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Volkswagen’s Power Day: Six new cell plants, new unified battery cell, charging network partnerships

(Credit: @Volkswagen/Twitter)

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Earlier today, German automaker Volkswagen held its first-ever “Power Day” event. Similar to Tesla’s Battery Day, Volkswagen outlined its plans for reducing the cost of electric vehicles, how it will supply battery cells for its massive EV push, a new “unified” battery cell, and the how company’s charging network is being funded by BP and other European-based energy companies.

Batteries and Cell Production

Every company involved with electric vehicles knows that to reduce the cost of its cars, sourcing batteries is 9/10ths of the battle. Batteries make up a substantial portion of an electric vehicle’s overall cost. With increased battery production and purchasing, EV makers hold the ability to lower the cost of their vehicles overall. Tesla outlined this last September at its own battery-focused event.

Volkswagen’s roadmap isn’t much different than Tesla’s. The company plans to increase cell production in Europe by a substantial margin, developing six new cell factories that will be fully operational by 2030.

“Together with partners, we want to have a total of six cell factories up and running in Europe by 2030, thus guaranteeing security of supply,” Thomas Schmall, Member of the Board of Management of Volkswagen Group for Technology and CEO of VW Group Components, said. The six new factories will produce cells with a total energy value of 240 GWh per year by the time they are finished. Two of the factories will operate in Sweden, with one in Skellefteå and another in Salzgitter. The Salzgitter factory will produce cells for VW’s “high-volume segment” starting in 2025 and will have up to 40 GWh per year of capacity.

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Additionally, the company said that it “has decided to refocus the previous plan in relation to cell production and concentrate production of its premium cells in the Swedish gigafactory “Northvolt Ett” in Skellefteå in collaboration with Northvolt.” This factory will begin producing cells in 2023 and will be expanded to a final annual capacity of 40 GWh.

Credit: Volkswagen

New Unified Battery Cell in 2023

Volkswagen’s plan to reduce costs is funneled through battery developments and improvements. Schmall outlined this with the idea of new, more cost-effective cells that will increase range and performance.  “This will finally make e-mobility affordable and the dominant drive technology,” Schmall said.

While Volkswagen plans to purchase cells from suppliers, it also plans to create cells in-house within a series of battery production facilities. In 2023, a new, unified cell will be launched and installed in 80% of the Volkswagen group’s electric vehicles. “We will use our economies of scale to the benefit of our customers when it comes to the battery too. On average, we will drive down the cost of battery systems to significantly below €100 per kilowatt-hour,” Schmall added.

“Integration of the Value Chain”

In an attempt to secure the long-term supply of its battery cells to alleviate any concerns over its transition to electromobility, Volkswagen says it will focus on partnerships with selected strategic partners. “The new prismatic unified cell also offers the best conditions for the transition to the solid state cell – the next quantum leap in battery technology, which Volkswagen anticipates for the middle of the decade. The Group focuses consistently on strategic partnerships and efficient use of resources both for batteries and for charging,” VW said. Additionally, the VW Group said it will adhere to its strategic financial targets and will continue to aim for a 6% CAPEX ratio by 2025. It also plans to have a net cash flow of more than €10 billion in its core automotive business.

Charging Network fueled by partnerships with BP, Iberdrola, Enel

Volkswagen isn’t only working on its battery plans. The company also is working on expanding its charging platform by calling upon European power companies to help with the rollout. Partnerships with IONITY and BP will establish 8,000 new charging points throughout Europe. Additionally, 4,000 150 kW chargers will be installed at BP and ARAL service stations in Germany and Great Britain. Spain-based Iberdrola will assist Volkswagen with main traffic route coverage in Spain, and Italian company Enel will help with main and urban motorways in Italy.

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Volkswagen says its total investment package for the charging infrastructure will cost around  €400 million by 2025 and is looking for other companies to partner with.

In North America, 3,500 fast-charging points will be installed by Electrify America by the end of the year. In China, 17,000 will be installed as well.

Credit: Volkswagen

Planned V2G Capability

While Volkswagen says it intends to “integrate the electric car in private, commercial and public energy systems in the future,” it says that vehicles using the MEB platform will support energy storage capabilities starting in 2022. Bidirectional wall boxes to energy management systems will be developed as well, allowing owners to supply power to residential buildings, businesses, or the general power grid when needed.

Volkswagen’s full Power Day event is available below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vdnRfNwj1Fg

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Joey has been a journalist covering electric mobility at TESLARATI since August 2019. In his spare time, Joey is playing golf, watching MMA, or cheering on any of his favorite sports teams, including the Baltimore Ravens and Orioles, Miami Heat, Washington Capitals, and Penn State Nittany Lions. You can get in touch with joey at joey@teslarati.com. He is also on X @KlenderJoey. If you're looking for great Tesla accessories, check out shop.teslarati.com

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Tesla gets a massive order for the Semi: 370 units and $100M

WattEV, a leading provider of electric freight operations and charging infrastructure in the United States, has announced one of the largest deployments of electric Class 8 trucks in California history: an order for 370 Tesla Semi vehicles.

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Credit: Tesla

Tesla just got a massive order for the Semi, and it is its largest by a long shot.

WattEV, a leading provider of electric freight operations and charging infrastructure in the United States, has announced one of the largest deployments of electric Class 8 trucks in California history: an order for 370 Tesla Semis.

Valued at approximately $100 million, this marks the state’s biggest single electric truck order to date and signals accelerating momentum for zero-emission long-haul freight.

Credit: Tesla

Deliveries are set to begin with the first 50 Tesla Semis in 2026, with the full fleet operational by the end of 2027. More than 300 of these trucks will support a joint program with the Port of Oakland, helping electrify drayage and regional freight routes. The initiative aligns with California’s ambitious goals to transition to carbon-neutral freight operations.

Salim Youssefzadeh, CEO of WattEV, said at the annual ACT Expo industry event that the Semi was the easiest choice:

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“We selected the Tesla Semi based on cost, performance, and availability after issuing a public request for proposals…With the Tesla Semi now entering mass production and drawing strong reviews from fleet operators nationwide, WattEV’s vertically integrated model – combining vehicle deployment, megawatt-class charging infrastructure, and full-service leasing – offers a turn-key path for carriers without any capital risk.”

Critical to the rollout are new Megawatt Charging System (MCS) hubs in Oakland, Fresno, Stockton, and Sacramento. These stations will deliver up to 300 miles of range in roughly 30 minutes—comparable to a traditional diesel fill-up. The Oakland depot, where WattEV recently broke ground, will serve as a cornerstone for northern and central California corridors, connecting ports to inland hubs and beyond.

This deployment builds on WattEV’s existing experience. The company has already logged millions of electric miles in Southern California, including early Tesla Semi deployments at the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles. By combining high-efficiency electric trucks with strategically placed fast-charging depots, WattEV aims to prove that battery-electric long-haul trucking can match—or exceed—diesel economics while slashing emissions.

The order arrives as Tesla ramps up Semi production at its Nevada factory, targeting higher volumes in 2026. Fleet operators nationwide have praised the Semi’s real-world performance, including strong torque, low operating costs, and advanced safety features. For California, the project supports air quality improvements around ports and highways while demonstrating scalable infrastructure for heavy-duty electrification.

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Industry observers see this as a pivotal step toward broader adoption. With diesel trucks facing rising fuel and regulatory costs, turnkey electric solutions like WattEV’s could accelerate the shift. As the first 50 Semis hit the road in 2026, they will not only move freight but also help build the charging network that paves the way for even larger fleets.

This landmark order underscores Tesla’s growing footprint in commercial trucking and California’s leadership in sustainable transportation. For WattEV and its partners, it’s more than a vehicle purchase—it’s the foundation of a zero-emission freight network connecting Northern and Central California.

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Tesla begins factoring international designs in Full Self-Driving visualization

Tesla has begun incorporating region-specific vehicle designs into its Full Self-Driving (FSD) visualization system, marking a quiet but meaningful step toward global readiness. In software update 2026.14, released as part of the Spring Update, European Tesla owners are now seeing flat-fronted, cab-over European-style semi-trucks rendered accurately on their center displays.

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@norbertcala on X via Not a Tesla App

Tesla has begun factoring international designs into its Full Self-Driving (Supervised) visualizations, marking a tremendous step in how the company plans to roll out its driver assistance tech in areas outside North America.

Tesla has begun incorporating region-specific vehicle designs into its Full Self-Driving (FSD) visualization system, marking a quiet but meaningful step toward global readiness. In software update 2026.14, released as part of the Spring Update, European Tesla owners are now seeing flat-fronted, cab-over European-style semi-trucks rendered accurately on their center displays.

The change, first spotted by Not a Tesla App, adds a second 3D model alongside the traditional North American long-nose semi-trucks that have been standard until now. Vehicles can detect and display both styles depending on what’s in front of them, and the feature requires no FSD subscription—every Tesla owner in Europe sees it immediately.

The European semi-truck visualization was actually added to the vehicle software back in October alongside roughly fifteen new visual assets.

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Tesla Full Self-Driving gets first-ever European approval

Tesla held it in reserve, activating it only once fleet data confirmed the AI could recognize these trucks with high confidence. This mirrors recent rollouts for horses and golf carts, where Tesla similarly waited for reliable detection before enabling the graphics. The result is a more realistic on-screen representation tailored to local roads, where cab-over designs dominate heavy transport.

The significance of this update extends far beyond a simple graphics tweak, which is really what people need to be paying attention to. These small, incremental steps forward continue to show Tesla’s intent for global expansion.

For the first time, Tesla is explicitly factoring international vehicle designs into its visualization engine, signaling a deliberate push to make FSD feel native in international markets.

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In Europe, where cab-over semis are commonplace, seeing an accurate rendering builds immediate driver trust—the critical bridge between the car’s AI perception and the human behind the wheel. Accurate visualizations reinforce that the system truly understands its surroundings, reducing range anxiety and skepticism that have slowed autonomous adoption abroad.

Regulators in the EU have repeatedly emphasized human-AI transparency; by customizing visuals to match local reality, Tesla strengthens its case for broader FSD approvals and smoother regulatory reviews.

This move also highlights Tesla’s data-driven engineering philosophy. Rather than rushing generic models worldwide, the company is leveraging its global fleet to learn regional nuances before flipping the switch.

It accelerates FSD’s international expansion while improving safety—misidentified vehicles could erode confidence or, in edge cases, affect decision-making. For a company aiming to deploy robotaxis and unsupervised FSD globally, tailoring visualizations to European, Asian, or other markets is no longer optional; it’s foundational.

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Early European owners report the change feels more intuitive, making the car’s “mind” easier to read in daily traffic.

As Tesla continues enabling the remaining visual assets added last year, the pattern is clear: localization is now baked into the FSD roadmap. What began as a small graphics update in Europe could soon appear in other regions, turning the visualization display into a truly worldwide language of autonomy.

With this step, Tesla isn’t just showing trucks differently—it’s proving it’s serious about making FSD work everywhere, one culturally accurate pixel at a time.

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Tesla adds new in-app feature to solve the used EV market’s biggest headache

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Teslas Supercharging
Credit: Tesla

Tesla has quietly rolled out one of its most practical software updates yet — and it could add real dollars to every used Model 3, Y, S, and X on the road.

Starting with the latest Tesla app version, owners now receive an official “Certification of Repaired HV Battery” whenever Tesla performs a major high-voltage battery repair or full replacement. The digital certificate appears directly in the vehicle’s Service History tab inside the Tesla app.

It’s permanent, verifiable, and downloadable as a PDF, so sellers can hand it over to buyers in seconds.

For years, the used EV market has suffered from one glaring problem: nobody could prove what happened to the battery.

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Service invoices often vanish when a car changes hands. Third-party battery-health scans are expensive and inconsistent. Buyers, staring at a car with 80,000 miles and an 8-year warranty ticking down, would negotiate hard — or walk away entirely — because the battery is the single most expensive part of any Tesla.

That uncertainty routinely shaved thousands off resale values and slowed the entire secondhand market.

Now Tesla has eliminated the guesswork. The new certificate, which was spotted by Tesla App Updates, logs exactly what work was done, when, and by whom. It lives inside the car’s digital profile forever, exactly where any future owner will look. No more digging through old emails or hoping the previous owner kept paperwork.

The outlet describes why the update is so important:

  • Official Digital Certificates: The string “Certification of Repaired HV Battery” confirms that if your vehicle undergoes a major battery repair or replacement, Tesla will now issue an official, verifiable digital certificate documenting the work.
  • Service History Integration: Strings such as viewRepairedBatteryCert and repairedBatteryCertId indicate that this document won’t be lost in an old email thread. It will be permanently anchored to your vehicle’s profile inside the app’s Service History tab.
  • Easy Exporting: The service_history_repaired_battery_cert_download_fail error state indicates you will be able to download this certificate directly to your phone as a file (likely a PDF) to share with others.

Sellers who have already replaced packs under warranty are especially excited; they can now prove the vehicle received a fresh Tesla battery without any gray-area questions.

The timing couldn’t be better. As more Teslas roll off 8-year/100,000- or 120,000-mile battery warranties, the used market is exploding. Lenders, insurers, and even auction houses have quietly asked for better battery documentation for years. Tesla’s certificate hands it to them on a silver platter.

For current owners, the feature adds peace of mind and protects long-term value. For buyers, it removes the single biggest risk in any used EV purchase. And for Tesla itself, it quietly strengthens the entire ownership ecosystem — making vehicles more liquid, more desirable, and more valuable over time.

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In an industry obsessed with range numbers and 0-60 times, Tesla just proved that sometimes the biggest innovation is a simple line in the Service History tab. One small certificate, one giant step for used-EV confidence.

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