Tesla is speculated to construct a new US battery production plant with Chinese power battery giant CATL, Bloomberg reports citing people familiar with the matter.
Tesla reportedly had discussions with the Biden Administration
The trusted sources revealed that Tesla had a meeting with the White House regarding its plans with partner CATL. They apparently disclosed some of the private conversations between the parties, claiming that Tesla representatives are looking to clarify the standards of the Inflation Reduction Act that are set to be finalized this week.
One of the sources further revealed that Tesla’s senior global director of public policy Rohan Patel was among the representatives present at the meeting.
Why is building the speculated battery plant reasonable for Tesla?
The leading American automaker aims to qualify for the federal tax credits, which mandate that 40% of critical minerals must be mined or processed in the US (or FTA nations) or recycled in North America. Furthermore, 50% of the battery components must be produced or assembled in the region.
Therefore, Tesla plans to own and manage the planned plant while licensing CATL’s technology. This move is very similar to Ford and CATL’s deal in February.
The report suggests that the new battery plant would be in Texas to supply the automaker’s Gigafactory in the state.
Unfortunately, there is still no confirmation or comments from Tesla, CATL, and the White House about the speculations. We could only wait and see for the following days if the news would actually materialize.
See Also:
- Tesla Model 3 & Y qualify for California’s USD2,000 rebate
- Tesla supplier CATL, hunting sites for Battery plant in Mexico
- EV battery market leader CATL reported shares decline in January, BYD increases
- Tesla officially confirmed plans to erect its next Gigafactory in Mexico
- Ford announces plans to license CATL’s electric vehicle battery technology
For those unaware, the entry-level Tesla Model 3 is about to lose its full eligibility to the federal tax incentives of up to $7,500 because its cells are now made in CATL’s China plants. However, Tesla buyers would be able to receive the full tax credits on the model with US-made LFP cells.
