Tesla's huge battery in S Australia to use Samsung SDI cells - report

Tesla Inc (NASDAQ:TSLA) will use batteries from Samsung SDI Co Ltd (KRX:006405) for the 100-MW energy storage facility it is building in South Australia, Nikkei Asian Review writes.

The South Korean firm has been selected because it can meet the tight deadlines for the project, while Tesla’s main partner, Panasonic Corp (TYO:6752), is busy with orders for battery cells for electric vehicles (EVs), according to the report.

South Australia in March invited expressions of interest (EOIs) to build the country's largest battery and it got multiple proposals. Tesla CEO Elon Musk said in a tweet at the time that "Tesla will get the system installed and working 100 days from contract signature or it is free". In July it was announced that the EV maker, now active also in solar and storage, has won the tender.

The 100 MW/129 MWh battery, touted as the largest lithium-ion battery storage project around the globe, is to be completed in December 2017. It will work together with Neoen’s 315-MW Hornsdale wind farm.

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