Back in August of 2021, we compared NCA (lithium nickel cobalt aluminum oxide) batteries with LFP (lithium iron phosphate) batteries - "Tesla's LFP (iron) batteries compared. Which one should you buy?". NCA batteries had been the standard for all Tesla models in the USA, but Tesla’s plans to switch to LFP in Model 3s and Model Ys prompted that article. Tesla even offered more rapid delivery to customers waiting for the cars they had on order if they decided to get their car with LFP batteries.
A nickel mine in Indonesia
There are trade-offs between these two battery types in terms of weight, range, consequences of carrying a full charge, regenerative braking, and cold weather behavior which are all discussed in the column mentioned above. These are all valid considerations, but working from the assumption that a prime motivation of most people buying an electric car is to promote a healthy environment and a healthier planet (by cutting CO2 emissions), it should also be mentioned that these two battery chemistries have vastly different implications for the environment. Crucially, NCA batteries are built with a lot of nickel (about 18 kg in a Tesla) whereas LFP batteries have none. But high demand for nickel for Teslas (and many other electric vehicle models) is accelerating strip-mining in Indonesia and the Philippines. Mining is one thing, but strip mining is more problematic.
Strip mining on tropical islands in Southeast Asia is especially harmful because these are centers of biodiversity with large numbers of unique species of plants and animals, many of which are endangered - some critically so. Unlike forest clearing, where the land retains some value for agricultural production, strip mining obliterates what is there and it will likely be decades, if not centuries, before such areas are productive again. When not rainforests, this strip mining is destroying agricultural land. Plus, Southeast Asia has high rainfall, so once the land is laid bare, erosion carries large amounts of sediment onto nearby coral reefs.
Details matter, however, and in this case it should be pointed out that nickel is mined from two sources - laterite and sulfide. Laterite deposits (as in Indonesia and the Philippines) are formed by the weathering of ultramafic bedrock in areas of high seasonal rainfall, along ridges and mountain shoulders. Through leaching, nickel accumulates 10-25 m below the surface and the only way to get at it is to clear off the top 10 m and everything living there.
In contrast, sulfide deposits are in the bedrock and nickel is extracted by hard-rock mining, sometimes near the surface, but often far underground. This distinction is important for electric vehicles because sulfide deposits are smelted into the highly pure nickel which is required for batteries. When laterite nickel is smelted, the lower purity nickel primarily goes to other uses, such as stainless steel. However, if laterite nickel is processed by High Pressure Acid Leaching (HPAL), nickel of sufficient purity for batteries is produced, but at present not very much is produced this way. Of the other uses of nickel besides for batteries, some processes also need high purity nickel, but some can use either high or lower purity nickel. Another important point is that there are not likely prospects for increased production of sulfide nickel, whereas there are extensive areas available for mining laterite nickel.
This may all seem convoluted, but what this all means is 1) as consumption of sulfide nickel for batteries grows with the expansion of the electric vehicle market, this will take up more and more of available sulfide supplies; 2) processes which can use either will hence shift to laterite nickel. Thus, while some may point out that electric vehicle batteries, for the most part, do not use laterite nickel and hence are not the cause of the expanding strip-mining occurring in Indonesia and the Philippines (and in a few other places such as Venezuela and Brazil), it is nevertheless true that additional demand for laterite nickel is a consequence of vehicle batteries taking an increasingly large portion of the available sulfide nickel.
Despite much press coverage last year, Tesla's transition to LFP batteries has only made it to the Model 3 Rear Wheel Drive model (in the USA). Other models may get LFP batteries in the future, as they have in Europe. So, buying a Tesla is a great way to contribute to the decarbonization of your personal transportation, but to avoid the harmful impacts of high-nickel battery chemistries, lithium iron phosphate (LFP) is the best, even if you have to be selective as to which model you get.
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Tesla has finally launched the refreshed Model Y Long Range Rear Wheel Drive (LR RWD) in the United States. While the refreshed Model Y RWD was available as a Launch-Series option in the Asia-Pacific and European markets, it wasn’t yet available at all in North America. Once the Launch Series stopped being offered, Tesla began shipping non-Launch Edition Model Y LR RWDs in Asia and Europe earlier this year, but didn’t bring it to the United States until now.
The LR RWD is one of Tesla’s most affordable vehicles, starting at $44,990 (or $37,490 after the Federal EV Rebate).
Model Y LR RWD
Spec-wise, the refreshed Model Y LR RWD is a compelling alternative to the AWD model. Tesla has kept the premium interior and audio options on the North American variant, so you get the full experience of the refreshed Model Y. You also get more range and faster charging than the AWD model. The only downside is that it’s two-wheel drive and slower acceleration. However, given the lower price and additional range, those may be worth the tradeoffs.
Vehicle
Range*
0-60mph
Charging Speed (15m)
2025 AWD
501 km / 310 mi
5.0s
239 km / 148 mi
2025 LR RWD
525 km / 326 mi
7.9s
250 km / 155 mi
2026 AWD (Juniper)
526 km / 327 mi
4.3s
266 km / 165 mi
2026 RWD (Juniper)
574 km / 357 mi
5.9s
271 km / 168 mi
*Listed ranges are EPA Ranges.
Pricing
All in all, you get a fantastic deal, given the lower price tag. The refreshed Model Y LR RWD is priced $4,000 less than the AWD version while still offering many of its attractive features.
Model
Price (USD)
Price (CAD)
2026 Model Y LR AWD
$48,990
$84,990*
2026 Model Y LR RWD
$44,990
Not available
*Post-tariff pricing.
Availability
The Long Range RWD is expected to begin shipping immediately in the United States. Tesla has not made the vehicle available in Mexico or Canada yet, likely due to tariff complications. Once the tariff rates settle, Tesla will likely look to export the vehicles from the U.S. to the other two North American countries.
With the arrival of the Long Range RWD variant, the last version we’re waiting for is the refreshed Model Y Performance. That’s likely to be an exciting vehicle, and we’re hopeful it will be in customers’ garages before the end of 2025.
Tesla is adjusting its Supercharger prices based on current usage in a new pilot program. Tesla’s pricing structure has typically revolved around traditional time-based peak/off-peak schedules but is now migrating to a more dynamic model based on live Supercharger utilization.
This development, announced officially through the Tesla Charging X account, should make Supercharger pricing more accurately reflect the demand for the specific Supercharger site instead of basing pricing on past usage.
Live Utilization Pricing
The core of this new pilot will launch at just 10 Supercharger sites in North America. The particular sites in question have not been clarified, but one of the locations is the Supercharger located in Davis, California.
Tesla intends to expand the pilot based on feedback and the success of the initial rollout. We could be looking at the future of Supercharger pricing around the globe.
New Chart and Features
Today, Tesla typically offers two or three prices based on peak and off-peak demand, meaning that Supercharger prices are based on the hour of the day. The current Supercharger chart in the vehicle shows the hours and price on the X-axis, while the Y-axis is the typical demand (image below).
The current chart for Superchargers versus the new one at the top of the page
Not a Tesla App
However, with the new charts that will soon be added to vehicles, Tesla will display the time on the X-axis, and the Y-axis will show the historical demand and the current price (photo at the top of this page).
In theory, the Supercharger's historical demand and real-time usage should be pretty similar, but there will be exceptions, like holidays and other events. Unexpected high and low usage will play a role in the pricing, such as sporting events and natural disasters. If the Supercharger is busy, then pricing will be high; otherwise, it will be low.
This also introduces a new feature, since pricing is now based on actual demand, users could navigate to a Supercharger that is less busy and, therefore, cheaper. In the hero image, we can see that Tesla will add a new “Find Lower Price Charging” button in a future vehicle update. This will likely highlight other nearby Superchargers that are less busy and less expensive.
However, it seems like Tesla may also start charging more for Superchargers than they do today when they’re extremely busy. Judging by the screenshot Tesla shared, the estimated usage never passed the $0.45 per kWh at the Davis, CA Supercharger. However, it seems that there’s a new price of $0.54 per kWh when the Supercharger usage is at its peak.
The good news is that Tesla is being more transparent and indicating whether the price is low or high with new labels. This change will give users more choices in terms of charging prices. If you want to save a few bucks, you can drive to a less busy Supercharger. The price will also be based on actual usage, which seems like a fairer way to determine price.
While Tesla hasn’t updated vehicles yet to show these new charts, the latest version of the Tesla app already incorporates the changes.
What Tesla Says
Max de Zegher, Tesla’s Director of Charging, elaborated on the pilot program on X.
He points out that Tesla Charging’s rates have been consistent, and it has focused on improving the charging experience and availability. Off-peak and on-peak pricing will help to increase both of these.
Tesla has outlined exactly how this new live feedback loop will function. The more accurate real-time station demand can allow Tesla to adjust pricing if a station is experiencing congestion during traditionally “off-peak” hours. On the flipside, if a station is unusually empty, Tesla can reduce the pricing.
This easily incentivizes customers who are keeping an eye on charging costs, as changing your charging destination can be as simple as the tap of a button. Most interestingly, Tesla says that the average price paid by customers is expected to remain the same as with the previous time-based system, even with seasonal and real-time fluctuations.
Crucially, owners can always see the price per kWh on their vehicle’s primary display, as well as in the Tesla app before initiating a charging session. Additionally, Tesla will not change the pricing mid-charge, so there’s no need to worry about it fluctuating up or down while you’re charging.
When reading some of our old blog posts, you'll find that @TeslaCharging has been consistent in its pricing principles: improving the charging experience and Supercharger availability. True to those principles, we're now piloting live site utilization for off-peak and on-peak… https://t.co/rIqQzOZfcG
This move to live-based pricing is being presented as Tesla’s latest step towards managing its vast charging network with a more customer-centric approach. Tesla has had some historical progression in its pricing strategy, so let’s take a look at where we were versus where we are going.
kWh-Based Billing: Tesla has long pushed for billing by the kilowatt-hour (kWh) as the fairest method for customers to pay for the exact energy consumed, avoiding session fees that can obscure actual energy costs. This is now standard in most regions, but it wasn’t too long ago that pricing was determined by the minute.
Idle Fees (2017): To address vehicles remaining plugged in after charging was complete at busy sites, idle fees were implemented to improve stall availability – a practice now common across the industry.
80% SoC Limiter (2019): At busy locations, Tesla introduced an automatic 80% state-of-charge (SoC) charging limit (which users can manually override) to encourage faster turnover, as the final 20% of charging is significantly slower.
Time-Based Peak/Off-Peak Pricing (2020): Pricing based on estimated busy times was rolled out to incentivize charging during less congested periods, helping to distribute demand and manage costs.
Congestion Fees (2023): At particularly busy sites, congestion fees were introduced. These combine the principles of idle fees with disincentivizing charging to a very high state of charge when a station is crowded, with the stated goal of improving availability, not generating profit.
Commitment to Affordability
Alongside these pricing changes, Tesla has reiterated its focus on keeping Supercharging affordable for all its users. Tesla points out that, on average, in North America and Europe, Tesla’s Superchargers are 30% cheaper than other fast-charging options while also being far more reliable.
Beyond that, 2025 is set to be Tesla’s largest year for expanding the Supercharger network while also replacing many older V2 charging sites with faster, more capable V4 Supercharger stations.
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