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Panasonic to Accelerate Production at Tesla’s Battery “Gigafactory”

Panasonic Corp. will begin making lithium-ion cells in July at Tesla Motors Inc.’s huge battery “gigafactory” in Nevada, about six months ahead of its original schedule, according to The Nikkei.
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Panasonic Corp. will begin making lithium-ion cells in July at Tesla Motors Inc.’s huge battery “gigafactory” in Nevada, about six months ahead of its original schedule, according to The Nikkei.

The factory will begin pilot production next month. The newspaper says Tesla asked Panasonic to accelerate its production schedule after the carmaker collected some 300,000 deposits for its upcoming Model 3 electric sedan. Tesla hopes to launch the $35,000 car at the end of next year.

A Panasonic executive tells The Nikkei the company also may accelerate its planned $1.6 billion investment in the Tesla factory. The original plan was to make the investment in eight installments over several years. But the newspaper’s source says the schedule could change if necessary to avoid a shortage of batteries for the Model 3 as its production grows.

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