Tesla China Denies Made-in-China Model 3s to Adopt CATL’s M3P Batteries

Chinese media outlets previously quoted sources as saying that Tesla will soon launch a new version of its Model 3. The reports suggested that the biggest highlight is that the new model would be fully equipped with an M3P battery made by Chinese industry giant CATL. Thus, the endurance was to be improved by at least 10%. On August 18, however, a spokesperson for Tesla China said that this news is just a rumor and is inconsistent with the facts.

The M3P battery is a new product launched in February 2022 by CATL. On July 22, at the World EV & ES Battery Conference, Wu Kai, the chief scientist of CATL, said that its M3P battery has been mass-produced and can be put on the market and applied in new electric vehicles as soon as next year. According to his introduction, the energy density of this battery is higher than that of ferrous lithium phosphate battery, but the cost is lower than that of ternary lithium battery, which helps to promote the price reduction of electric vehicles.

At present, Model 3s produced by Tesla’s Gigafactory Shanghai are equipped with CATL lithium iron phosphate battery, and the cruising range of CLTC is 556 km to 675 km, which is expected to exceed 600 km and 700 km after upgrading the battery pack in the whole system. Sources also revealed that Tesla still has no plans to use BYD-supplied batteries in vehicles produced at Gigafactory Shanghai.

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On August 3, LatePost reported that Model Ys made in China will adopt the CATL M3P battery with a 72-degree battery pack. CATL will supply M3P batteries to Tesla in Q4 of this year, and this version of the Model Y will be launched early next year.

CATL’s expansion in overseas markets has become increasingly obvious. Recently, American automobile manufacturer Ford officially announced that it will cooperate with CATL to import lithium iron phosphate batteries at a lower cost, and that it will carry them on its own electric pickup trucks and SUV models. According to foreign media reports, South Korean carmaker Hyundai Motor is also considering using batteries made by CATL in all of its models.