Tesla Gigafactory Investor Thread

[Cattledog]

Next Gigafactory in Germany?

Link: http://finance.yahoo.com/news/tesla-says-talks-bmw-over-152243111.html

Link: http://www.spiegel.de/wirtschaft/un...-batteriefabrik-in-deutschland-a-1004441.html

Is it a ploy to drum up sales? Or if it's in Germany it more likely speeds adoption of BEV by BMW, MB, VW, Audi, Porsche! etc.? or both?

 

[Curt Renz]

Is it a ploy to drum up sales? Or if it's in Germany it more likely speeds adoption of BEV by BMW, MB, VW, Audi, Porsche! etc.? or both?

Keep in mind that a person's comments found in individual publications are generally not due to "announcements" planned by the interviewee. They are "responses" to reporters' questions.

 

[Robert.Boston]

Is it a ploy to drum up sales? Or if it's in Germany it more likely speeds adoption of BEV by BMW, MB, VW, Audi, Porsche! etc.? or both?

My guess is that it's a combination of factors:

• Deep personnel pool in precision engineering & metalwork
• Generally pro-business environment
• Excellent transit links
• Proximity to other auto OEM factories (for delivering batteries)
• Becoming "part of the club" of German manufacturers to overcome domestic prejudice

 

[aronth5]

Not sure if this post belongs in this thread but I ran across an article written earlier this year related to Tesla that summarized the graphite market and some of the leading companies that might produce the anodes that are used in lithium ion batteries.
Graphite constitutes a significant % by weight of a typical lithium-ion battery compared to other materials so reducing the price is important.
There have been recent rumors that Tesla will announce fairly soon additional gigafactory partnerships. I wonder if any will be mining suppliers or is it too soon?

Going Natural: The Solution To Tesla’s Graphite Problem
http://www.techmetalsresearch.com/2014/03/going-natural-the-solution-to-teslas-graphite-problem/

Of the three companies the author highlights Northern Graphite located in Ontario just announced an Open Source Battery Research and Testing Facility.
"The facility will be available on normal commercial terms to any company, including Northern's competitors, provided that all results are made publicly available and shared with the industry"
http://finance.yahoo.com/news/northern-graphite-creates-open-source-172136013.html

 

[chickensevil]

I believe the stated reason for using synthetic graphite is because it produces a higher quality cell. So they won't sacrifice quality for price since the quality determines how dense the cell is.

 

[Cosmacelf]

Yes, I don't know why people keep talking about mined graphite. Elon has said that they use synthetic to ensure consistency. It may be one of many reasons why Tesla batteries are so long lived.

 

[aronth5]

I believe the stated reason for using synthetic graphite is because it produces a higher quality cell. So they won't sacrifice quality for price since the quality determines how dense the cell is.

Yes, I don't know why people keep talking about mined graphite. Elon has said that they use synthetic to ensure consistency. It may be one of many reasons why Tesla batteries are so long lived.

That may be why we haven't heard much about mined graphite recently. The article was from March 2014 but there doesn't seem to be much written about it since. Thank you for the feedback.

 

[Zzzz...]

QUOTE:"Tesla acknowledges that it is working with new cathode and anode materials for its next-generation battery, hoping to improve cost, density, and longevity.”

Tesla CEO Elon Musk: Next Disruption Is Next-Gen Battery

 

[Benz]

QUOTE:"Tesla acknowledges that it is working with new cathode and anode materials for its next-generation battery, hoping to improve cost, density, and longevity.”

Tesla CEO Elon Musk: Next Disruption Is Next-Gen Battery

That quote is from Bob Rauh, director of business development for automotive and infrastructure at Panasonic.

 

[chickensevil]

I really like seeing this from Panasonic's view. The article even notes that we don't get a glimpse into this relationship from Panasonic's view very often. It helps validate that Elon isn't just blowing smoke and also shows that Panasonic seems to really care about working with Tesla on this project.

 

[favo]

That quote is from Bob Rauh, director of business development for automotive and infrastructure at Panasonic.

That quote is just an excerpt from the Car & Driver blog (author Eric Tingwall). Presumably, he talked to someone at Tesla.

 

[aznt1217]

Somehow nobody has posted this.

How Nevada won the Tesla Gigafactory | Fortune: How Nevada won the Tesla Gigafactory | Fortune - YouTube

 

[aronth5]

I'm sure Tesla loves hearing the can do attitude because there will be many challenges over the next few years.

From Sparks Assistant City Manager Neil Krutz.. "Really, it's up to us to deliver on those capital and operating plans so that the capacity is there when it is needed," he added."

Regional officials: Reno area can handle Tesla growth but at hefty price
http://www.dailyjournal.net/view/story/6c236a774c754e12af6f369d1976b4e9/NV--Tesla-Impact-Reno/

 

[LakeForest]

Over in the "Tesla Motors" section Gigafactory thread there are pictures of the steel frame going up in case you only live in the investor threads.....

 

[RobStark]

 

[ScepticMatt]

Looks like the two story steel structure is roughly 1/4 the size of the full factory.
I.e this is one of the "modules" they were talking about.

 

[chickensevil]

Looks like the two story steel structure is roughly 1/4 the size of the full factory.
I.e this is one of the "modules" they were talking about.

See I thought they were supposed to be doing just one floor not two... won't this make the factory 2x the size we were originally expecting? Are they building fewer modules at first to compensate the 2 floors thereby giving them more room off the bat? I am not complaining if this is true, just trying to figure out what the plan is.

So exciting seeing steel go up!

 

[RobStark]

 

[chickensevil]

Looking closer it appears that the second floor height is shorter than the first floor. Maybe they are just going to use the second floor for offices? Which would save space. If this is the case would they extend the second floor across the whole factory or just over a small section? Would throw off the symmetry of the building... and they did say they wanted the building to look good... hrmmm... this has only raised more questions! GAH! Tesla give us some details already.

 

[Robert.Boston]

The Fremont factory also has two floors, in some areas. They use the upstairs for battery assembly. Perhaps they're planning something similar here: cell manufacturing downstairs, cell QC and battery assembly upstairs?