Analysis from Japan’s Nikkei conducted with the help of IT-services company Fronteo has found that Tesla’s battery supply chain is 40% reliant on Chinese companies, other vulnerabilities include non-ferrous smelting minus aluminum smelters, and the inorganic chemistry group. The report covered a total of 13,428 suppliers it believes contribute in some way to Tesla’s supply chain up to 5 tiers deep. Of this total, 22% of Tesla’s suppliers are US-based, while 17% are Chinese, showing the disparity between the wider supply chain and the battery industry. For context General Motors’ supply chain was found to be 13% Chinese-origin. Considering the dominance of Chinese companies over factors like mineral refining and extraction, we’re surprised this number isn’t higher, particularly for areas…