The traffic was relatively smooth today, and they arrived at the Jierui Power plant at 9 o'clock. From a distance, they could see that the second phase of the factory building had reached the later stage of construction, and was waiting for the relevant equipment of the production line to be in place, so that production could begin at the end of the year.
The branch factory located in Jinyang, my hometown, is also under construction in full swing, and all the money is paid for with low-interest loans from the bank.
Tesla can get billions of unsecured loans from domestic banks, so there is no reason why Xia Yu cannot get it. The first generation of batteries he produced fully complies with the country's subsidy regulations, which greatly alleviated his cost pressure. Coupled with the loans he obtained, the company developed rapidly.
I believe that by 2020, the size of Jierui Power will have expanded several times and become a large or medium-sized power lithium battery manufacturer.
"I've visited the battery factories of Panasonic and LG Chem. They have advanced production lines and ultra-low yield rates, and their product performance has always been world-leading. But now it's different. Your products are more competitive."
After visiting the battery production workshop, Musk thought and expressed his feelings. Judging from the appearance alone, Jierui Power is definitely no match for others, but they win in internal strength.
"Advanced production lines are necessary, not only to increase production capacity but also to adapt to process upgrades. The second-generation battery cells will all be produced in the Phase II plant and branch factories."
In Xia Yu's plan, two generations of products will be produced at the same time. Only when the third generation of battery cells is reached will he consider eliminating the first generation of battery cells and handing them over to subsidiaries for production, or selling them directly.
The market needs differentiated products. Lithium iron phosphate batteries have not yet been eliminated, so how could it be the turn of the high-performance first-generation battery cells? However, Xia Yu's continuous innovation may accelerate this process.
"Let's go to the lab!"
Xia Yu finally got to the point and led Musk to the company's laboratory.
The upgraded laboratory has more advanced equipment. Although it is not as good as the laboratory at the honeycomb base, it is sufficient to handle the replication and upgrade of 2.0 battery cells and confirm many details of the process standards.
When they arrived, Liu Ling and several engineers were doing various data analyses on the battery cell samples. Musk was no stranger to the laboratory. Although it was not large in scale, it had all the necessary equipment, and it felt completely different from a production workshop.
This is understandable. The standard for upgrading the entire laboratory is to adapt to the new factory and new production line. Many equipment are imported directly from abroad through connections, and the money must not be wasted.
"We are currently testing the number of battery cell cycles."
Xia Yu glanced at it and said that he had already done relevant experiments and the data was very clear.
"Are there any previous experimental results?"
Musk expressed concern that the number of battery cycles is an important indicator. Although it seems to have a higher energy density and lower cost, it also has the disadvantages of shorter battery cycle life and lower charge and discharge rate.
"The number of cycles for the prototype is between 1,000 and 1,500, and subsequent models are expected to exceed 2,000 cycles."
The first generation of battery cells did not have an advantage in cycle life, but the 2.0 battery cells had great advantages in all aspects. Xia Yu called Liu Ling and asked him to give Musk the various experimental reports he had prepared.
Lao Ma started watching it in the laboratory. The more he watched, the more excited he became. It would be great if this kind of battery could be installed in the pickup truck project he was still planning.
Musk has always planned to launch an electric pickup truck. There is no better choice for this car than this battery. He has already made the decision in his mind.
“When will mass production begin?”
"That will have to wait until the second half of the year. If the production line is laid out smoothly, trial production will be carried out at the end of the year, and large-scale mass production will be carried out next year."
Xia Yu knows everything about Jierui Power. A lot of work needs to be done before the mass production of 2.0 battery cells, such as opening up the upstream raw material supply chain.
Some time ago, he established a joint venture with a cobalt company in Zhejiang Province and signed a five-year lithium hydroxide supply agreement with a lithium company in Jiangxi Province...
At present, Jierui Power is still small in scale and has many shortcomings in controlling raw material costs. Large companies like CATL have the capital to purchase mining companies on a large scale, which not only lowers costs but also gives them a certain say in material pricing.
Xia Yu expressed envy of this, but Jierui Power will also have such a day.
"This is very fast. I will release an electric pickup truck in the second half of the year, but it will not be officially launched until at least 2021."
Musk joked that whether it is a traditional car company or a new energy car company, they all need to gain popularity and investor confidence by continuously releasing new models.
This reminded Xia Yu that Bugatti still owed him a car, and it had been half a year and still hadn't been delivered. He would have to urge them to deliver it later.
"Elon, what exactly do you think?"
"I think we must carry out in-depth cooperation in China and the entire Asian market."
Musk said with a serious face.
"I plan to use the 1.0 battery cells produced by Jierui Power in models currently in production, such as the Model 3, and the 2.0 battery cells in new models that have not yet been mass-produced."
He has already seen the power of 2.0 battery cells, but this is too far away after all. 1.0 is the most suitable choice for now. In addition, the site of Jierui Power is no more than 10 kilometers away from Tesla's Shanghai factory. There is nothing more wonderful than this.
As soon as the battery cells come off the production line, they are put online to be made into battery packs. The production capacity of Model 3 will no longer exist due to battery limitations, and how many more cars will be delivered in a year?
"I think we can hold a press conference together before you leave the Magic City."
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