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Repeats story that ran earlier, with no changes

TOKYO, Feb 4 (Reuters) - Japan's Panasonic Holdings 6752.T raised the full-year earnings forecast for its energy unit, which supplies batteries to Tesla TSLA.O, on stronger sales of energy storage systems and improved profitability at its U.S. battery plant.

The company will also seek to improve group profitability by more than 300 billion yen ($1.93 billion) and achieve a return on equity of over 10% by the fiscal year ending March 2029, it said in a separate plan announced on Tuesday.

Panasonic raised the battery segment's full-year outlook by 14% to 124 billion yen ($798.35 million) after it reported a 39% increase in year-on-year operating profit at the unit in the third quarter.

The unit's stronger performance was fuelled by growth in sales of energy storage systems and lower material prices, along with improved profitability in its in-vehicle business in North America.

Those factors helped offset an overall decrease in automotive battery sales which led to reduced production in Japan and ramped-up costs for two facilities, a new U.S. battery plant and a renovated factory in Japan's Wakayama prefecture.

Panasonic said in its separate announcement that it would focus on management reform in the fiscal year starting April and aim to improve its group profitability by more than 150 billion yen by fiscal 2026 and another 150 billion yen by fiscal 2028.

Panasonic Energy operates a plant in the U.S. state of Nevada that provides batteries to Tesla. It plans to open a second U.S. plant in Kansas this year as it enlarges its footprint in North America.

Third-quarter operating income for the key segment rose to 42 billion yen ($270.46 million), Panasonic said in financial materials. The company also retained its full-year profit forecast for its group's entire business at 380 billion yen.

Panasonic competes with other Asian battery makers such as China's CATL 300750.SZ and South Korea's LG Energy Solution 373220.KS, which said last month it planned to slash capital expenditure by up to 30% this year on slowing EV demand growth.

($1 = 155.1800 yen)

(Reporting by Daniel Leussink; Editing by Christian Schmollinger, Saad Sayeed and Kate Mayberry)

(([email protected]; Twitter: @danielleussink;))

Jan 14 -

By Nick Carey, European Autos Correspondent

Greetings from London!

In less than a week, Donald Trump will no longer be U.S. President-elect and the auto industry should, in theory, know right away whether his tariff threats for everywhere, but above all Mexico and China, are real.

Since Trump won the presidential election in November, automakers and major suppliers have been rather quiet about the game-planning they have been doing for the various tariffs he might impose.

But last week, a few major suppliers – Bosch, Continental, Panasonic Energy – and Honda opened up at CES in Las Vegas about the options they’re weighing ahead of time. Some of them gave details in interviews with my Reuters colleague Abhirup Roy and you can read about them here.

They are looking at ways to remove tariff-prone parts or move to markets closer to the U.S., or away from Mexico – though not necessarily into the United States. But they’re ready to roll as soon as Trump makes his move.

Which brings us to today’s Auto File…

• Germany’s bad year in China

• U.S. finalizes anti-Chinese connected-car rules

• Slower year ahead for Chinese car exports

German automakers’ pain in China

It’s official. 2024 was a bad year for German automakers in China.

Porsche in particular had an annus horribilis in China, with sales plunging 28% as Chinese consumers increasingly held back on luxury goods because of faltering economic growth and an ongoing real estate crisis.

But Volkswagen, BMW and Mercedes-Benz all saw sales fall in China amid stiff competition from local automakers, which has been a bitter pill to swallow as they have been reliant on Chinese sales to boost profits.

To make matters worse, as my Reuters colleague Victoria Waldersee reports, their sales of premium models at home in Germany have also fallen because of economic uncertainty. You can read about it here.

Volkswagen has already announced a deal with its German union for 35,000 future job cuts and sharp capacity reductions to counter cheaper Chinese rivals and weak demand in Europe.

But the German auto industry’s winter of discontent may well be far from over.

Recommended reading:

• Lithium prices should stabilize in 2025

• CATL blacklisting could hurt Tesla

• Mercedes rides India’s luxury wave

U.S. finalizes anti-Chinese EV rules

In one of its last acts before exiting stage right, Joe Biden’s administration has finalized rules this week cracking down on Chinese vehicle software and hardware in connected cars. You can read about it here.

First proposed in September, this move effectively bans virtually all Chinese cars and trucks from the U.S. market. It is thus far more effective than tariffs at keeping out Chinese-made EVs or even those made by Chinese-owned brands that had hoped to build cars in U.S. factories.

Polestar, for instance, has said that the ban would “effectively prohibit” the sale of its cars, even those manufactured in the United States.

Biden added to Chinese tariffs imposed by Trump, and the Inflation Reduction Act has further encouraged automakers and suppliers to avoid Chinese suppliers.

While Trump has promised yet more tariffs on Chinese imports, he has also said he wants to incentivize Chinese automakers to come to make cars in the United States. So it remains to be seen if the new rules will remain in place under Trump.

Slowing Chinese car exports in 2025

China’s car export growth is expected to slow in 2025 to around 5.8% versus a hefty 19.3% increase last year as tariffs in Europe on Chinese-made EVs are expected to further hit electric car exports.

The China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM) said EV exports fell 10.4% last year after rising 80.9% in 2023. Meanwhile, plug-in hybrid exports were up 190% after posting growth of 47.8% in 2023.

China ranked as the world's largest auto exporter ahead of Japan for the second year running in 2024 despite the EU tariffs introduced in late October.

CAAM forecasts Chinese vehicle sales will rise 4.7% to 32.9 million units this year, following a 4.5% rise in 2024.

BYD’s Brazilian labor problems continue

BYD brought hundreds of Chinese workers to Brazil on irregular visas to build a factory, a key labor inspector told my Reuters colleagues Fabio Teixeira and Luciana Novaes Magalhaes, bringing fresh Brazilian labor problems for the Chinese automaker. You can read about it here.

A total of 163 of the workers, who were hired by BYD contractor Jinjiang, were found last month to be working in what Brazilian authorities described as "slavery-like conditions."

Liane Durao, who spearheaded the labor authorities’ probe in Bahia state, told Reuters that BYD has pledged to comply with local labor laws for the workers it still employs in the country.

Durao said the 163 workers are in the process of leaving Brazil, adding that BYD would be fined for each one. She did not say how much BYD will end up paying.

In December, the labor prosecutor's office described the workers as human trafficking victims. Jinjiang had withheld the passports of 107 of the workers, investigators said.

Fast Laps

Sweden's Volvo Group will go ahead with a planned $700-million heavy-truck factory in Mexico, despite Trump’s tariff threats, its CEO told Reuters.

Hyundai Motor is launching an $18,000 compact electric car in Japan to penetrate a market dominated by local giants focused on petrol and hybrid vehicle technologies.

BYD  will launch its Atto 2 compact electric SUV in Europe in February, despite EU tariffs on Chinese-made EVs.

Stellantis achieved its goal of cutting its bloated U.S. inventories by more than 100,000 vehicles late last year, the company’s top North American executive said.

British luxury automaker Rolls-Royce is investing 300 million pounds to expand its UK Goodwood plant to focus more on bespoke cars for high-end clients.

Australian law firm Maurice Blackburn has filed a class action lawsuit against U.S. carmaker General Motors' local Holden unit, alleging the transmission systems of certain models of the now-defunct brand were defective.

Think your friend or colleague should know about us? Forward this newsletter to them. They can also subscribe here.

(Editing by Mark Potter)

By Abhirup Roy

LAS VEGAS, Jan 6 (Reuters) - Tesla TSLA.O supplier Panasonic Energy plans to eliminate its supply-chain dependence on China for electric vehicle batteries made in the United States, a senior executive told Reuters, calling the shift a "No.1 objective".

The comments from Allan Swan, President of Panasonic Energy of North America, highlight how incoming President Donald Trump's pledge to raise tariff imports on Chinese goods has forced companies around the world to reassess their manufacturing processes.

Panasonic Energy, which supplies batteries to Tesla as well as other automakers, is a unit of Japanese electronics giant Panasonic 6752.T.

The first thing the business has to do in regards to Trump tariffs is "not to have the supply chain dedicated from China," Swan told Reuters in an interview in Las Vegas on Monday at the CES trade show.

In the United States, Panasonic Energy operates a plant in Nevada and plans to open a second U.S. factory in Kansas this year.

(Reporting by Abhirup Roy in Las Vegas; Additional reporting by Kantaro Komiya in Tokyo; Editing by David Dolan and Peter Henderson)

(([email protected]; Twitter: @kantarokomiya;))

Adds financial statement details; paragraphs 4-8

TOKYO, Oct 31 (Reuters) - Japan's Panasonic Holdings 6752.T said on Thursday second-quarter operating profit rose 42% at its battery-making energy unit, as stronger sales of energy storage systems for data centres offset falling demand for automotive batteries.

Operating income for the key segment, which makes batteries for Tesla TSLA.O and other automakers, rose to 32.7 billion yen ($213.82 million), despite a decline in profit from the in-vehicle business.

The company retained its full-year operating profit forecast for the unit at 109 billion yen, however.

Panasonic said the unit was grappling with lower sales in Japan and increased development costs for new customers, as well as ramp-up costs for factories in Kansas and Japan's Wakayama prefecture in the quarter.

Last month, Panasonic Energy said it had finalised preparations for mass production of its 4680 batteries in Wakayama to help automakers extend the driving range of EVs and use fewer cells to achieve the same battery pack capacity.

The unit has sought growth in the North American market by building a second U.S. plant in Kansas set to start production in early 2025 and with another factory in Nevada that provides batteries to Tesla.

It competes with other Asian battery makers such as China's CATL 300750.SZ and South Korea's LG Energy Solution 373220.KS, which said on Monday it had a conservative view of revenue growth next year amid slowing EV demand.

Panasonic also maintained its full-year profit forecast for its entire business at 380 billion yen.

($1=152.9300 yen)

(Reporting by Daniel Leussink; Editing by Shri Navaratnam)

(([email protected]; Twitter: @danielleussink;))

June 6 (Reuters) - Panasonic Holdings Corp 6752.T:

• PANASONIC ENERGY CEO TADANOBU: DON'T HAVE ANYTHING TO ANNOUNCE ABOUT THIRD GIGAFACTORY IN NORTH AMERICA

• PANASONIC ENERGY CEO TADANOBU: WE ALREADY EXAMINED VARIOUS POSSIBILITIES, SO IF A NEED FOR IT ARISES, WE WANT TO BE ABLE TO MAKE A DECISION ABOUT IT QUICKLY

• PANASONIC ENERGY CEO SAYS IT MAY BE A 'LITTLE HARD' TO REACH TARGET, IN RESPONSE TO QUESTION IF CO'S GOAL OF RAISING EV BATTERY PRODUCTION CAPACITY TO 200 GWH ANNUALLY BY FY2030 REMAINS INTACT

Further company coverage: 6752.T

(Reporting by Daniel Leussink)

TOKYO, May 22 (Reuters) - A slowdown in the take-up of electric vehicles in the U.S. may prompt Tesla-supplier Panasonic 6752.T to delay investing in additional plants to boost its automotive battery capacity in North America, the Japanese group's chief executive said.

Panasonic, whose energy unit makes batteries for Tesla TSLA.O, is closely watching its Chinese supply chain and battery material procurement following China's move last year to tighten graphite export controls, Yuki Kusumi said.

"There's a need to control the speed of investment depending on the speed at which EVs spread," he said during a roundtable interview with reporters in Tokyo on Tuesday.

Kusumi's remarks may suggest Panasonic will not build a third battery plant in North America with its energy unit any time soon. It would probably take a while for the company to make a decision, Kusumi said.

Panasonic Energy has a battery factory in the U.S. State of Nevada and is building a second one in Kansas, as part of a push to expand annual battery capacity to 200 gigawatt hours by March 2031.

The company will decide investments based on commitments it gets from automakers, Kusumi said, adding that it was assessing mid- to long-term market demand.

"The one situation that should be avoided most, is one where a line is not used after making an investment," he said.

The transition to EVs from cars running on gasoline has hit a rough patch globally as consumers slow the pace at which they switch to battery-powered vehicles amid inadequate infrastructure in some developed markets.

Despite that trend, Chinese automakers including BYD are bringing lower-cost electric models that often use relatively cheap lithium iron phosphate batteries to a growing number of markets around the world.

Panasonic has seen a "drastic" decrease in demand for batteries for a certain car brand, pushing up fixed costs in Japan, Kusumi said, without naming the particular automaker or model to which it supplies batteries.

(Reporting by Daniel Leussink, Ritsuko Shimizu and David Dolan; Editing by Susan Fenton)

(([email protected]; Twitter: @danielleussink;))

May 16 (Reuters) - Panasonic Energy India Co Ltd PANB.BO:

• GETS TAX ORDER FOR DEMAND AT 10.5 MILLION RUPEES

Source text for Eikon: ID:nBSE6vjZXg

Further company coverage: PANB.BO

(([email protected];))

Updates throughout

By Daniel Leussink

TOKYO, May 9 (Reuters) - The energy unit of Japan's Panasonic Holdings 6752.T missed its operating profit guidance for the past business year due to lower electric-vehicle battery production in Japan and a fall in sales of consumer products, the company said on Thursday.

Operating income for the key segment, which makes batteries for Tesla TSLA.O and other automakers, totalled 88.8 billion yen ($570.18 million) in the year that ended in March, missing its own 113 billion yen forecast, Panasonic said.

Automotive battery manufacturers have been hit by slowing growth in EV demand in the United States and Europe and cut-throat competition in China.

While the North American EV market is growing, its pace of expansion has slowed due to a saturation of early-adopter demand, Panasonic said in presentation materials.

The operating profit is expected to rise 23% in the current business year to reach 109 billion yen, the company said, adding that it expected demand to expand as more car models in affordable price ranges become available.

Panasonic Energy faces fierce competition from other Asian battery makers such as China's CATL 300750.SZ and South Korea's LG Energy Solution 373220.KS.

Chinese battery makers grew faster than rivals to account for more than two-thirds of global EV battery capacity last year, according to data from consultancy Counterpoint Research.

Panasonic Energy has sought to expand its footprint in the North American market. It has a plant in Nevada and has broken ground on a second one in Kansas, which would take its auto battery capacity to 80 gigawatt hours (GWh) a year.

Panasonic forecast a 5% rise in operating profit for its entire business for this year to 380 billion yen.

Its operating profit declined 25% to 40.7 billion yen in the fourth quarter.

($1 = 155.7400 yen)

(Reporting by Daniel Leussink
Editing by Chang-Ran Kim
Editing by Chang-Ran Kim)

(([email protected]; Twitter: @danielleussink;))

April 1 (Reuters) - Panasonic Holdings Corp 6752.T:

• PANASONIC ENERGY: ENTERS DISCUSSIONS WITH INDIANOIL OVER FRAMEWORK FOR FORMATION OF JOINT VENTURE TO MANUFACTURE CYLINDRICAL LITHIUM-ION BATTERIES IN INDIA

• PANASONIC ENERGY: PANASONIC ENERGY, INDIANOIL WILL BE ENGAGING IN FEASIBILITY STUDY ON UTILIZATION OF BATTERY TECHNOLOGY TO FACILITATE TRANSITION TO CLEAN ENERGY IN INDIA, AIM TO FINALIZE DETAILS OF COLLABORATION BY SUMMER 2024

• PANASONIC ENERGY: INITIATIVE IS DRIVEN BY EXPECTED RISE OF DEMAND FOR BATTERIES FOR TWO- AND THREE-WHEEL VEHICLES IN INDIAN MARKET

Source text: https://news.panasonic.com/uploads/tmg_block_page_image/file/23382/en240401-5-1.pdf

Further company coverage: 6752.T

(Reporting by Kantaro Komiya)

(([email protected];))

NEW DELHI, March 31 (Reuters) - India's top refiner Indian Oil Corp IOC.NS entered a pact with Panasonic Energy to form a joint venture to manufacture lithium-ion cells in India, the refiner said in a statement on Sunday, to prepare for rising local demand.

The agreement follows an initial understanding between the two companies on lithium-ion cells in January.

Lithium-ion batteries, which power electric vehicles (EV) and are used to store energy, are expected to play a major role in India's goal to be a net zero emitter of greenhouse gases by 2070.

The country is expected to see sales of more than 10 million EVs a year by 2030, according to an annual Economic Survey.

(Reporting by Shivangi Acharya in New Delhi; editing by Barbara Lewis)

(([email protected]))

Adds context in paragraphs 2, 4-5

TOKYO, March 29 (Reuters) - Japanese automaker Mazda Motor 7261.T and the energy unit of Panasonic Holdings 6752.T said on Friday they have signed an automotive battery supply agreement.

The deal comes out of talks about a battery supply partnership for electric vehicles that Mazda and Panasonic Energy started in June last year. Panasonic Energy also makes batteries for Tesla TSLA.O.

Mazda and Panasonic Energy said in a joint statement they will disclose at an appropriate time details of the partnership for the supply of cylindrical automotive lithium-ion batteries.

The agreement is likely to help Mazda step up production of EVs as part of a 1.5 trillion-yen ($9.9 billion) spending plan it unveiled in late 2022.

Panasonic Energy has also been in talks with Japanese automaker Subaru 7270.T to set up a separate partnership for the supply of cylindrical automotive lithium-ion batteries.

($1 = 151.4100 yen)

(Reporting by Daniel Leussink; Editing by Kim Coghill and Tom Hogue)

(([email protected]; Twitter: @danielleussink;))

Adds Jefferies comments

** Shares of Novonix NVX.AX rise as much as 20.3% to A$0.740, their highest since Jan. 2

** Stock last up 11.4%, set for best day since Oct. 23, if gains hold

** The battery technology manufacturer signs a binding offtake agreement with Panasonic Energy

** Adds deal to supply high-performance synthetic graphite anode material to Panasonic Energy's North American ops

** Jefferies sees crystallisation of offtake agreements as positive catalysts for NVX

** Brokerage says this is the first binding offtake from a battery manufacturer and expects other offtakes to follow suit

** Stock among top gainers on ASX All Ordinaries index .AORD

** Stock has fallen 16.3% this year, as of last close

(Reporting by Shivangi Lahiri in Bengaluru)

(([email protected]))

Updates with details on the deal

Feb 9 (Reuters) - Australian battery manufacturer Novonix NVX.AX said on Friday it had signed a binding off-take agreement with peer Panasonic Energy to supply high-performance synthetic graphite anode material to its North American operations.

Under the deal, Novonix will supply 10,000 tonnes of synthetic graphite from its Riverside facility in Chattanooga, Tennessee to Panasonic Energy's U.S. plants from 2025 till 2028.

"Off-take agreements with high-quality partners such as Panasonic Energy solidify Novonix's position as a leader in onshoring the supply chain of synthetic graphite and accelerating the adoption of clean energy in the industry," Novonix CEO Chris Burns said.

Novonix said it had begun working together with Panasonic Energy on product sampling and testing after signing a memorandum of understanding with subsidiary, Sanyo Electric, in 2019.

(Reporting by Shivangi Lahiri in Bengaluru; Editing by Anil D'Silva and Shilpi Majumdar)

(([email protected];))

Jan 22 (Reuters) - Panasonic Energy India Co Ltd PANB.BO:

• GOT GST NOTICE CLAIMING TRANSITIONAL CREDIT OF SERVICE TAX OF 1.8 MILLION RUPEES

Source text for Eikon: ID:nBSE42L5sF

Further company coverage: PANB.BO

(([email protected];))

By Daniel Leussink and Miho Uranaka

TOKYO, Jan 22 (Reuters) - Panasonic's 6752.T battery business must focus on boosting productivity, Group CEO Yuki Kusumi told Reuters, signalling the Tesla supplier may hold off building a third battery plant in North America as demand for electric vehicles cools.

The battery unit, Panasonic Energy, had previously said it aimed to decide on building the factory by the end of March.

But Panasonic Holdings CEO Yuki Kusumi said in an interview that a decision would be made only "when the timing is right".

"I keep telling people we need to think about thoroughly raising productivity before setting up a third location," he said on Friday at the company's Tokyo office.

The comments come amid signs of cooling demand for EVs in the United States that have prompted some automakers, including General Motors GM.N and Ford F.N, to scale back production plans.

Panasonic Energy has a plant in Nevada and has broken ground on a second one in Kansas. In December it said Oklahoma - where it was previously exploring building a factory - was no longer a candidate site.

The unit expects the Kansas plant to take its annual auto battery capacity to 80 gigawatt hours (GWh) a year. It aims to raise that to 200 GWh by early 2031.

Kusumi said his main instruction to the energy unit was to prioritise boosting production volume from its existing investment over deciding on the site of the third plant. Given the human resources requirements of a new plant, Kusumi said it was generally better to have fewer production sites.

He added there was room to raise production capacity by improving processes such as machine maintenance and that time lags due to changing circumstances happen in any business.

While consumer demand for EVs is growing worldwide, it has cooled in key markets such as the United States and Europe, and is not as profitable as industry executives had anticipated.

Higher interest rates have pushed many EVs out of reach for middle-income consumers who are also waiting for cheaper models now under development.

Kusumi said Panasonic wanted the energy unit to improve its manufacturing so that it would generate profits without relying on the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act, which spurred a wave of investments in new EV battery plants there.

The IRA and other U.S. legislation provide incentives aimed at boosting domestic production of EVs, batteries and raw materials.

(Reporting by Daniel Leussink and Miho Uranaka; Editing by David Dolan and Mark Potter)

(([email protected]; Twitter: @danielleussink;))

Adds Panasonic's Tokyo shares in paragraph 9

TOKYO, Dec 20 (Reuters) - Panasonic Energy, a unit of Panasonic Holdings 6752.T, said on Wednesday Oklahoma was no longer a candidate for a new electric vehicle battery plant in the United States.

The decision by the battery supplier to EV maker Tesla TSLA.O came after the company in April said it was considering building a plant in Oklahoma, its third in the United States.

Last year, the battery maker chose Kansas for its second plant in the United States over Oklahoma, after Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly pushed the state legislature to approve an incentive package of up to $1 billion.

"After careful deliberations, we have made the decision not to move forward with developing the site," Panasonic Energy said in a statement. "This decision will not impact our operations in Nevada or Kansas."

The Oklahoma Department of Commerce said although it was not engaged in any specific talks with Panasonic for a site, it would look forward to future opportunities.

When asked whether slowing EV demand impacted the company's decision, Panasonic said it will continue to consider all possibilities for expanding its North America business.

Demand for electric vehicles have been pressured this year by high interest rates forcing Tesla to spark a price war to stoke sales.

The Tesla supplier said in October that production in Japan suffered from slowing uptake for high-end EVs in North America, whose buyers do not receive a tax credit as part of the Inflation Reduction Act.

Tokyo-listed shares of Panasonic Holdings closed 1.5% higher on Wednesday.

(Reporting by Mariko Katsumura, Daniel Leussink and Akash Sriram; Writing by Kaori Kaneko; Editing by Christopher Cushing and Arun Koyyur)

(([email protected];))

Dec 11 (Reuters) - Battery materials company Sila will supply nano-composite silicon anode to Panasonic Energy, to be used in the manufacture of lithium-ion batteries, the companies said on Monday.

To meet the rapidly growing demand for electric vehicles, Panasonic plans to increase global production capacity of automotive batteries to 200 GWh by 2030-31. Lithium-ion batteries are essential for the EV industry.

Panasonic Energy is a major Tesla supplier. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed.

The Biden administration had earlier this month issued guidance that will limit Chinese content in batteries eligible for EV tax credits starting next year, designed to wean the U.S. electric vehicle battery chain away from China.

Sila's components will also be used in an upcoming version of the Mercedes-Benz G-Class series.

(Reporting by Arsheeya Bajwa in Bengaluru; Editing by Krishna Chandra Eluri)

(([email protected]; +91 8510015800;))

By Ernest Scheyder

LOS ANGELES, Nov 17 (Reuters) - Western lithium and graphite miners have started charging the electric vehicle (EV) supply chain higher prices for their material, meeting demand for environmentally-friendly and consistent supply that is not linked to China.

In presentations and interviews at this week's Benchmark critical minerals conference in Los Angeles, industry executives, consultants and investors touted the premium pricing model as a way to help prod development of non-Chinese supply, a goal of Washington, Brussels and other Western governments.

The surcharges mirror a plan from the rare earths industry as Beijing exerts control of the critical minerals market and some EV backers worry that weaker environmental standards among some Chinese miners could tarnish the industry's clean energy credentials.

China refines more than 90% of the world's graphite and last month said it will require export permits for the metal, the largest component of an EV battery.

Lithium, the lightest metal, is used to make a battery's positively charged cathode and prized for its ability to store energy. China is the world's largest lithium processor.

"There's a premium to secure material from North America," said Patrice Boulanger of Nouveau Monde Graphite NOU.V, which is building a Canadian mine and has a non-binding offtake with Panasonic Energy. "We have the highest (environmental, social and governance) standards."

Miners say the surcharges make investors more comfortable financing new projects, especially as Chinese rivals have been known to sell metals below prevailing market rates.

"For a company to make an investment decision here in the United States ... there has to be an adequate return for that," said Shaun Verner, CEO of Syrah Resources SYR.AX, which received U.S. Department of Energy funding to build a graphite processing plant in Louisiana that will supply Tesla TSLA.O.

"Customers understand that there is going to a degree of pricing differential across different geographic markets and potentially different provenance of materials."

Later this month, Benchmark, a data and information provider, will start publishing a sustainable lithium price that tracks what automakers have been willing to pay for ESG-friendly supplies of the white metal.

Brazil's Sigma Lithium SGML.V has already begun selling its production at prices it says reflects its sustainability.

The surcharge talk comes despite recent plunges in a range of lithium prices. That may, some industry members say, make it harder to convince customers to pay more. Higher metals prices could also boost the cost of various electronics.

Amanda Hall, CEO of privately-held Summit Nanotech, said miners should produce consistent, environmentally-friendly supplies as a general rule, regardless of market dynamics.

"I don't think customers will pay more, based on commodity markets in general," said Hall. Summit Nanotech, a direct lithium extraction company, has projects in North and South America.

Others say they plan to keep surcharges, convinced that auto companies will pay.

Northern Graphite NGC.V, which runs a Quebec graphite mine and is building an anode facility, is already selling types of the metal at prices above Chinese rivals, said CEO Hugues Jacquemin.

"Our customers want guarantee of supply, they want quality of material, and they want long-term sustainability," said Jacquemin. "Today, when you buy graphite from China, you don't know where it comes from."

(Reporting by Ernest Scheyder; Editing by David Gregorio)

(([email protected]; Twitter: @ErnestScheyder; +1-713-210-8512; Reuters Messaging: [email protected]))

Nov 9 (Reuters) - Panasonic Energy India Co Ltd PANB.BO:

• PANASONIC ENERGY INDIA CO LTD SEPT-QUARTER PAT 34.6 MILLION RUPEES VERSUS LOSS 51.4 MILLION RUPEES

• PANASONIC ENERGY INDIA CO LTD SEPT-QUARTER REVENUE FROM OPERATIONS 683.6 MILLION RUPEES VERSUS 661.6 MILLION RUPEES

Source text for Eikon: ID:nBSE9Rh2Hx

Further company coverage: PANB.BO

(([email protected];))

Corrects IRA tax credits to billions of yen from millions in paragraph 4

TOKYO, July 31 (Reuters) - Japan's Panasonic Holdings 6752.T posted a 42% rise in first quarter operating profit on Monday, buoyed by a weaker yen and stronger sales in its automotive and energy segments, while it stuck to its full-year outlook.

Panasonic, whose energy unit makes batteries for Tesla Inc TSLA.O, said operating profit came to 90.37 billion yen ($637 million) in the three months to end-June, almost exactly in line with analyst forecasts.

Its battery unit, Panasonic Energy, and Subaru 7270.T said they had started talks to establish a battery supply partnership for electric vehicles that would supply the Japanese automaker with cylindrical lithium-ion batteries.

The unit was likely to receive 20.8 billion yen in adjusted operating profit from U.S. Inflation Reduction Act tax credits in the first quarter, Panasonic said in presentation materials.

Overall, first-quarter operating profit of the battery unit came to 29.5 billion yen on a non-adjusted basis, jumping more than 80% from the same period the previous year and helping to offset a less rosy performance in the firm's industry segment.

Operating profit of the industry arm that focuses on making electronics components and materials fell by 86.8% to 3.5 billion yen, largely due to tough conditions in China.

Panasonic said it saw no sign of a full-fledged recovery in the factory automation sector in China, and that it would take more time for areas such as servers, data centres and ICT to recover overall.

The industry business faces growing competition in the world's biggest auto market, China, not just from the rapid shift to electric vehicles, but also from an inventory build-up of locally-made gasoline cars, Group CFO Hirokazu Umeda told a briefing.

"The outlook is still difficult and hard to predict," Umeda said about the industry unit's prospects.

Panasonic, whose products span consumer electronics and delivery robots to sensing cameras and self-checkout systems, maintained its full-year operating profit forecast at 430 billion yen.

($1 = 141.9500 yen)

(Reporting by Daniel Leussink Editing by David Dolan, Mark Potter and David Evans)

(([email protected]; Twitter: @danielleussink;))

Adds details of Mazda, outlook for JVs

By Miho Uranaka

OSAKA, Japan, July 3 (Reuters) - The battery arm of Japan's Panasonic 6752.T will need to build four more factories to reach its target for a sharp boost in annual capacity of batteries for electric vehicles by 2031, its technology chief told Reuters.

The comments by Shoichiro Watanabe of Panasonic Energy are the Tesla TSLA.O supplier's first clear indication of the number of additional factories it will need.

They could also fuel expectations of more investment by Japanese companies in the United States, after a deal the two countries struck in March key to widening access for Japanese manufacturers to U.S. electric-vehicle (EV) tax credits.

In May, Panasonic Energy said it aimed to boost annual EV capacity to 200 gigawatt hours (GWh) by early 2031, or about four times its capacity in March this year.

With a plant in Nevada, it is building a second in Kansas that is expected to take annual capacity to 80 GWh once operational, it has said.

"We will need to build around another four factories," Watanabe, the company's chief technology officer, said in an interview at its headquarters in Osaka on Friday.

But he stopped short of mentioning specific locations, time frames or investment sizes.

He signalled an openness to potential joint ventures for EV battery production, with automaker Mazda Motor 7261.T among others, citing the changing nature of such projects in which investment is no longer shouldered by battery makers alone.

"The style where battery producers will make all investments is disappearing," he said, adding that the 200 GWh capacity was the minimum necessary to be a major player.

NORTH AMERICA

Panasonic has said it is focusing on North America to build up capacity for production of 4680 batteries, the newest cells championed by Tesla's chief executive, Elon Musk.

Previously it said it planned to build at least two new factories for 4680 production in North America by 2030. Oklahoma has been seen as a possible site.

The four new plants will need to be supported by about a dozen factories of materials suppliers, Watanabe said, in a battery supply chain built around the principle of "local production for local consumption".

Joint procurement with major customers could also be considered, he said, taking into account tax breaks under the U.S. Inflation Reduction Act (IRA) and the need to limit the carbon footprint.

Given the size of investment required, makers of materials used in the batteries will also need to make decisions about their plans as early as possible, he said.

Panasonic will not rule out the possibility of a joint battery venture with Mazda as part of a supply partnership the companies are working out, Watanabe said.

Last month the firms said they would hold talks on setting up a partnership to supply Mazda with cylindrical lithium-ion batteries made in Japan and North America.

They aim to sign off on it this year, and expect to supply batteries after 2025.

(Reporting by Miho Uranka; Writing by Daniel Leussink; Editing by David Dolan)

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TOKYO, June 21 (Reuters) - Japan's Panasonic Energy and Mazda Motor 7261.T on Wednesday announced they will discuss a lithium-ion battery supply partnership for electric vehicles.

Under the partnership, Panasonic Energy, a Panasonic Holdings Corp 6752.T unit, would supply Mazda with automotive cylindrical lithium-ion batteries manufactured in Japan and North America for Mazda's battery EVs scheduled to be launched in the latter half of the 2020s, the companies said in a statement.

(Reporting by Kantaro Komiya, Editing by Louise Heavens)

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Recasts with Panasonic comments

June 6 (Reuters) - Panasonic Holdings 6752.T plans to expand production of electric vehicle batteries at a factory in Nevada jointly operated with Tesla TSLA.O by 10% within three years, a spokesperson for the Japanese company said on Tuesday.

The comments followed a Nikkei Asia report on Monday that said unit Panasonic Energy would install a 15th production line at Gigafactory Nevada.

Panasonic Energy announced the plan to increase the Nevada factory's production capacity by 10% by March 2026 at a business strategy meeting last week, a Panasonic Group spokesperson said, declining to comment further. Tesla did not respond to a request for comment.

Panasonic said last month it planned to build at least two new factories for the production of Tesla 4680 battery cells in North America by 2030. With that move, it seeks to boost its auto battery capacity to 200 gigawatt hours per year by March 2031, about four times its level at the end of this March.

At the time, Panasonic had not disclosed where in North America it would add the production capacity.

Tesla recently told Panasonic it would "buy as much as (Panasonic) can make", according to an executive at the Japanese manufacturer, the Nikkei report said.

Panasonic is running a pilot 4680 production line at its Wakayama factory in Japan, while Tesla is already producing the 4680 battery cells, which Musk has touted as being key to making cheaper and compelling electric cars.

(Reporting by Samrhitha Arunasalam in Bengaluru; Additional reporting by Daniel Leussink in Tokyo; Editing by Pooja Desai and Jamie Freed)

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May 30 (Reuters) - Panasonic Energy India Co Ltd PANB.BO:

• MARCH-QUARTER LOSS AFTER TAX 58.4 MILLION RUPEES VERSUS LOSS 12.8 MILLION RUPEES

• MARCH-QUARTER REVENUE FROM OPERATIONS 608.3 MILLION RUPEES VERSUS 592.1 MILLION RUPEES

Source text for Eikon: ID:nBSE7QPXSp

Further company coverage: PANB.BO

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