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I believe Tesla has been talking about reducing the amount of cobalt in their batteries which would be a technology way of reducing cost. As well as simply maki

I believe Tesla has been talking about reducing the amount of cobalt in their batteries which would be a technology way of reducing cost. As well as simply making larger more automated factories reduces the production costs. Battery companies are going from all angles to reduce their prices.

samstave 8y ago
Right, the clear indication here is on commodity futures for the raw materials which batteries will require for the next 100 years. If you want to own the future of transport, owning cobalt and lithium mines is where to be. So, who specifically is doing this? Thats where i would invest. --- Also, what will the overall environmental impact of the full lifecycle be for a generation of EVs in 15 years. If tesla is producing 10k cars a week, and they will require 2 batteries in their lifetime, thats about 300K batteries per year - where they will last N years... then what becomes of them?
- belltaco 8y ago
  If you're a retail investor, it's probably very likely that the big guys have already priced this in, and all you're making might be a bet that shifts on new information. The big guys also get new information much faster than the rest, and even have people employed who's job is to get information via non-traditional means that are not available to average investors. For example: https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2010/08/19/129298095/with-satellite-images-wall-street-analysts-spy-on-wal-mart https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2010/08/19/129298095/with... Using satellite images of parking lots to predict super market earnings, or using satellite images to estimate corn and wheat production.
ksec 8y ago
Even before Tesla, Battery factories were already fully automated. The larger scale and specific battery usage gave them some cost advantage, along with little to no margin as it counted against Tesla Motor R&D rather than Panasonics. I am still surprised how we managed to bring this down 50 to 60% over the past years.

samstave 8y ago

Right, the clear indication here is on commodity futures for the raw materials which batteries will require for the next 100 years. If you want to own the future of transport, owning cobalt and lithium mines is where to be. So, who specifically is doing this? Thats where i would invest. --- Also, what will the overall environmental impact of the full lifecycle be for a generation of EVs in 15 years. If tesla is producing 10k cars a week, and they will require 2 batteries in their lifetime, thats about 300K batteries per year - where they will last N years... then what becomes of them?

belltaco 8y ago
If you're a retail investor, it's probably very likely that the big guys have already priced this in, and all you're making might be a bet that shifts on new information. The big guys also get new information much faster than the rest, and even have people employed who's job is to get information via non-traditional means that are not available to average investors. For example: https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2010/08/19/129298095/with-satellite-images-wall-street-analysts-spy-on-wal-mart https://www.npr.org/sections/money/2010/08/19/129298095/with... Using satellite images of parking lots to predict super market earnings, or using satellite images to estimate corn and wheat production.

ksec 8y ago

Even before Tesla, Battery factories were already fully automated. The larger scale and specific battery usage gave them some cost advantage, along with little to no margin as it counted against Tesla Motor R&D rather than Panasonics. I am still surprised how we managed to bring this down 50 to 60% over the past years.