Tesla bets on mining with Nevada lithium claim

Tesla revealed its new ‘4680 cell’ at the company’s Battery Day, promising five times more energy capacity and six times more power than previous cells, key factors to fulfill its long-term objective to sell a low cost mass-market electric vehicle.

The company also said it is planning to build its own cathode factory in North America, and when Elon Musk announced the company’s claim on 10,000-acre lithium clay deposit in Nevada, it signaled that Tesla is officially getting into the mining business.

According to Tesla’s estimates, using its new extraction and processing technology, lithium in Nevada would be enough to support the electrification of the entire US vehicle fleet.