Drover Rideshare Nashville is one of the most popular on-demand economy companies in town. Since our vision is to achieve the ultimate eco-by-green culture, we continuously work on adding eco-friendly cars to our fleet. This is why we take a great interest in the upcoming Tesla’s 2020 annual shareholder meeting.
The upcoming event is conveniently named “Battery Day” which makes it even more interesting, especially for people interested in electric cars. Tesla is now way ahead of the competition, and something is brewing in their labs. Let’s see what we can expect from Tesla’s upcoming Battery Day 2020.
What do We Know So Far?
The Battery Day event is scheduled for September 22, 2020, at 2:30 p.m. Pacific Time. It will take place at Tesla’s Fremont, California factory. This is excellent news since the event was scheduled for July, 7, but had to be postponed due to COVID-19.
Just two months ago, the ill news hit us, as Elon Musk tweeted: “We will have to postpone the annual shareholder meeting, as still no large gatherings allowed by July 7. Not sure about the new date, but I am guessing maybe a month or so later.”
Now it’s official. The meeting will take place next month. Here is the official announcement by the world-renowned automaker: “Tesla’s 2020 Annual Meeting of Stockholders will be held in person on Tuesday, September 22, 2020, at 2:30 p.m. Pacific Time, at Tesla’s Fremont Factory located at 45500 Fremont Blvd, Fremont, CA 94538. Further details regarding the 2020 Annual Meeting will be provided in additional proxy materials to be filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission.”
Why Is This Event So Important?
Elon Musk insisted that the next event has to be held in person, making it safe to assume that there will be a huge announcement. Over the past few years, Tesla worked hard to push the boundaries of battery technology.
As you probably know, the automaker works hand in hand with Panasonic. Tesla cars are powered by the batteries produced in Panasonic factories. However, Tesla also has an ongoing project. The company’s goal is to be completely independent. In its efforts to do so, Tesla is developing an in-house battery production facility.
The in-house battery production facility should help Tesla become even more competitive. The new batteries should cost less while delivering even better durability. If there is one thing in the electric car market that can provide a competitive advantage, then that is the cost per kilowatt-hour of storage capacity.
Batteries that can store more power enable electric vehicles to cover a higher range. If Tesla achieves it, the total cost of an electric passenger vehicle will go down as will rideshare Nashville services.
Will Nickel Replace Lithium Batteries?
Tesla’s in-house battery production facility will not be the only topic discussed at the Battery Day event next month. The chances are that we are going to find out more about the company’s partnership with Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL), a Chinese giant on the electric vehicle batteries market.
The company currently uses nickel-cobalt-aluminum (NCA) and nickel-manganese-cobalt (NMC) batteries in its passenger vehicles. The reasoning behind this decision is simple. Both NCA and NMC batteries have high energy density enabling Tesla cars to cover high ranges. However, cobalt is the most expensive metal, making these batteries costly. Ultimately, the high price of cobalt makes Tesla cars costly and less competitive.
The result of the Tesla-CATL partnership could be the lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries in Tesla vehicles. CATL currently works on developing lithium-free batteries, which are significantly cheaper than NCA and NMC ones. Could this be the new million-mile battery powering Tesla’s EVs? According to Reuters, LFP batteries will be less expensive than NCA and NMC ones by a double-digit percentage.
The Technology Behind The New Million Mile Battery
Together with CATL, Tesla has been working on cobalt-free batteries. The new million-mile battery is based on cell-to-pack technology. The new technology reduces the costs of battery production by eliminating the middle step of bundling cells. Thanks to cell-to-pack new LFP batteries will be not only cheaper but also lighter.
Tesla works hand in hand with a team of academic battery experts on this project. The LFP battery will have a higher density and storage capacity. More importantly, its production will be more cost-efficient than the production of NCA and NMC batteries.
The company didn’t disclose details about this project. So far, we know that the new batteries will feature several innovations, including cobalt-free and low-cobalt battery chemistries. The scientists also used coating, materials, and chemical additives to increase the batteries’ capacity and reduce internal stress.
Meanwhile, it is safe to assume that Tesla is not going to abandon NCA and NMC batteries completely. At least not until the company is sure that the LFP battery production is sustainable and that it provides a better experience to Tesla customers.
If the LFP makes it into Tesla’s EV as the standard battery, the total cost of the vehicles will drop, making Tesla EVs more competitive on the EV market.
This will automatically mean that the rideshare Nashville services will become more affordable, facilitating the growth of on-demand economy companies. The news is also great for all companies planning to embrace the eco by green culture.
Finally, let us remind you that the upcoming Tesla annual shareholder meeting is scheduled for September 22, 2020. We will have to wait for the official announcement to discover whether the company is abandoning NCA and NCM batteries for LFP. Stay tuned, as we are going to cover the event on our rideshare blogs.
