Chinese automaker BYD said to offer Tesla ‘Blade Battery’

Shanghai (Gasgoo)- Chinese automaker BYD will supply Tesla with its ultra-safe “Blade Battery” from the second quarter of 2022, according to a local media outlet, citing sources familiar with the matter. It is also reported that the Tesla-branded model carrying the “Blade Battery” has gone into the phase of C sample testing.

BYD declined to comment. 

BYD Blade Battery; photo credit: BYD

On March 29, 2020, BYD officially announced the launch of the Blade Battery, which is designed to mitigate concerns about battery safety in electric vehicles. The new product is essentially a lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery, but in a new approach to significantly increase safety and volumetric energy density as well as reduce costs.

Due to the specially designed structure—the singular cells are arranged together in an array and then inserted into a battery pack, the space utilization of the battery pack is increased by over 50% compared to conventional LFP block batteries, the company said.

“The launch of 'Blade Battery' demonstrates BYD's resolution to thoroughly solve the pain points of NEV safety and our better capability in guiding global battery industry back on track, so as to put an end to spontaneous combustions in EVs,” Wang Chuanfu, chairman and president of BYD, said at the launch event.

The Han EV, BYD's flagship sedan model hitting the market in mid-July of last year, was the first model to be equipped with the “Blade Battery”.

BYD's entire all-electric vehicle series have already carried the “Blade Battery”, according to a document exposed by BYD last month.