The European Commission has approved a second Important Project of Common European Interest (IPCEI) to support innovation throughout the battery value chain. The European Battery Innovation project calls for 12 member states—Austria, Belgium, Croatia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Italy, Poland, Slovakia, Spain and Sweden—to provide up to €2.9 billion in funding in the coming years…. Read more »
German commercial vehicle manufacturer MAFI Transport-Systeme has released an electric version of its popular T 230 diesel terminal tractor (terminal tractors, more colorfully known as “yard goats,” are used to move cargo around within ports and other such facilities). MAFI’s distributor, Eastern Lift Truck, said the new truck will be available this spring. The new… Read more »
The EPA’s ENERGY STAR label is one of the most widely known consumer symbols in the US. ENERGY STAR-certified products have helped consumers save an estimated $246 billion in energy costs since 1992, when the program began. In 2018, the ENERGY STAR program added EV chargers to the list of products that can earn its… Read more »
The European oil giants Total, BP and Shell have been buying up assets all along the EV charging value chain. The latest news is that Shell has agreed to buy 100% of the European charging network ubitricity. Founded in Berlin, ubitricity operates in a number of European countries, and claims to be the largest public… Read more »
The Volkswagen Group is by far the most charged of the legacy automakers—it’s making massive investments in electrification, converting entire factories to EV production, and rolling out fast charging networks across the US and Europe. Chairman Herbert Diess recently won an important vote of confidence from the company’s board, which agreed to back his ambitious… Read more »
Sila Nanotechnologies, a maker of battery materials, announced that it raised $590 million in Series F funding at a $3.3 billion post-money valuation. The new funding comes as the first Sila Nano-powered batteries prepare to ship in consumer devices and the company scales up production. Sila Nano will use the funds to develop a new… Read more »
Nexperia has introduced its 80 V RET (resistor-equipped transistor) family. The company says the new RETs, or “digital transistors,” provide enough headroom for use in 48 V automotive circuits. RETs save space and reduce manufacturing costs by combining the bias resistor and bias-emitter resistor in the same SOT23 (250 mW Ptot) or SOT323 (235 mW… Read more »
Rhombus Energy Solutions has launched a new bidirectional “EV charging dispenser.” The RES-D2-CS20 has been certified by Underwriters Laboratory (UL) and the CSA Group for use in medium- and heavy-duty fleet applications. The company calls it a perfect match for the Rhombus 60 kW and 125 kW Power Conditioning Systems. Rhombus’s bidirectional charger enables Vehicle-to-Grid… Read more »
Tesla’s latest earnings report was loaded with good news: the company’s sixth straight quarter, and first full year, of profitability; increased sales ($31.5 billion in 2020, compared to $24.6 billion in 2019); a healthy cash position ($19.4 billion as of year-end, compared to $6.3 billion at the end of 2019); and plausible plans for steady… Read more »
Omni Powertrain has introduced a new series of parallel-shaft gearboxes that address cost, performance and packaging needs for off-highway applications, including turf equipment, mobile elevating work platforms, material handling and general construction equipment. The new gearboxes provide continuous torque output from 200 Nm to 3,000 Nm and reduction ratios from 15:1 to 60:1. Helical ground… Read more »
