Chapter 998
: 3 million in first-day sales, Masla's complex emotions.
"Welcome to the Xuanwu Battery Global Procurement Conference. Next, I will introduce the complete technical specifications of Galaxy Energy's second-generation Xuanwu Battery."
He got straight to the point after he finished speaking.
The screen behind me lit up, and a complete performance parameter table popped up.
The entire multi-functional hall instantly became so quiet that the sound of the central air conditioning could be heard.
"Energy density has been increased by more than 30% compared to the first generation."
"Extreme fast charging rate, from 10% to 80%, with charging time reduced to less than 15 minutes. Low temperature performance, completes full power discharge in an environment of minus 40 degrees Celsius, with a capacity retention rate of over 90%, without the need for additional heating and insulation."
"Cycle life: tested at 85 degrees Celsius, it exceeds 10,000 charge-discharge cycles with capacity decay controlled within 15%."
The audience was silent.
The head of Toyota's battery division pulled a pair of reading glasses from his suit pocket, put them on, and stared intently at the line on the screen displaying the cycle life.
The target data of Toyota's entire solid-state battery roadmap was shattered on the table by this parameter.
Masla, who had been leaning back in his chair, slowly sat up straight as if someone had pulled the cushion out from behind him.
"Regarding security..."
Liao Qingfeng turned a slide of the PPT, and the screen switched to a set of comparison charts of lateral compression and combustion experiments. He introduced, "We ran a set of extreme compression and overcharge puncture tests separately. The second-generation battery showed no open flame or explosion under 10% severe deformation, and the thermal runaway diffusion time was increased to more than four times the current standard."
"This means that electric vehicles equipped with this battery have far more time than any existing solution to ensure the safe evacuation of passengers after a high-speed, violent collision."
The head of the State Grid Energy Storage Division placed his hands together on the table, his fingers unconsciously clenched tightly.
He stared at the data showing stable discharge at minus forty degrees Celsius and whispered something to his colleague from the Southern Power Grid next to him.
The other person didn't hear him clearly, and he didn't repeat it.
"Next is the pricing strategy."
Liao Qingfeng turned to the last page.
Everyone in the audience held their breath.
Behind this pricing are the profit structure of each car company, the material schedule of each mobile phone production line, and the financial model of each energy storage project.
"The base price for the second-generation Xuanwu battery is US$500 per kilowatt-hour. Excellent partners with no major violations in previous assessments and inspections will see a 5% price reduction. Customers with violations who have not rectified them on time will maintain the original price. Customers who repeatedly point out problems but still fail to rectify them will have their cooperation terminated. The price of the first-generation battery will be reduced to US$400 per kilowatt-hour effective immediately."
"Customers who place orders for second-generation batteries during this negotiation meeting, and whose total purchase amount for first-generation batteries exceeds one billion US dollars, will receive an additional tiered discount on top of the price reduction for first-generation batteries."
"As for production capacity arrangements, the first-generation production line will retain 70% of its capacity in the near future, and will be gradually reduced depending on market conditions. The new factory has already started construction, and the overall total capacity will not decrease."
Liao Qingfeng closed the folder, looked up, and said, "Customers who sign letters of intent on-site today will receive a first-day discount of $490 per kilowatt-hour."
The site exploded simultaneously.
As soon as the first-day discount price was announced, all the automotive purchasing managers and mobile phone material directors present were quickly applying the formulas. Assuming that a high-end pure electric vehicle is equipped with an average 800 to 1000 kWh battery, this first-order discount alone can save a considerable amount of material costs per vehicle. The larger the volume, the more money is saved.
For mobile phone manufacturers, although the capacity of a single battery is much smaller, the shipment volume often starts at tens of millions of units, which adds up to real money.
The first person to stand up was the head of the State Grid Energy Storage Division.
The middle-aged man, dressed in a dark blue work uniform, had graying temples, but his voice was loud and clear.
He didn't raise his hand; instead, he stood up and said something to the stage that silenced the entire multi-functional hall.
"State Grid Energy Storage will make an initial purchase of RMB 10 billion, half of which will be first-generation and half of second-generation, at your prices."
10 billion Chinese dollars!
When this number came in, even the CEOs of car companies who were used to big events in the front row couldn't help but turn their heads to look.
The procurement scale of energy storage is on a completely different level from that of automobiles. The battery usage of a large energy storage power station is equivalent to that of tens of thousands of electric vehicles.
Once the "electric tiger" spoke, everyone realized who the real big buyer at today's negotiation meeting was.
Masla followed closely behind.
When he stood up, he didn't announce the numbers like the State Grid did. Instead, he glanced at Liao Qingfeng and used extremely precise wording to represent that Tesla had secured a billion-dollar order, focusing mainly on the second-generation battery, while also requesting that a portion of the first-generation battery quota be reserved for a transitional plan for mid-range models.
The atmosphere in the venue was completely ignited.
Lei Jun followed suit, raising his hand. His voice wasn't loud, but every word was steady: "X meters, two billion Chinese yuan."
This decision was undeniably bold, considering that Xiaomi's new energy vehicles were just starting out, with only over 30,000 pre-orders placed online. However, Lei Jun was well aware that with the excellent performance of the Xuanwu battery, it would inevitably be able to disrupt the market.
If we don't seize this opportunity to establish the brand image of Xmi Auto, it won't be so easy to enter the high-end market in the future.
Xiaomi phones had to rely on cost-effectiveness to enter the market back then. If they continue to develop in this way now, wouldn't that be a waste of their efforts?
Apple's vice president of global procurement did not stand up. Instead, he spoke a few words in a low voice through a pre-arranged simultaneous interpretation headset and then held up the number plate in front of him.
Liao Qingfeng glanced at the confirmation message coming through his earpiece and announced to the audience: "Apple, 1.5 billion Chinese dollars."
This figure made the mobile phone manufacturers present uneasy. Apple's move of 1.5 billion means that the battery solution for the next generation of iPhone has been finalized. Moreover, Apple never bets on just one supplier for core components unless that supplier's technological advantage is so great that it cannot be bypassed.
The president of Samsung SDI followed suit by raising his paddle, offering 1 billion yuan for priority supply of second-generation batteries to the Galaxy flagship series.
Without hesitation, Yu Chengdong of Chrysanthemum raised his paddle, offering 1.2 billion yuan, half for mobile phones and half for Wenjie.
Then came a chorus of raised placards.
BMW 800 million, Mercedes-Benz 800 million, Hyundai-Kia 600 million, Toyota 500 million, Sony 400 million, Nokia 300 million, Philips 200 million, Siemens 200 million.
Although the purchasing scale of companies in the medical device and special industries is not as large as that of automobile and mobile phone companies, the frequency of their bidding is no less impressive. Medtronic, Johnson & Johnson, and GE Healthcare have each submitted intended orders ranging from tens of millions to hundreds of millions of US dollars.
Liao Qingfeng's assistant was rapidly compiling statistics backstage, and the numbers on the laptop screen were jumping up at an astonishing speed.
Five billion, ten billion, one hundred and fifty billion, two hundred billion—when the gray-haired head of State Grid Energy Storage raised his paddle again to increase the total procurement amount for energy storage to one hundred and twenty billion US dollars, the real-time counter for the total contract amount directly jumped over the three hundred billion US dollar mark.
When that number froze on the giant LED screen in the multi-functional hall, the entire place was silent for several seconds.
Three hundred billion US dollars.
This number struck everyone present like a heavy blow, like a metal ingot pressed solid and heavy by the energy density of the Xuanwu battery. How long has it been since the first generation battery was released?
Xuanwu Battery's global dominance needs no further explanation.
After the signing ceremony, the atmosphere in the venue shifted from heated excitement to a subtle restlessness.
The letter of intent has been signed, and the figures have been reported, but the real conversation hasn't even begun.
Masla was the first to stand up from his seat. Instead of heading towards the exit, he walked straight toward Liao Qingfeng.
Today he was wearing a dark gray turtleneck sweater with a black jacket over it, dressed as if he had just flown straight from the production line at the Fremont factory.
He walked quickly to Liao Qingfeng and said with a smile, "Congratulations, Mr. Liao, the second-generation Xuanwu battery is a great success."
Liao Qingfeng could tell that Masla had something on his mind, so he asked directly, "Mr. Ma, you're too kind. There must be something you need. Please speak freely."
Masla's smile remained unchanged as he spoke, "Mr. Liao, I've heard that your company is developing unmanned aerial vehicles. When will your company begin this business?"
"Mr. Ma, I'm not familiar with this business. I apologize."
Liao Qingfeng said this with a hint of apology on his face.
“Alright then, I think I need to talk to your boss,” Masla said, shrugging.
After saying his goodbyes to Liao Qingfeng, Masla went to Wang Donglai's office.
……
When Masla stepped out of the elevator, the corridor was so quiet that only the faint sound of the air conditioner blowing could be heard.
The corridor was covered with a dark gray carpet, and several renderings of Tangdu's urban planning were embedded in the walls, including a low-altitude aircraft take-off and landing platform, a dedicated lane for unmanned vehicles, and a Xuanwu battery energy storage power station. Each drawing was marked with the words "under construction" or "planned".
He glanced at the renderings, his steps didn't stop, but his pupils contracted slightly.
The assistant stopped at the office door and gestured for them to enter.
The door is already open.
Wang Donglai stood up from behind his desk, casually rolling up his shirt sleeves to his forearms, holding a steaming cup of tea in his hand.
“Mr. Masla, please have a seat.” Wang Donglai smiled slightly and spoke in Chinese.
Masla sat down on the sofa and said with a relaxed expression, "Mr. Wang, we meet again. Tangdu has changed faster than I imagined."
Masla's English had a very slight accent, and he spoke slowly, each word seemingly carefully chosen: "On the way from the airport, I saw your driverless taxis in operation, and there were many more of them than when I last came."
"The changes in Tangdu are indeed rapid."
Wang Donglai leaned back on the sofa, his tone casual but his eyes clear: "When you came last time, Xuan Nu was still in the test flight stage, but now it's running intercity logistics, and the fleet of driverless vehicles has expanded several times. Next time you come, you may see even more."
Masla's smile was very measured; it couldn't appear too eager, nor too cold.
On his way here, he had repeatedly considered every possible outcome of this meeting, but now that he was actually sitting here, he found that those considerations were not very useful.
When the person opposite me talked about the Mystic Maiden and the self-driving car fleet, his tone was as calm as if he were talking about today's weather.
"That's exactly what I wanted to talk about."
Masla placed the coffee cup back on the table, adjusted his posture, and the signature, aggressive confidence in his tone softened, replaced by a more restrained probing.
"Mr. Wang, your progress in unmanned vehicles and low-altitude aircraft is far more extensive than the outside world knows. To be honest, I'm somewhat surprised, not because I'm surprised you can do it, but because I'm surprised you've progressed so quickly."
Wang Donglai picked up his teacup, took a sip, and didn't reply.
Silence, like an invisible net, quietly settled between the two. He knew that Masla had only just begun.
Masla waited a few seconds and, finding that Wang Donglai did not react, gently tapped his knee with his finger.
He was never a patient person, but the person opposite him was clearly more patient than him, so he decided to stop beating around the bush.
"Mr. Wang, I'm very optimistic about the unmanned aerial vehicle project. I'd like to cooperate with Galaxy Technology on its application prospects in urban low-altitude logistics and short-distance passenger transport."
He paused, then uttered the number he had already mentally rehearsed countless times: "A licensing fee of five hundred million US dollars. Tesla hopes to obtain a partial license to Xuan Nu's technology for the development of low-altitude aircraft in the North American market."
The air in the office seemed to freeze for a moment. Wang Donglai placed the teacup back on the table with a soft sound, like a chess piece falling onto a chessboard.
"Five hundred million US dollars? The technical patents involved by Xuan Nu range from rotor noise reduction to low-altitude flight path scheduling to the integration of the three electric systems. Each one is an independent intellectual property right. The licensing fee for any one of them alone would be more than that amount."
He looked up at Masla, his tone as calm as if he were doing the simplest arithmetic problem.
"More importantly, the low-altitude airspace is the core dimension of future transportation. This is not a business of patent licensing. You should understand what I mean."
Masla's smile froze for a moment, but he quickly readjusted his expression.
He had expected to be rejected, but he didn't expect it to be so decisive.
There was no negotiation, no bargaining, not even a sliver of room for "consideration".
He's not the kind of person who would back down after being rejected once; he never has been.
"Since we can't cooperate on unmanned aerial vehicles for the time being, what about new energy sources?"
His tone became relaxed again, as if he were casually changing the subject, but his eyes betrayed him; he was exploring another path.
"I am very satisfied with the performance of the second-generation Xuanwu battery, and we signed a billion-dollar deal today. But I want to know more about the future, such as how much the production capacity of Xuanwu batteries will expand and how low the price will drop. Tesla needs to plan ahead for the cost structure and pricing range of future models."
Wang Dong looked at him and suddenly smiled.
He leaned back on the sofa armrest, tapping his fingers unconsciously on the side of the armrest twice, then spoke, his pace faster than before, as if he had already seen through the real problem behind all the other questions and was too lazy to beat around the bush anymore.
"Our production capacity will expand to the point where you won't have to worry about not being able to buy it. We will build one factory each in Shenzhen, Chengdu, and Chongqing. At the same time, we are in talks with CATL and BYD about equity cooperation in contract manufacturing. Whichever of these two paths succeeds, our production capacity will increase several times over."
"Regarding pricing, as production capacity ramps up and the technology matures, coupled with our willingness to offer discounts to customers, the selling price will inevitably decrease slightly. So Mr. Masla, you can prepare in advance. If your Shanghai factory wants to continue competing with Xuanwu batteries using its own batteries, it will probably become increasingly difficult."
Masla's pupils contracted sharply.
He was both shocked and furious at Wang Donglai's answer, but there was nothing he could do. (End of Chapter)