Fleet management specialist Ryder System (NYSE: R) has started to take delivery of 125 medium-duty electric panel vans from California-based Chanje, which will be available for lease or rent to customers in California, New York, and Illinois markets by the end of 2017. The Chanje delivery van is equipped to haul up to 6,000 pounds… Read more »
The myth of the “long tailpipe” – the idea that, because EVs are partially powered by dirty coal, they are no cleaner than legacy vehicles – just won’t go away. In 2012, a detailed study from the Union of Concerned Scientists found that even if it were charged 100% from coal, an EV would still… Read more »
And the dirty little secret of EVs is…cobalt. The metallic element is used in significant quantities in EV batteries. Unfortunately, about half the world’s cobalt comes from the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), a war-torn land in which working conditions are bad, and child labor is common. In 2014, as many as 40,000 children worked… Read more »
The latest salvo in the US government’s war on technology is contained in a House bill with the Orwellian title of the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, which would eliminate the federal tax credit for EV purchases. There’s good reason to believe that killing the tax credit could cripple America’s nascent EV industry. In Denmark,… Read more »
Bosch has introduced a new 48-volt Li-ion battery for mild hybrids. The pack configuration is 12s1p, with 8 Ah NMC/graphite cells. Charge power is 13 kW, and discharge power is 11 kW. The package weighs less than 7 kg, and is standardized for easy integration into new vehicle models. Production is scheduled to start in… Read more »
At the recent EVS30 exhibition in Stuttgart, Barcelona-based charging station manufacturer Circontrol presented a multiple charging solution consisting of several slave charging points controlled by a single master unit. The system allows a DC fast charger, such as Circontrol’s Raption, or an AC charger such as the company’s Post eVolve, to act as a master,… Read more »
Fisker has selected global engineering firm Ricardo to integrate the electric powertrain for the upcoming Fisker EMotion. The partnership will include integration of Fisker’s proprietary charger, battery pack and e-axle systems. The EMotion powertrain, including the motors, inverters and power electronics, is based on an 800 V architecture, which, according to Fisker, delivers many benefits,… Read more »
Efficient Drivetrains, Inc. (EDI), in partnership with truck manufacturer Shaanxi Automotive, is introducing a PHEV cement mixer truck to the Chinese market. The vehicle integrates EDI’s PowerDrive 8000 PHEV drivetrain and PowerSuite vehicle control software into a Shaanxi Class 8, 32-ton mixer truck. It is currently in the final stages of integration and testing, and… Read more »
There’s a new battery cell in town, and everybody’s talking about its better energy density and lower costs. South Korean cell maker SK Innovation recently announced that its new NCM 811 cells would be available in December for stationary storage systems, and in the third quarter of 2018 for EVs. SK’s current cells use an… Read more »
Berlin-based Hubject, which provides an “eRoaming” platform for the exchange of data among charging networks, is expanding its operations from Europe and Japan to the US and China. As Hubject sees it, the large number of non-standardized charging networks makes it difficult to ensure a smooth charging process, holding back the advance of e-mobility. The… Read more »
