Panasonic will use redw in battery production in Tesla's Gigafactory

As part of an expanded partnership with startup Redwood Materials, Panasonic will use more recycled materials by the end of 2022, TechCrunch reported.

Panasonic said Tuesday at CES 2022 that Redwood Materials will begin supplying it with copper foil produced from recycled materials, an important component of the cell anode. Redwood Materials will begin production of copper foil in the first half of this year; then the copper foil will be shipped to Panasonic for battery production by the end of the year.

The announcement marks Panasonic's push to use more recycled materials, which in turn helps reduce the amount of newly mined raw materials it has to rely on; it also shows how Redwood Materials continues to grow its business.

Electric vehicles on the roads today are equipped with lithium-ion batteries. One battery contains two electrodes. On one side is the anode (negative electrode) and on the other side is the cathode (positive electrode). The electrolyte is located in the middle, acting as a "messenger" to move ions between the electrodes when charging and discharging. Anodes are usually made of copper foil coated with graphite.

As automakers step up production of electric vehicles — and eventually replace those equipped with internal combustion engines — demand for batteries and their materials is expected to rise sharply. Nearly all major automakers working on the electrified car portfolio have also locked in partnerships with battery makers and other suppliers in an effort to strengthen their supply chains.

Redwood Materials, founded in 2017 by former Tesla chief technology officer JB Straubel, aims to create a circular supply chain. The company recycles scrap from battery cell production, as well as consumer electronics such as cell phone batteries, laptops, power tools, power boxes, scooters and e-bikes. It then processes the discarded cargo, extracts materials such as cobalt, nickel and lithium, which are normally mined, and then resupplyes those materials to Panasonic and other customers (the company has also publicly disclosed that it is working with Amazon and Tennessee-based AESC Envision).

Redwood aims to build a closed-loop system that will ultimately help reduce the cost of batteries and offset the need for mining.

Redwood announced earlier this year that it had purchased 100 acres of land near the Gigafactory, a hint of expanding its partnership with Panasonic.

Allan Swan, president of Panasonic North American Energy, said in his speech: "Together, we are building a domestic battery cycle supply chain and are an important step towards realizing the full opportunity for electric vehicles to shape a more sustainable world. ”

Redwood announced plans in September to produce critical battery materials in the United States. The company plans to build a $2 billion plant to produce cathode and anode foil, which is expected to produce 100 GWh of material per year; by 2025, that's enough for 1 million electric vehicles.