Elon Musk Says Reports Of Tesla-BYD Ending Battery Supply Cooperation 'False:' Relations Between The Companies 'Are Positive'

Tesla Inc. TSLA CEO Elon Musk and Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD Co Ltd BYDDF BYDDY have both reportedly denied a media report indicating that their collaboration on battery supplies was coming to an end.

What Happened: Musk and the Chinese electric vehicle and battery maker denied a report that appeared in The Korean Economic Daily on Sunday, which stated that the companies were ending their cooperation on battery supplies, reported Reuters.

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Responding to a Twitter thread, Musk said, “That media report is false. Relations between Tesla and BYD are positive.”

As per The Korean Economic Daily report, the supply deal for batteries between Tesla and BYD in Europe expired earlier this year. It also stated that Tesla did not ask BYD for an additional supply of batteries for certain Model 3 vehicles due to alleged quality issues arising from a series of fire accidents of BYD’s lithium iron phosphate batteries.

"Contrary to BYD's explanation, as accidents became more frequent, Tesla had no reason to use BYD batteries," The Korean Economic Daily quoted an official from the battery industry as saying.

Why Is It Important: According to data released by SNE Research in January, BYD has the second position in the electric vehicle battery market after Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Limited, or CATL, with a 15.6% market share. BYD recorded the highest rate of growth with a increase of 147.6% in installed capacity, year-over-year.

BYD led the EV race in the fourth quarter of 2022, accounting for 19.8% of EV sales, as per data released by Counterpoint Research. Tesla, which sells only battery-powered electric vehicles, took the second spot with a 12.1% share.

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