On September 9, Panasonic said that the Wakayama plant, which was previously used to produce battery components, will become Panasonic’s main facility for the production of 4680 cylindrical lithium-ion batteries in the future. The plant will begin production as soon as it completes a final evaluation, but Panasonic did not give a date.

Panasonic says the 4680 battery is lighter, more efficient and less costly than the previous generation 2170 battery. This helps increase the range of electric vehicles, speed up charging and reduce costs. Yuki Kusumi, CEO of Panasonic, said: “Batteries are an important resource for the country. We believe these batteries will help popularize electric vehicles.”

While global sales growth of electric vehicles has slowed and plug-in hybrids are gaining in popularity, most automakers and component suppliers agree that they should continue to prepare for the industry’s eventual transition to pure electric vehicles.

As a result, Panasonic, a major supplier to Tesla and several large automakers in Japan, is developing advanced batteries and rebuilding its supply chain (especially in North America), investing in electric vehicle technology.

Last week, Panasonic’s battery unit, Panasonic Energy, and Subaru Co. said they would invest 463 billion yen ($3.2 billion) to build a new battery factory in Gunma prefecture, Japan. By the end of 2030, the plant will have a capacity of 16 gigawatt hours. Subaru plans to install batteries from the plant in its electric vehicles to be launched in fiscal 2028.

In addition, Panasonic is also working with Mazda Motor to develop cylindrical lithium-ion batteries.

Last week, the Japanese government also announced new subsidies of 350 billion yen for Panasonic and other companies to invest in research and development of solid-state batteries and other electric vehicle technologies.