Lithium/fluorinated carbon (Li/CF

x An electrochemical cell comprising a cathode of a powder material pressed into intimate contact with a rod-shaped current collector and an anode at least partially wrapped around the cathode is described. The cathode current collector is preferably provided with a plurality of offset flats offset with respect to each other. This helps prevent the cathode active material from sliding off of the rod-shaped current collector. The anode has spaced apart edges at opposite ends of its width that form a gap with the anode wrapped around the cathode. This helps in sliding the anode/cathode electrode assembly into a cylindrical tube comprising the cell casing. A preferred chemistry is a lithium/CFactivated with a nonaqueous electrolyte.