Under new safety rules published Monday by China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, cars sold in the country must have mechanical releases on their door handles. The new rules, which go in effect January 1, 2027, will prohibit the hidden, electronically actuated door handles popularized by Tesla β and now found on numerous other electric vehicles in China.
Samsung SDI has locked in a major battery supply contract in the US, and all signs point to Tesla being the customer.
On January 30, Samsung SDI confirmed that its US subsidiary has signed a large-scale battery supply deal. Key details are sealed until 2030 due to confidentiality. That alone tells you the size and sensitivity of the agreement.
The South Korean tech giant has not named its partner, but the market reaction was instant. This looks like a strategic win for Samsung at a moment when the US battery supply chain is being forcibly reshaped.
Meanwhile, this disclosure effectively closes the loop on reports from late last year that linked Samsung SDI to Teslaβs energy storage business.
The US government has tightened the screws on Chinese batteries, cutting them out of subsidies and slapping on steep tariffs. That said, Tesla needed a China-free alternative fast, and Samsung SDI was ready to land the deal.
Supplying LFP chemistry is not enough. Tesla needs prismatic cells, made at scale, inside North America. That short list of suppliers is very short, and Samsung SDI sits comfortably on it.
Samsung SDI has been quietly building out ESS-focused capacity in the US while others debated policy risk. At the StarPlus Energy joint venture with Stellantis, Samsung SDI already operates a 7 GWh NCA ESS line.
If this deal is indeed tied to Teslaβs ESS program, Samsung SDI just scored one of its most important US wins in years.
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