Musk : Cell costs will be less than $200 / kWh by 2015

[EVNow]

Battery cost dropping below $200 per kWh soon, says Teslas Elon Musk

A participant from JP Morgan asked (in torturous analyst-speak, using "dimension" as a verb) something to the effect of, "Could you speak about how certain you are of a $200-per-kWh battery price and where you see that number going?" Musk began his response by seeming to deny that figure represented the company's current cost but went on to say, "I do think that cost per kilowatt hour (kWh) at the cell level will decline below that, below $200, in the not-too-distant future."

So, how soon is the "not-too-distant future"? Perhaps 2015. That's the year Tesla is now aiming to begin production of its Gen 3 vehicle – what was historically code named "Blue Star." Tesla had originally planned to make the new Roadster after the Model X, but decided it could make a mass-market vehicle with a price tag in the $30,000 range sooner than it had previously thought.

Ofcourse, we would need to figure out what this means for battery level cost & what that means for BlueStar.

GS Yuasa's president Makota Yoda seems to be very optimistic as well.

For what it's worth, Elon isn't the only one talking about a significant downward price trend. Makoto Yoda, president of Mitsubishi's battery supplier, GS Yuasa, says that due to mass production, the price of its lithium batteries will soon be a quarter of what it was in 2009.

 

[AnOutsider]

It's the Batteries, Stupid!

 

[de704]

by 2015

I think it's funny how reporters try to put words in Elons mouth. He never said 2015. I listened to the earnings call. The people on the call were quoting this below $200 per kwh. Elon restated that Tesla has never disclosed their cost per kwh and that it's a closely guarded propitiatory secret. Personally, I think Tesla is already below that & it's one to their secret competitive advantages. Also Elon pointed out that the figure people are throwing around is the cost at the cell level, there's also cost at the pack level.

 

[AnOutsider]

I think it's funny how reporters try to put words in Elons mouth. He never said 2015. I listened to the earnings call. The people on the call were quoting this below $200 per kwh. Elon restated that Tesla has never disclosed their cost per kwh and that it's a closely guarded propitiatory secret. Personally, I think Tesla is already below that & it's one to their secret competitive advantages. Also Elon pointed out that the figure people are throwing around is the cost at the cell level, there's also cost at the pack level.

They are just speculating based on currently-available information:

So, how soon is the "not-too-distant future"? Perhaps 2015. That's the year Tesla is now aiming to begin production of its Gen 3 vehicle – what was historically code named "Blue Star." Tesla had originally planned to make the new Roadster after the Model X, but decided it could make a mass-market vehicle with a price tag in the $30,000 range sooner than it had previously thought.