An LFP pack cost $81 per kWh in 2025. The nickel equivalent cost $128. That $47 gap explains most of what has happened to electric car prices, and to the league table of who builds the cells.
12 Sept 2026 · Deep dive · 6 min
A car battery is built in three layers, and each one adds mass that stores no energy. Removing the middle layer is why a pack figure and a cell figure have moved apart.
Updated 17 Sept 2026 · Explainer · 2 min
Battery cost per kilowatt-hour decides whether an electric car can be sold at a profit. The figure is quoted constantly and defined loosely, and cell price and pack price are not the same number.
Updated 17 Sept 2026 · Explainer · 2 min
Batteries lose capacity through two separate mechanisms, only one of which is driving. Here is what degrades a pack, what a state-of-health figure means, and what the standard warranty does and does not promise.
Updated 17 Sept 2026 · Explainer · 2 min
One is a rate and one is a quantity. Mixing them up is why people expect a 250 kW charger to add 250 kWh, and why a big battery and a fast charge are unrelated claims.
Updated 17 Sept 2026 · Explainer · 2 min