The war between Russia and Ukraine has increased the suffering of electric car manufacturers in obtaining their needs for nickel metal for the manufacture of batteries for these cars, which is an essential component of the battery industry, because Russia is one of the largest producers of nickel in the world.
And Bloomberg news agency reported that the American electric car maker Tesla has already succeeded in securing its needs for nickel metal by signing agreements with several suppliers since 2021.
These agreements include a multi-year agreement with the giant mining company “Ville”, which has not yet been announced and includes the supply of nickel from Canada, according to informed sources.
Unlike most other automakers, for years Tesla has focused on ensuring its nickel supply.
Bloomberg notes that these efforts are part of CEO Elon Musk’s focus on achieving vertical integration with the goal of controlling the company’s supply chain.
Tesla, in partnership with Japan’s Panasonic Corporation, operates a huge factory for the production of electric car batteries outside of Reno, Nevada, USA. Tesla buys part of the battery cells from other suppliers in addition to producing them from these cells.
At the same time, the American company is working hard to improve the way it processes raw materials and manufactures batteries. In a presentation in 2020, company executives talked about shortening the path needed to process raw materials from extracting them from the mine to turning them into electrodes in the battery.
What Tesla is doing on the nickel problem gives it a hidden competitive advantage given that “Tesla is constantly trying to be several steps ahead of others,” said Jane Munster, co-director of Loop Venture Consulting
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