Tesla Giga Berlin To Feature 'Largest Battery Cell Plant In The World,' Musk Says

Tesla Inc TSLA CEO Elon Musk said Tuesday that the automaker’s Berlin gigafactory would feature the largest battery-cell manufacturing facility in the world.

What Happened: Musk’s revelations regarding Berlin Gigafactory came at a battery conference organized by Germany’s economy ministry. 

Musk said that from a small pilot test plot in California, Tesla would go on to building the “largest battery cell plant in the world.”

The CEO revealed that Berlin gigafactory would be capable of over 100-gigawatt hours per year of production and possibly over time “200 or 250-gigawatt hours a year.”

The entrepreneur said he was pretty confident that “at that point, it would be the largest battery cell plant in the world.”

Musk explained that in order for the automaker to meet its goals at Berlin the automaker needs to “quite radically improve the cycle time” and there is a need to “redesign machinery for continuous flow operation.”

Why It Matters: The world’s production capacity for li-ion battery cells is estimated to be 250 GWh, according to Bloomberg but that number could more than double by the time Tesla reaches that number in Berlin, Electrek reported.

There is reportedly no clarity on when the production of battery cells would commence at Tesla’s Berlin factory but it may be around the same time when vehicle production begins, expected to be July.

Tesla has plans to use its new structural battery pack technology in Model Y vehicles it will make in Berlin but the company has said it would use battery cells made at its pilot factory in its European Model Y, noted Electrek.

One million vehicles per year could be manufactured with 100 GWh capacity in Berlin when the plant reaches its maximum capacity.

However, the same cells could also be used in semi-trucks, which need 10 times more battery cells than a run of the mill electric car or for other applications, as per Electrek. 

Price Action: Tesla shares closed 6.43% higher at $555.38 on Tuesday and rose 1.26% to $562.40 in the after-hours session.

Related Link: New Battery Cells Could Give Tesla Semi More Than 600 Miles Of Range