Tesla has confirmed that its 4680 battery cell production has now reached a level that can support the production of over 1,000 cars a week. The 4680 battery cell is a new format that Tesla unveiled back in 2020 as the automaker’s first cell developed from the ground up.
In the past, Tesla had been involved in cell development, but it was mainly about tuning the chemistry of existing 18650 and 2170 cell formats. Now Tesla planned to develop a cell of its own with a much bigger format enabled by a tableless design. Tesla also planned to manufacture the cells itself along through partnerships with existing cell manufacturers.
That was more than two years ago, and we haven’t had a clear look at the progress of Tesla’s own 4680 battery cell production. The last official data point that Tesla released was the first 1 million cells completed at its pilot plant in Fremont, and that was back in February 2022.
Since then, the company has only released a few statements about percentage increases in its production rate without confirming the actual production rate. Tesla confirmed the actual production rate for the first time – stating that the team produced 868,000 4680 battery cells over the last week. That’s enough to produce over 1,000 Model Y vehicles. The cells are used to produce one type of Model Y vehicle with a structural battery pack at Gigafactory Texas. Alongside the pilot plant in Fremont, the automaker is also establishing higher volume production at the Texas plant for a shorter supply chain.