questions leading into this, and there will probably be more questions on the way out.

Some people say Tesla is a battery company that creates cars, not a car company that produces batteries. I’m not a big fan of calling Tesla a company focused on any one topic. It’s a leading carmaker, battery designer and producer, solar technology company, software developer, and more. Though, it’s safe to say the battery plays a rather special role. It is the heart of an electric car. It is also a key, reality-shifting link in the utility network that enables much more renewable energy. And once upon a time the humble battery had one of the best mascots in TV commercial history.

https://youtu.be/rza7rxmfOrw

Getting to the news, it seems Tesla has some new toys coming its way for its battery production games. “Hanwha Group said Sunday that its subsidiary Hanwha Corp. recently signing a supply deal on battery formation equipment with U.S. electric vehicle (EV) giant Tesla,” according to The Korea Times.

“We had a supply deal of battery formation equipment with Tesla,” the official said.

If that reminds you of Alex Voigt’s casting article and makes you think about the physical form of a battery, think again. “Battery formation is the process of initial charging and discharging of battery cells. This process is conducted in the final phase of the battery manufacturing procedure to format and test it before installation. The process demands a high voltage and precise output current to ensure the battery cells will last for the indicated lifetime.” I feel like I should have learned that by now, but I have to admit that a summary of that process has never crossed my desk here at CleanTechnica world headquarters. Though, it is clearly a logical step in the process that you would expect battery producers to follow if you ever thought about that level of detail in the battery production process.

So, where is this tech headed? Seemingly, everywhere. It will reportedly be shipped to Fremont, California (even though Tesla doesn’t produce batteries there), then also Nevada, Germany, and China, the locations of Tesla’s partially built and planned EV-related gigafactories. Perhaps Texas is next on the list.

While the reporting indicates that Tesla is only getting this battery formation equipment, Hanwha Corp. also produces equipment for other stages of the battery production process, in particular the battery assembly stages — “such as notching, stacking, tab welding and pouch forming machines.” No insight is offered on whether Tesla might buy Hanwha equipment for those process as well. If we ever find out, we’ll be sure to share.

Is this information critical to our personal revelations about the meaning of life, the universe, and everything? not particularly, but for us cleantechies, learning about these little details in battery production and the battery market is fun. Throw in Tesla for some extra spice.


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Zachary Shahan

Zach is tryin' to help society help itself one word at a time. He spends most of his time here on CleanTechnica as its director, chief editor, and CEO. Zach is recognized globally as an electric vehicle, solar energy, and energy storage expert. He has presented about cleantech at conferences in India, the UAE, Ukraine, Poland, Germany, the Netherlands, the USA, Canada, and Curaçao. Zach has long-term investments in Tesla [TSLA], NIO [NIO], Xpeng [XPEV], Ford [F], ChargePoint [CHPT], Amazon [AMZN], Piedmont Lithium [PLL], Lithium Americas [LAC], Albemarle Corporation [ALB], Nouveau Monde Graphite [NMGRF], Talon Metals [TLOFF], Arclight Clean Transition Corp [ACTC], and Starbucks [SBUX]. But he does not offer (explicitly or implicitly) investment advice of any sort.

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