Tesla obliged to pay $1.7 billion to Panasonic for gigafactory cells

(Reuters) - Tesla Motors Inc had an obligation to pay a total of about $1.7 billion to Japan's Panasonic Corp as of Sept. 30 for electric vehicle battery cells made at Tesla's gigafactory in Nevada, the carmaker said in a regulatory filing. Panasonic, Tesla's longstanding battery partner, agreed in 2014 to invest in equipment, machinery and other manufacturing tools at the gigafactory, which will make cylindrical lithium-ion cells for Tesla's cars. Tesla has said it expects to start making batte