The Birth of a Battery Giant
Just outside Kansas City, Panasonic Energy has flipped the switch on what it claims is the world’s largest electric vehicle battery manufacturing facility. And no, you won’t need a map the size of 225 football fields to find it — it’s a whopping 4.7-million-square-foot complex sitting pretty in De Soto, Kansas. This modern marvel comes with a price tag of $4 billion, promising to supercharge Panasonic’s U.S. manufacturing ambitions.
Bigger, Better, Fast and Furious
So, how do you improve your battery game? Panasonic is looking to boost U.S. battery production capacity to an eyebrow-raising 73 gigawatt-hours once the De Soto plant is fully operational. That’s right — this facility aims to be 20% more productive than its older sibling in Nevada, producing a staggering 70 cells per second! That’s more than six million cells a day — enough to power a small nation!
A Mixed Bag of Opportunities and Challenges
But before you grab your popcorn, the State of Electric Vehicles (EVs) isn’t all sunshine and rainbows. With trade tensions and a cooling sales atmosphere for Tesla, increasing concerns about overcapacity loom large. Panasonic’s ambitious plans have been slightly delayed, and competitors like LG Energy Solution are still churning out larger numbers, which could rain on Panasonic’s parade.
Still, this Kansas production powerhouse is set to create 4,000 direct manufacturing jobs (and 8,000 in related sectors) while helping Panasonic diversify its customer base. It’s safe to say that when it comes to battery innovation, Panasonic is striving to keep its options plugged in!
