When I interviewed Tesla co-founder Ian Wright in 2014 for my history of Tesla, he described the software found in traditional automobiles as “a dog’s breakfast,” by which he meant that it was a motley mixture of heterogenous hardware and software, in contrast to Tesla’s elegant unified system, which controls every function of the vehicle…. Read more »
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Volkswagen explains why batteries, not fuel cells, are the right choice for passenger cars
The debate over hydrogen fuel cells refuses to go away. The founders of Tesla considered hydrogen and other energy storage media before deciding that batteries were the best choice for electric powertrains, and have explained their reasoning in great detail several times since. Toyota, on the other hand, continues to insist that fuel cell vehicles… Read more »
Majority of demand for nickel and cobalt coming from 5 battery suppliers
In 2019, over 59,000 tons of nickel and 14,400 tons of cobalt were deployed globally in passenger EV batteries, a one-year increase of 39% and 34%, respectively, according to data from Adamas Intelligence’s EV Battery Capacity and Battery Metals Tracker. Panasonic used 51% of the global market share of nickel (down from 56% in 2018),… Read more »
US Army plans for an EV future
The US Army has been tentatively testing EV technology for some time. Electrification offers opportunities to streamline the military’s logistics tail and to improve its mobility and reach, and the process needs to move faster, a general with Army Futures Command told Defense News in a recent interview. “Let’s be clear. We’re behind. We’re late… Read more »
Ohio introduces bill to reduce EV tax
Ohio is one of several US states that impose taxes on EVs that are far higher than the amount paid in gas taxes by a typical driver of a legacy vehicle. A recently introduced bill aims to change that. Ohio’s current EV tax, which was enacted in 2019, imposes an annual fee of $200 on… Read more »
BMZ Group ramps up production of Li-ion batteries for ventilators and other medical equipment
The BMZ Group, an international company headquartered in Germany, produces Li-ion batteries for everything from power tools to stationary storage to industrial vehicles such as forklifts. Now the company is seeing a surge in demand for its batteries from makers of a wide variety of medical equipment, especially ventilators. In some cases, the volume of… Read more »
Lilac Solutions to use novel technology to extract lithium from the Salton Sea
Beneath California’s Salton Sea lies a vast pool of super-heated fluid that’s long been exploited as a source of geothermal power. The underground reservoir is also rich in lithium, but over the years, so many companies have tried, and failed, to economically extract the light white stuff, that the area has been called a “graveyard… Read more »
BMW releases details of concept i4 EV
The long-awaited successor to the pioneering i3 is on the way. BMW has unveiled the i4 Gran Coupe, a four-door premium midsize coupe. The company is presenting it as a concept, but says it will enter production in 2021. The new EV features the fifth generation of BMW’s eDrive powertrain—the electric motor, power electronics, charging… Read more »
ROCSYS automates charging stations with soft robots
ROCSYS founder Crijn Bouman is no stranger to innovation. A self-described “entrepreneur at heart,” Bouman has led two Netherlands-based startups in cleantech, software, and electronics. When his first EV fast charging equipment company Epyon was acquired by ABB almost a decade ago, he stayed on as Head of Product Management for its charging portfolio for… Read more »
GM shows 12 future EVs, new Ultium battery system
General Motors opened the doors of its Design Center Wednesday to show off a promised lineup of future electric vehicles to be sold in North America by Chevrolet, Cadillac, GMC, and Buick—a dozen vehicles all told, part of the 20 new EVs by 2023 it promised more than two years ago. Sadly, the journalist-only event… Read more »