Japan’s New Energy and Industrial Technology Development Organization (NEDO) has launched a public-private project to develop solid-state battery technology. Some 23 companies, including Panasonic, Toyota, Nissan and Honda, are involved. The group has set 2022 as the target date to develop core solid-state technologies, and ultimately aims to lower battery pack cost to $90 per… Read more »
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CATL to help Honda develop new Fit EV in China
Honda will team up with Chinese battery-maker Contemporary Amperex Technology (CATL) to develop a new EV based on the Fit (Honda sold a previous electric version of the Fit as a California compliance car from 2013-2015). The latest attempt at an electric Fit will be introduced in China and elsewhere by the first half of… Read more »
Clean Energy Credit Union directs investment to green projects including EV loans
The Clean Energy Credit Union (CECU) is now taking savings account deposits and making clean energy loans. CECU received its federal charter from the National Credit Union Administration in September 2017, and completed a soft launch in May, during which it beta-tested its online banking services. CECU is an online-only financial institution that focuses exclusively… Read more »
How to protect circuits in battery management systems
Sponsored by Littelfuse By Carlos Castro, Global Director Marketing Automotive Electronics, Littelfuse, Inc. As hybrid and electric vehicles roll closer to battery power drive systems with 48V or higher, the lithium-ion battery in a closed system is the clear leader for power. Lithium-ion gets high marks in cost, energy efficiency, temperature performance, power-to-weight ratio and lifecycle…. Read more »
New UCS report indicates automakers have lost interest in reducing emissions
The Union of Concerned Scientists has issued a new report that ranks the environmental performance of global automakers. It’s no surprise that Tesla topped the rankings by a wide margin. (Yes, the report considers the full lifecycle of vehicles, including emissions associated with manufacturing and the production of fuel.) However, EV fans may be surprised… Read more »
Robert Bollinger is building unique EVs, and a one-of-a-kind EV company
Bollinger Motors is not following the typical EV startup formula. Instead of building a luxury sedan, it’s building a rough and ready work truck. It has no strategy to evolve into a mass-market automaker, but intends to find a niche as a low-volume brand. As far as we know, the company has no former Tesla… Read more »
A closer look at film capacitors
Plastic film capacitors relentlessly continue to take over many of the duties in EV power electronics that were once performed by the venerable aluminum electrolytic type, mainly because film capacitors exhibit much lower losses and have a much longer operational lifespan, especially at ambient temperatures in the 75-85° C range. The tradeoff is that film… Read more »
US energy regulators issue a new storage rule with important implications for EVs
In March, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) issued a rule requiring regional electrical grid operators to revise their regulations pertaining to energy storage and how storage resources might participate in electricity markets. Okay, it sounds a bit wonky, but FERC’s decision is an important policy shift that could have a big impact on EVs…. Read more »
New York State announces $250-million initiative to expand EV infrastructure
New York is getting serious about going electric. The New York Power Authority (NYPA) has launched a new $250-million initiative called Evolve NY that will seek to create private sector partnerships to accelerate EV adoption throughout the state. Evolve NY is part of the Governor’s Charge NY 2.0 initiative, which has a goal of installing… Read more »
ARPA-E to award $30 million to develop grid energy storage technologies
The DOE’s Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E) is wasting no time after its recent near-death experience (the president’s proposed budget would have eliminated the agency, but cooler heads in Congress prevailed): it has announced up to $30 million in funding for a new program called Duration Addition to electricitY Storage (DAYS), which has a goal… Read more »