Tesla Loses Quality Head To Co-Founder JB Straubel's Battery Recycling Company

Tesla Inc’s TSLA quality head Bruce Watson has moved to JB Straubel’s battery recycling startup Redwood Materials in a similar role. 

What Happened: Watson, who spent four years at Tesla, announced the move in a LinkedIn post on Tuesday and said he has joined the Nevada-based recycling startup as the vice president of quality.

The executive said Redwood Materials is currently building a materials facility that would "produce 100 GWh of cathode to produce 1 million electric vehicles and 500 GWh for 5 million vehicles in 2030." 

The company plans to reveal the location of the facility early next year.

See Also: Tesla Co-Founder JB Straubel's EV Startup To Set Up Facility Near Giga Nevada

Why It Matters: Redwood, led by Tesla co-founder JB Straubel, is creating the world’s first circular supply chain for electric vehicles and clean energy products by recycling lithium-ion batteries to their base metals and then locally remanufacturing them into cathode and anode copper foil.

Price Action: Tesla shares closed 4.29% higher at $938.53 a share on Tuesday.

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