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Electric cars in China

Tesla wins green light in China to use cobalt-free batteries

Shift to new technology cuts costs and improves supply stability

A Tesla showroom in Shanghai in May: The electric-car brand is changing what powers its made-in-China cars.   © Reuters

BEIJING -- Tesla has received approval from China to assemble electric cars with batteries that contain an alternative to cobalt, an expensive metal whose production is linked to child labor.

The cobalt-free batteries will be used in the U.S. automaker's Model 3 vehicles, China's Ministry of Industry and Information Technology said in a notice published Thursday.

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