White
House
White House To Huddle Again With Automakers On Rollback.
According to E&E News, “The White House has invited automakers to a Monday meeting where it will again press them to support the rollback of Obama-era clean car rules, according to
a source with knowledge of the matter. The meeting, which has not been previously reported, would mark the fourth time that automakers have convened at the White House since President Trump’s inauguration. Francis Brooke, a senior energy adviser to Trump,
has facilitated previous meetings and will likely lead this one, the source said. The White House previously held a tense call with automakers in February, when it asked them to publicly back the rollback. But since then, not one company has issued such a
statement of support (Greenwire, March 8). The Trump administration is seeking to finalize the rollback by late spring or early summer. The final rule is expected to flatline Obama-era fuel economy requirements and pre-empt California from setting tougher
tailpipe pollution rules than the federal government. The Monday meeting seems aimed at ramping up the pressure on companies to embrace the final rule, particularly its pre-emption of California, the source said.” [E&E News,
3/22/19 (=)]
Research and Analysis
Americans Driving More Than Ever — Federal Data.
According to E&E News, “Americans are driving more than ever, according to new data released today by the Federal Highway Administration. U.S. driving on public roads and highways
in 2018 rose to 3.225 trillion vehicle miles traveled, FHWA said in a brief news release. That’s a record and a modest increase of 12.2 billion miles over the previous year. Transportation Secretary Elaine Chao said the increase could be attributed to the
strength of the economy, among other factors. ‘Record-setting vehicle-miles traveled reflects a robust economy, lower gas prices and is another reason to ensure that America’s roads and bridges are well-maintained and modernized to improve safety,’ Chao said
in a statement. This was the fifth year in a row that Americans drove more than 3 million miles. The data included passenger vehicle, bus and truck travel. The transportation sector is now the country’s largest source of greenhouse gas emissions, surpassing
even power plants. Cars and trucks account for the majority of the sector’s footprint. Gina Coplon-Newfield, director of the Sierra Club’s Clean Transportation for All campaign, seized on today’s findings to call for boosting investment in clean transportation
programs.” [E&E News, 3/22/19 (=)]
Auto Manufacturers
GM Announces Electric Vehicle Plant, Jobs After Trump Tweets.
According to E&E News, “Less than a week after a series of critical tweets from the president over an Ohio plant closure, General Motors Co. is announcing plans to add 400 jobs and
build a new electric vehicle at a factory north of Detroit. The company says it will spend $300 million at its plant in Orion Township, Mich., to manufacture a Chevrolet vehicle based on the battery-powered Bolt. GM wouldn’t say when the new workers will start
or when the new vehicle will go on sale, nor would it say whether the workers will be new hires or come from a pool of laid-off workers from the planned closings of four U.S. factories by January. The company also announced plans today to spend about another
$1.4 billion at U.S. factories with 300 more jobs but did not release a time frame or details. The moves come after last weekend’s string of venomous tweets by President Trump condemning GM for shutting its small-car factory in Lordstown, Ohio, east of Cleveland.
During the weekend, Trump demanded that GM reopen the plant or sell it, criticized the local union leader and expressed frustration with CEO Mary Barra.” [E&E News,
3/22/19 (=)]
General Motors Adding 400 New Jobs, Invests $300M In Plant For New Electric Vehicle.
According to The Hill, ‘General Motors on Friday announced it is adding 400 jobs to and investing $300 million in a Michigan plant to produce a new Chevrolet electric vehicle. The
investment is part of the company’s vow to invest $1.8 billion in its U.S. operations to add 700 new jobs and support another 28,000 jobs in six states, the company said in a statement. ‘We are excited to bring these jobs and this investment to the U.S.,’
GM Chairman and CEO Mary Barra said during an announcement at the Orion Township plant. ‘This new Chevrolet electric vehicle is another positive step toward our commitment to an all-electric future. GM will continue to invest in our U.S. operations where we
see opportunities for growth.’ The company said the new vehicle is in addition to the existing hybrid Chevrolet Bolt EV. The car’s release date has not yet been made public. The new automobile had originally been slated to be produced outside the U.S., but
was moved to the Orion plant because it currently builds the Chevrolet Volt electric vehicle, off of which the new car will be based. Moving production to the U.S. also ‘supports the rules of origin provisions in the proposed United States, Mexico and Canada
Agreement,’ the company said, referring to a revised North American Free Trade Agreement deal touted by President Trump.” [The Hill,
3/22/19 (=)]
Electric Vehicles
How Electric Vehicles Force Automakers To Play Nice.
According to Axios, “The emergence of electric vehicles, automated tech and ride-sharing has prompted a wave of corporate partnerships and joint ventures in the auto industry as big
players seek their footing in the evolving market. Driving the news: Volkwagen and the Swedish battery company Northvolt said yesterday they’ll lead a new industry R&D consortium called the European Battery Union. The other companies aren’t public yet. Show
less Why it matters: It’s a sign that big legacy companies like GM, Ford and VW see the need to find technical expertise outside their own walls, and maximize resources as they make costly new investments. Partnerships with battery companies also highlight
the drive to ensure the supplies and tech needed to compete as EVs, now a tiny slice of sales, grow in the future. ‘Established companies are trying to figure out what their future is and what they want their future to be, and how they can remain relevant.’
— Valerie Sathe Brugeman, assistant director for transportation systems, Center for Automotive Research Where it stands: Ford and VW are exploring collaboration on EV and AV tech, the companies said in January when announcing a partnership on commercial vehicles.
BMW and Daimler announced a series of joint ventures on urban mobility in late February. GM and Honda unveiled a collaboration on battery development in mid-2018. Toyota and Panasonic created a joint venture in January to develop EV batteries.” [Axios,
3/22/19 (=)]
Automotive Manufacturers Invest In Digitization, Autonomous And Electric Vehicles.
According to Forbes, “Political pressure or actual need, major investments in manufacturing were announced recently by Ford and GM. Ford announced a $900 million investment in a new
factory for autonomous vehicles and technologies, creating 900 jobs through 2023. The company also announced an $850 million investment in its electric vehicle production. GM announced $1.8 billion in investments that will be spread across six states and add
an additional 700 new jobs. Among GM’s investments includes $300 million towards a Michigan assembly plant where the company will build a new electric vehicle alongside its Bolt EV. In 2018, President Donald Trump told leaders of the world’s top automakers
that he wants to see more cars built in the United States. In a recent tweet, Trump commented ‘Close a plant in China or Mexico, where you invested so heavily pre-Trump, but not in the U.S.A. Bring jobs home!’ Heeding the presidential call, Ford and GM are
investing in the U.S. but perhaps differently from what Trump anticipated. The automotive industry is relying more on tighter supply chains and technology in its facilities.” [Forbes,
3/24/19 (=)]
How Electric Cars Can End The Age Of Oil.
According to Clean Technica, “To understand how electric cars can end the Age of Oil, you might want to visit a fast food restaurant. Oil may have dominated our economic times, but
it fades in significance when compared to salt. Civilization was built on the stuff that McDonald’s now gives its customers for free. Salt is essential to the human diet—without it, your body would gradually shed water in an attempt to maintain constant salt
levels in your blood, eventually leading to your death from thirst. But it has been almost as important as a means to preserve food. Over the centuries, humans have harvested salt in a number of ways, from mining to evaporation to digging up bogs that had
been soaked with seawater. Such methods have been traced back at least 3,500 years, with evidence that they stretch back even 5,000 years, and some bear similarities with how oil is extracted today. In AD 400, the Chinese discovered a way to drill into mountains
and extract brine with bamboo pipes, some of which reached as deep as three thousand feet. Salt, like oil, was unevenly distributed around the world. Thriving settlements arose around salt sources in Jordan by the Dead Sea; in North Africa, where salt could
be dug from the ground; in the Austrian Alps, where salt was mined; and in Persia, Egypt, and the Sahara, where there were salt swamps in the deserts.” [Clean Technica,
3/24/19 (=)]
Opinion Pieces
Op-Ed: For Energy Security, Think Electric Vehicles.
According to an op-ed by James Clad in the Las Vegas Sun, “Notwithstanding newly won status as the world’s largest global oil producer, America’s sway over the global oil market remains
incomplete and weak. Worse, it’s reactive, driven above all by politically touchy pump prices. In energy security, the focus continues to be on oil, yet a switch to electric propulsion offers a way out. An accelerating shift to electric vehicles (EVs) can
deliver a decisive break from chronic vulnerability to petroleum production whims. Despite surging domestic oil production, the oil market remains a global one where production cuts or instability in any oil-producing country affect prices everywhere, including
right here at home. It’s also true that for decades to come, oil will remain an essential nonreplaceable commodity. Just consider the fuels vital to air travel, or the feedstock enabling petrochemical production. But EVs hold out the prospect of a largely
oil-free future for ground transport — that piece of energy consumption that affects consumers most. Rapidly falling prices on lithium ion batteries underlie this trend. Faster than expected, EVs have moved close to cost parity with internal combustion vehicles.
EV sales in the United States jumped 81 percent last year. A tipping point looms. EVs will shift from their niche market status to becoming the market.” [Las Vegas Sun,
3/25/19 (+)]
Op-Ed: Don't Extend Electric Vehicle Tax Credit.
According to an op-ed by Gary Wolfram in The Detroit News, “The federal government has for several years provided incentives for the production of electric vehicles. The largest incentive
is the tax credit for the purchase or lease of a new plug-in electric car enacted in 2008, and amended in the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009. The amount of the credit depends upon the battery capacity of the vehicle and the amount of the individual
purchaser’s tax liability. The maximum credit is $7,500 and is non-refundable, meaning that the credit can only be used to reduce your tax liability. So if your tax liability were $2,000, for example, the amount of your credit would be limited to $2,000. The
tax credit is available for purchase or lease from a manufacturer until the manufacturer sells 200,000 vehicles. Once the manufacturer reaches that mark the credit is phased out over a one-year period. The tax credits for Tesla and Chevrolet electric vehicles
are being phased out. Nissan and Ford are more than halfway to the phase-out. As a consequence, there has been interest in extending the tax credit. This is ill-advised for a number of reasons, including whether the government should be encouraging electric
vehicle sales to begin with. The credit has not been very successful in expanding the production of electric vehicles, and the tax credit is primarily a subsidy for wealthy purchasers.” [The Detroit News,
3/24/19 (=)]
Chad Ellwood
Research Associate
202.448.2877 ext. 119