Japanese battery technology company Panasonic Energy and US car manufacturer Lucid Group announced multi-year agreements to supply lithium-ion batteries for Lucid’s luxury electric vehicle (EV) range.
They include its long-range Lucid Air and Lucid’s upcoming Gravity SUV. The agreement is a step in Panasonic’s plans to expand production of lithium-ion EV batteries beyond Japan and into the US. Production will come from a facility in Japan, and from its recently announced $4 billion US battery production facility in De Soto, Kansas.
“Partnerships with technology-leading EV manufacturers such as Lucid are critical to our mission,” Kazuo Tadanobu, the head of Panasonic’s energy business, said in a statement.
The company was established in April 2022 and is part of the Panasonic Group.
Nearly all of Panasonic’s automotive battery production currently goes to Tesla as the US EV maker rapidly expands output.
While Panasonic is benefiting from that ballooning demand, officials at the company are reportedly wary about relying too heavily on one customer.
