Production of ‘2170’ Format Li-ions Begins at the Gigafactory

Tesla and Panasonic have begun mass production of lithium-ion battery cells at the Gigafactory, which will be used in Tesla's energy storage products and Model 3. The high-performance cylindrical '2170' cell was jointly-designed and engineered by Tesla and Panasonic to offer the best performance at the lowest production cost in an optimal form factor for both electric vehicles and energy products.

The new cell is called ‘2170’ because it’s 21mm by 70mm. It’s thicker and taller than the previous cell that Tesla used (and also co-developed with Panasonic), which was in an industry-standard ‘18650’ (18mm x 65mm) cell format. The new larger format stores more energy and will reduce the number of cells needed for a given-sized battery pack. That will be a key element in the planned 30% cost reduction for the batteries in the Model 3. And by not straying too far from the existing 18650 size, the new cells could even be used in lower-cost retrofit battery packs for existing Tesla vehicles and energy products.

Production of 2170 cells for qualification started in December and today, production begins on cells that will be used in Tesla’s Powerwall 2 and Powerpack 2 energy products. Model 3 cell production will follow in Q2 and by 2018 the Gigafactory will produce 35 GWh/year of lithium-ion battery cells, nearly as much as the rest of the entire world’s battery production combined.

The Gigafactory is being built in phases so that Tesla, Panasonic, and other partners can begin manufacturing immediately inside the finished sections and continue to expand thereafter. Tesla’s phased approach also supports learning and continuous improvement in construction and operational techniques as the company continues to drive down the cost of energy storage.

Already, the current structure has a footprint of 1.9 million square feet, which houses 4.9 million square feet of operational space across several floors. And the factory is still less than 30 percent done. Once complete, the Gigafactory is expected to be the biggest building in the world.

With the Gigafactory online and ramping up production, Tesla’s cost of battery cells will significantly decline due to increasing automation and process design to enhance yield, lowered capital investment per Wh of production, the simple optimization of locating most manufacturing processes under one roof, and economies of scale. By bringing down the cost of batteries, Tesla expects to make its products available to more and more people.

In 2017 alone, Tesla and Panasonic will hire several thousand local employees and at peak production, the Gigafactory will directly employ 6,500 people and indirectly create between 20,000 to 30,000 additional jobs in the surrounding regions.