Chapter 638 - 455: A 35 Billion Hua Yuan Deal and a Victorious Start! Fleecing the Lighthouse Country

In 2013, new energy vehicles were not cheap. The standard Model S sold for 67,400 US Dollars in the North American Region, while the 85 kWh top-spec version went for 77,400 US Dollars.

President Chen considered a battery pack worth twenty to thirty thousand US Dollars to be just right, accounting for only 30% of the vehicle’s total cost.

’How is that expensive?’

If Tesla objected, then Musk should ask himself if users in the Lighthouse Country were working hard enough.

Yamada Yuuki secretly breathed a sigh of relief. The Deep Blue Battery’s price was 60% higher than Panasonic’s 18650 cells, which would most likely dissuade Tesla from purchasing them.

Otherwise, to achieve the same range, the price of the Model S would have to increase by another 6,000 to 10,000 US Dollars.

Keep raising prices like that, and customers would simply walk away.

To his surprise, the moment Peter Carlson sent the quote to Musk, he received a reply green-lighting the purchase. Musk even offered an additional 200 million US Dollars for exclusive purchasing rights in the North American Region.

In other words, GM, Ford, and BMW’s electric cars would be unable to use the Deep Blue Battery.

While everyone in the audience was lost in their own calculations, Gao Weilin, on stage, paid them no mind. He continued his methodical explanation of Deep Blue Battery’s partnership models and pricing standards.

A purchase volume commitment: if the annual order value fell below 500 million US Dollars (equivalent to 1.25 million kWh), the partner must compensate for the shortfall at a rate of 50 US Dollars per kWh.

Reverse engineering was prohibited, with penalties for violation starting at 500 million US Dollars.

Tiered supply: priority would be given to those with larger contract values and higher upfront payment percentages.

Bundled services: mandatory use of the proprietary battery management system to lock partners into the software ecosystem.

Gao Weilin maintained a smile, his speech gentle and courteous, yet his words dripped with an unmatched arrogance.

Next, he outlined the pricing principles for the mobile phone, digital camera, and electric vehicle sectors.

Many brands were tempted, but just as many balked at the price.

But Chen Yansen couldn’t care less. His true intention was to weed out the small-time players with insignificant orders.

’The first batch has to be sold to the wealthiest whales! Once I acquire a few more raw material mines and the production process is mature and optimized, I’ll gradually lower the supply price. After all, a price of 400 US Dollars per kWh really isn’t sustainable for the future electric vehicle market. Only by dropping it to 300 or even 200 US Dollars will mass shipments be possible.’

Half an hour later, Gao Weilin gracefully stepped down from the stage and returned to his seat next to his boss.

Chen Yansen rose to his feet again and said slowly, "Those who find the Deep Blue Battery partnership model acceptable may stay."

’As for the procurement managers who can’t accept it, they can get lost.’

President Chen was a decent man, well-read and courteous, who usually kept harsh words to himself.

Yet, his expression at that moment was one of unyielding, unquestionable authority.

Yamada Yuuki straightened his clothes, let out a cold snort, and, with his entourage, walked straight out of the conference room.

"Put Panasonic on the blacklist. For the next three years, cut off all forms of business cooperation," Chen Yansen said to Gao Weilin in a low voice.

His voice was just loud enough for everyone in the room to hear.

The procurement representative from LG, who was just about to stand up, quickly sat back down after hearing this.

’Fucking Chen Yansen! What kind of businessman acts like that?’

The heads of Yadea and Emma Electric Vehicles had originally planned to haggle over the price, but seeing this, they immediately dropped the idea.

They kept their heads down and their mouths shut.

Meanwhile, Yamada Yuuki, now outside the conference room, was at a complete loss.

He had assumed his walkout would trigger a mass exodus, with other company representatives following suit to pressure Deep Blue Battery into a price reduction.

But after waiting for over ten minutes, he saw no one.

’Did that backfire?’

Yamada Yuuki stood frozen, unsure what to do. After a moment’s hesitation, he turned and went back.

"Mr. Yamada, having trouble finding the park exit?" Chen Yansen taunted. "Someone find a person to show him out."

All the industry peers in the room, both domestic and foreign, watched Yamada Yuuki with amused smiles, their expressions clearly marking him as a clown.

It would have been one thing if Yamada Yuuki had simply left, but to come crawling back now was just too humiliating.

"The exit? President Chen, I believe you’ve misunderstood. I just had an urgent need to use the restroom. My apologies."

Yamada Yuuki leaned forward, his face plastered with a fawning smile, and bowed quickly as he explained.

Without waiting for Chen Yansen to respond, he scurried back to his seat.

The speed of his retreat and the thickness of his skin were truly breathtaking.

Chen Yansen sneered and ignored him.

Subsequently, over a dozen companies, including Tesla, BMW, Mountain Star, LG, BYD, Emma, and Yadea, signed procurement contracts with Deep Blue Technology.

Chen Yansen flatly rejected Peter Carlson’s offer for exclusive procurement rights, remaining unmoved even when the price was raised to 200 million US Dollars.

Emma’s and Yadea’s individual order volumes failed to meet the minimum requirement, so they had to team up for a joint purchase.

The ultra-long-range Deep Blue Battery would allow Emma and Yadea to break into the high-end electric vehicle market and command a larger price premium.

’They could just pass the cost on to their customers, anyway!’

Zeng Yuqun of Ningde Era had hoped to secure a patent license for the Deep Blue Battery from Chen Yansen, but he was turned down.

’The entire production process—from equipment and manufacturing techniques to raw material supply chains—could be replicated. Plus, with strong support from Shencheng City, new facilities can be up and running in just two to four months. For the foreseeable future, I have no intention of licensing my patents.’

The procurement meeting didn’t conclude until five in the afternoon. Seventy percent of the potential buyers had been weeded out, leaving 11 signed contracts with a total value of 5.7 billion US Dollars.

That evening, Chen Yansen hosted a banquet at the Sky Garden. Zeng Yuqun was distracted the entire time.

’Fortunately, the high price of the Deep Blue Battery left some breathing room for Ningde Era. But what about the future?’

The next morning, the new CEO of Deep Blue Battery, Ma Zhi Ao, announced: Phase I of the Deep Blue Battery project is in full production, and Phase II will begin production in October.

Ma Zhi Ao, thirty-nine, was a management talent cultivated in-house at the Orange Phone Factory. A graduate of Hu City Jiaoda, he held a Ph.D. in Engineering and had previously worked at the Shencheng Institute of Physics and Chemistry.

He understood both technology and management.

Half a month prior, Chen Yansen had personally interviewed him and was impressed by his resume, capabilities, intelligence, and emotional quotient. After careful consideration, Chen Yansen abandoned the idea of hiring an outsider for the top job and decided to give "one of his own" a chance.

Besides, Ma Zhi Ao had already been with the Orange Phone Factory for two years and had a stronger sense of loyalty.

"Over 35 Billion Hua Yuan in Total Value! A Resounding First Victory for Deep Blue Battery!"

"Massive Orders in the Tens of Billions! Lithium-Sulfur Batteries Are a Runaway Success!"

"A Killer Opening Move! Deep Blue Battery Secures Orders from Tesla, Mountain Star, LG, and More!"

"Breaking! Massive Middle East Energy Storage Deal on the Horizon, Potentially Exceeding 50 Billion!"

In an instant, the news dominated trending topics across the entire internet.

The sheer scale of the procurement deals, casually reaching into the tens of billions, stunned netizens.

Wang Chuanfu, who was just about to depart for Shencheng City, felt his eyes turn red with an unbearable envy.

After a moment’s thought, he pulled out his phone and started calling in some favors.

’He knew perfectly well that Deep Blue Battery’s production capacity was nowhere near enough to fulfill all these orders.’

Zeng Yuqun had the exact same idea.

Independently of each other, they both began leveraging their networks, hoping to get a piece of the pie.

「Meanwhile.」

Far across the ocean, the moment Musk learned the contract was signed, he was ready with a presentation to announce the Model S Long Range edition.

Equipped with a 160 kWh Deep Blue Battery pack, it would boast a range of up to 1,200 kilometers.

"160 kWh? Wouldn’t that battery weigh a ton? Can that thing even move?"

"The energy density of the Deep Blue Battery is three times that of the Panasonic Battery. A 160 kWh Deep Blue Battery pack weighs less than 300 kg, which is 120 kg lighter than the original 60 kWh version."

"A price tag of $159,000? That son of a bitch Musk might as well be robbing people!"

Netizens in the North American Region erupted in discussion in the comment sections of Facebook and Mimo.

But would the customers who dared to buy a Model S in 2013 even care about the price?

$159,000 for a 1,200-kilometer range versus $77,000 for a 500-kilometer range.

North America’s wealthy elite didn’t hesitate for a second, placing their orders immediately.

Of course, for more price-sensitive customers, Musk also rolled out 60 kWh and 80 kWh versions. Compared to the previous Panasonic Battery packs, they were only $9,000 to $12,000 more expensive, yet offered a 15% increase in range—an absolute bargain.

And so, before Tesla had even entered the Hua Country market, Chen Yansen had already used Musk as his proxy to thoroughly fleece the consumers of the Lighthouse Country.