Clean
Car Standards
A
Woman Warned GM About Warming, But Men Didn’t Listen. According
to Scientific American, “A General Motors scientist who conducted pioneering research on climate change in the 1960s says she faced sexism that made it difficult to do her job. Ruth Reck’s allegations raise questions about whether GM executives dismissed or
downplayed her findings on global warming because of her gender. Reck joined GM Research Laboratories in Warren, Mich., in 1965 and soon began studying the effects of car emissions on the climate, E&E News reported as part of a monthslong investigation (Climatewire,
Oct. 26). As the first female scientist in the lab, she encountered an environment in which male co-workers evaluated her body rather than her brains. ‘I had a very difficult time working at GM in general. They told me I was a distraction because I was a shapely
woman. I don’t want to go into detail, but it was really hard. Really, unbelievably embarrassing,’ Reck recalled in one of several phone interviews with E&E News. The lab was located inside the GM Technical Center, which had been designed by the noted Finnish-American
architect Eero Saarinen. Its walls were made almost entirely of glass. ‘There was glass everywhere. You could see everyone everywhere,’ Reck said. ‘And the men, I was told I distracted them. You could just tell that their eyes were on you all the time.’ In
response, GM constructed a makeshift wall around Reck’s workspace so passing colleagues couldn’t peer inside. ‘They built something so that people couldn’t see me — some kind of a wall or something — when people walked down the hallway,’ she said. ‘They put
me in a position where I wouldn’t be seen by the men.’ It was inside this cocoon that Reck conducted groundbreaking research on aerosols, or particles that can come from cars and factories.” [Scientific American,
11/4/20
(+)]
Election
2020
How
The US Election Could Impact The EV Industry. According
to Clean Technica, “How could the ongoing US election impact the electric vehicle industry? Let’s consider. Biden’s EV Plans vs. Trump’s Non-EV Plans Bloomberg noted that the course of EV makers ‘hinges’ on the election and and federal fuel-economy rules.
Both candidates stated that they support EVs, but Donald Trump dod nothing good for EVs, while Joe Biden has proposed reforming and extending the EV tax credit as well as building a vast EV charging network across the nation. Biden’s win would help speed up
the adoption of EVs — both electric cars and electric trucks — and particularly those built by American automakers such as Tesla, Ford, and Rivian. Unlike Trump, Biden actually has a plan for the EV industry. Biden plans to spend $2 trillion on EV infrastructure
as well as other green projects if he wins. This includes building over half a million charging stations by 2030, restoring the full EV tax credit — which Trump reportedly killed. Biden would also create support strong air quality and water regulations that
would encourage the use of EVs, whereas Trump has so far attacked the environment in 75–99 ways. Trump’s plan would be to continue loosening of fuel emission standards and doing nothing to stimulate the transition to electric vehicles. While Europe has 3–4
times more EV market share in its auto sector, Trump would be happy to fall further behind rather than try to catch up. Rapid Revolution? Maybe Not A team of Bloomberg New Energy Finance analysts, led by Aleksandra O’Donovan, shared some of their thoughts
in a report that was published last week. ‘A Biden win, coupled with Democrats taking control of the Senate, has the potential to shift the trajectory of electric vehicle adoption for years while reversing some of the damage inflicted by the current administration.’”
[Clean Technica, 11/4/20
(=)]
VW
CEO Says Biden Victory Would Better Suit Carmaker's Strategy. According
to Reuters, “Volkswagen VOWG_p.DE Chief Executive Herbert Diess on Thursday said a victory by Democrat Joe Biden in the U.S. presidential race would better suit the German carmaker’s efforts to mass produce electric cars across the globe. ‘A Democratic programme
would be more aligned with our worldwide strategy to fight climate change to go electric,’ Diess said on a Bloomberg webcast on Thursday. Presidential candidate Joe Biden moved closer to victory in the U.S. election as officials continued to tally votes in
the handful of key battleground states that will determine the outcome. VW is in the midst of a global push to launch electric vehicles in China, the United States and Europe, and is betting on economies of scale to make battery-driven cars more affordable.
‘The United States, when it comes to market share, is the weakest region in the world,’ Diess said. Diess added that Volkswagen had established a trustful relationship with the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump and that the prospect of trade tensions
between the United States and other parts of the world would remain even if Biden won. Policymakers from all parties are determined to rebalance trade relations, in an effort to bring investment and jobs back to the United States, Diess explained. ‘The discussions
would remain - you always have trade balances, which are a concern for some nations,’ he said.” [Reuters,
11/4/20
(+)]
Auto
Manufacturers
Tesla (TSLA) Receives Massive New Order Of Tesla
Semi Electric Trucks – Biggest Yet? According
to Electrek, “Tesla (TSLA) has received a massive new order of Tesla Semi electric trucks from a truck leasing company. It might be its biggest order for the Tesla Semi program yet. When Tesla launched the Tesla Semi back in 2017, the automaker used the same
reservation model that made it successful with passenger electric vehicles. However, Tesla made sure that a reservation would a real show of interest in buying the electric class-8 truck since it has been first asking for a $5,000 deposit per truck, which
it later increased to $20,000 per truck for a ‘base reservation’ of the production version and the full $200,000 for the ‘Founders Series’ truck. It makes it that much impressive when the electric truck program, which is not in production yet, secures large
orders, like a recent 130 Tesla Semi trucks reserved by Walmart. Now Pride Group Enterprises, a holding company with its main business being truck leasing, announced that it placed a reservation for 150 Tesla Semi electric trucks with the option to buy 500
trucks from Tesla: ‘Today, Pride Group Enterprises (PGE) is announcing that it has reserved 150 Tesla Electric Semis with the option to increase to 500 trucks. Sam Johal, Pride Group Enterprises CEO, announced that the company has placed a deposit to secure
the initial units and build slots.’ CEO Sam
Johal commented on his company’s new Tesla Semi order: ‘With support from one of our long-term financial partners, Hitachi Capital, we are very excited to bring this innovative product to our strong customer base, helping forge a new path in clean transportation.”
[Electrek, 11/5/20
(=)]
Ferrari CEO Doesn’t Think The Automaker Will Ever
Go 100% Electric. According to Car Scoops,
“Ferrari’s chief executive officer cannot see a world where the Italian car manufacturer will transition its entire range to electric vehicles. During a recent investor call, CEO Louis Camilleri said that not only can’t he envision the automaker transitioning
exclusively to electric power, but he also doesn’t think EVs will account for 50 per cent of Ferrari’s sales in his lifetime (he is 65). While Ferrari is clearly in no rush to go all-electric, its current range is topped out by the SF90 Stradale, a plug-in
hybrid that combines a 4.0-liter twin-turbocharged V8 with no less than three electric motors. What’s more, Ferrari is also known to be developing a V6 hybrid powertrain, although it remains to be seen what model will use it. Maranello’s all-electric vehicle
plans are a little less certain. According to Camilleri, Ferrari won’t launch its first all-electric model before 2025 at the earliest. These reports were backed up by patents that surfaced in January 2020 previewing a future Ferrari with four electric motors,
one at each wheel. Admittedly, the description of this patent stated that the quartet of electric motors could work on conjunction with a traditional engine. While many major car manufacturers are rushing towards all-electric fleets, Ferrari clearly sees no
rush and, given its relatively low sales, it doesn’t have much impetus to build EVs, unless that’s what its customers want or if it has to in order to meet emissions regulations.” [Car Scoops,
11/4/20
(=)]
Kandi’s Small Electric Car To Cost $7,999 In California.
According to Electrek, “Chinese electric
startup Kandi announces that its small K27 electric car has been approved for California roads and it is going to cost only $7,999 in the state after incentives. Several Chinese automakers are currently looking to expand outside of China, and that’s especially
true of electric vehicle makers. Even foreign automakers, like Volvo and BMW, are now producing electric vehicles in China and exporting them globally. The Chinese-made Polestar 2 is due later this year. BMW is also looking at bringing Chinese made EVs to
the US. But when it comes to China-based electric automakers, Kandi is leading the way to sell first in the US. Earlier this year, the automaker released details of the first two cars to hit the market: the Kandi K27 and K23 models. Both vehicles are four-door
compact cars with the K23 being slightly bigger than the Kandi K27. They respectively started at $29,999 and $20,499 before incentives. They quickly realized that it was too expensive for the US market and changed the price to $27,499 and $17,499 respectively.
Though they said that those prices are ‘for the launch’ and should go up later, but the timeline is unclear. After the federal tax credit, it would bring the price down to $20,000 and $10,000. Now Kandi announces today that it received its certification by
the California Air Resources Board (CARB) for the K27 and it will be eligible for the state’s extra $2,000 incentive for electric vehicles.
It means that the Kandi K27 electric car will effectively cost $7,999 in California for those who have a big enough tax burden.” [Electrek,
11/4/20
(=)]
How VW’s Diesel Settlement Is Changing Fleets,
From Schools To Seaports. According to
the New York Times, “The school bus rolled through Beverly, a Boston suburb, early last month. The city’s fleet of buses and minivans makes similar trips every weekday, but here two things were different. First, the ride was eerily quiet because there was
no noisy diesel under the hood, and second the socially distanced passengers were not students but local officials and reporters. Beverly was welcoming its first battery electric school bus. The city wants to convert all 27 of its full-size school buses to
electric. That would have been a financial stretch, since electric school buses can cost three times as much as a diesel version. What jump-started the project was a major, if not well known, part of Volkswagen’s diesel settlement. In federal court settlements
from 2016 and 2017, Volkswagen admitted that it had fouled the air by equipping about 590,000 diesel vehicles with ‘defeat devices’ to cheat on federal emissions tests. In addition to compensating U.S. owners (more than $11 billion) and investing $2 billion
in charging infrastructure for electric vehicles (a project named Electrify America), VW had to offer up $2.9 billion for a mitigation trust fund that would compensate states for excess nitrogen oxide pollution. The settlement is proceeding, and will undoubtedly
lead to cleaner skies. But much of that money is set to pay for new diesels — much cleaner than the vehicles they replace, but still diesels. Some of it is also now trickling out to projects like the Beverly bus. ‘Yes, diesel engines are far cleaner than they
used to be,’ said Daniel Sperling, founding director of the Institute of Transportation Studies at the University of California, Davis. ‘The question is: How strongly should we support this interim solution to NOx reduction, as opposed to the more permanent
solution of electrification?’” [New York Times, 11/5/20
(+)]
Tesla Project To Install Another Giant Battery
In Australia. According to Bloomberg,
“France’s Neoen SA will partner with Tesla Inc. to install one of the world’s biggest lithium-ion batteries in Australia after reaching a grid connection deal with the power market operator. The 300-megawatt Victorian Big Battery will be located in the southeastern
city of Geelong and use Tesla’s Megapack technology. It will be double the size of Neoen’s Hornsdale site in South Australia, which was the largest facility when it began operation in 2017. Installing the new system in Australia’s second-most populous state
will help to modernize and stabilize the local grid, which is targeting 50% of its power to come from renewable sources by 2030, Neoen said Thursday in a media release. The Paris-based company is targeting the battery to be operational by the end of 2021.
Battery storage technology is being deployed on an ever-growing scale to meet demand to back-up the surge in wind and solar power generation. About $951 billion will be invested in the technology through 2050, with two-thirds deployed on utility-scale systems,
according to BloombergNEF forecasts. Tesla is seeing rising demand for grid-scale batteries and the new Australian project will offer further evidence that the systems are suitable to back up intermittent wind and solar power, the company’s chair Robyn Denholm
said in a webinar. ‘What we’re seeing is many energy operators around the world don’t want to renew their fossil fuel-type turbines, they want to put storage in, they want to harness renewable energy,’ Denholm said. Founder Elon Musk has previously said Tesla’s
energy business could one day rival its electric vehicle division in size.” [Bloomberg,
11/5/20
(=)]
Electric
Vehicles
Hyundai Motor Group Joins IONITY, Europe’s Leading High-Power Charging Network For Electric
Vehicles. According to Automotive World, “Hyundai Motor Group has joined IONITY, Europe’s
leading high-power charging network, as a strategic partner and shareholder. Through its participation in this joint venture, Hyundai Motor Group – including Kia and Hyundai brands – will drive the expansion of the high-power charging network along Europe’s
highways, promoting the further adoption of zero-emission mobility. The IONITY charging network uses the European CCS (Combined Charging System) charging standard. Since the network uses 100 per cent renewable energy, thanks to IONITY, drivers of electric
vehicles are not only able to travel emission-free, but also CO2-neutral. This is an important step when it comes to making electric mobility a success in Europe. ‘For Kia and Hyundai, product and customer experience is closely related to convenience and real
benefits. By investing in IONITY, we are now part of one of the most comprehensive charging infrastructure networks in Europe,’ says Thomas Schemera, Executive Vice President and Head of Product Division at Hyundai Motor Group. ‘We are committed to providing
holistic solutions to make it easier than ever for people to make the switch to eco-mobility.’ ‘With the addition of Hyundai Motor Group, we welcome aboard a committed partner with international experience in the field of electric mobility,’ says Michael Hajesch,
CEO of IONITY. ‘From today, we will jointly pursue the goal of educating people about e-mobility and promoting innovations in this area in order to make traveling with electric vehicles the new normal, especially on long journeys.’” [Automotive World,
11/4/20
(=)]
Dash Of Potassium Could Help Make Long-Lasting Electric Car Batteries.
According to New Scientist, “Adding small amounts of potassium salt to lithium-metal
batteries could make them safer and boost their charging efficiency. Lithium-metal batteries are lighter and can store more energy compared with the more commonly used lithium-ion batteries, but their widespread use has been limited by safety concerns, says
Lauren Marbella at Columbia University in New York. Unlike lithium-ion batteries, which contain an electrode typically made of graphite, lithium-metal batteries contain an electrode made of lithium. Because of the way lithium-metal batteries charge, this can
lead to a build-up of tiny lithium deposits on the electrode surface that can cause the battery to short circuit. Short-circuiting can result in explosions, says Marbella. ‘Basically the whole system just goes into runaway failure,’ she says. ‘It’s a recipe
for disaster.’ Marbella and her team discovered that adding a small amount of potassium salt to lithium-metal batteries prevents this dangerous build-up of deposits on the electrode. ‘Whenever we had the potassium in the battery, we had less of these microstructures
growing and we also had a higher efficiency battery,’ she says – although right now it isn’t completely clear why. The researchers found that the addition of potassium boosted the charging efficiency of the batteries from 84 to 88 per cent. Small increases
in charging efficiency can go a long way, says Marbella, particularly in applications such as electric vehicles. A big barrier in the transition to electric vehicles is their limited range, says Marbella. ‘You’re limited in how far you can go before you have
to charge your battery again,’ she says. ‘The development of lithium-metal batteries would help eliminate some of the range anxiety because they last longer.’” [New Scientist,
11/4/20
(=)]
Why The Front Bench Seat Disappeared From Cars And May Make A Comeback In EVs.
According to CNBC, “The words ‘classic American car’ might conjure memories of massive
sedans, flourishes like tail fins, big engines and in many cases bench seats. The front bench seat was once standard in American cars, but over time it disappeared, in part due to changing tastes and safety regulations. Its disappearance actually says a lot
about automotive history. Bench seats could come back, thanks in part to electric or autonomous cars. At one point in American automotive history, just about all cars had bench seats — they inherited the feature from horse-drawn carriages. Bench seats were
perfect for squeezing several passengers in a car and were great for watching the drive-in movies that became popular in postwar America, not to mention cuddling during a date. However, American automakers soon found themselves scrambling to meet demand for
smaller sportier cars with bucket seats that could compete with the European cars American soldiers had seen during and after World War II. The Chevrolet Corvette and Ford Mustang were two of these legendary American answers to European cars. A push toward
safer vehicles in the 1970s also hurt the case for the bench seat. Automakers wanted to be able to install automatic seatbelts and airbags in cars and had a hard time making them for the center seat on the bench. Over time, carmakers crammed more stuff into
the center console between the two bucket seats — everything from music players to climate controls and gear shifters. Consumers grew accustomed to the amenities. Today, few vehicles have front bench seats, and they are almost entirely trucks and full size
SUVs. Changes in technology are reopening the door to bench seats, and they have been spotted on some electric and autonomous concept designs. Some autonomous vehicle designs even suggest seating passengers around a table in the center of the car.” [CNBC,
11/4/20
(=)]
International
Nio, Xpeng & Li Auto: Why Chinese EV Stocks Are Soaring.
According to Forbes, “The stock prices of major U.S. listed Chinese electric-vehicle
manufacturers soared on Monday, as they reported strong deliveries for October. Nio - one of the largest EV startups in China - saw its stock soar by about 9%, as it reported that deliveries in October almost doubled year-over-year to 5,055 vehicles. Xpeng
(NYSE: XPEV), another premium EV player saw its stock rise by about 7%, as it delivered about 3,040 vehicles through the month, marking an increase of about 230% from a year ago, driven primarily by sales of its P7 sedan which was launched earlier this year.
However, deliveries were slightly lower month-over-month. Li Auto (NASDAQ NDAQ +3.5%: LI), a company that sells EVs that also have a small gasoline engine - said that it delivered 3,692 of its Li ONE SUVs in October, marking a month-over-month increase of
about 5%. The company began production only late last year. See our analysis Nio, Xpeng & Li Auto: How Do Chinese EV Stocks Compare? which compares the financial performance and valuation of the major U.S. listed Chinese electric vehicle players. [10/30/2020]
How Do Nio, Xpeng, and Li Auto Compare The Chinese electric vehicle space is booming, with China-based manufacturers accounting for over 50% of global EV deliveries. Demand for EVs in China is likely to remain robust as the Chinese government wants about 25%
of all new cars sold in the country to be electric by 2025, up from roughly 5% at present. [1] While Tesla TSLA -0.7% is a leader in the Chinese luxury EV market driven by production at its new Shanghai facility, Nio, Xpeng (NYSE: XPEV), and Li Auto (NASDAQ:
LI) - three relatively young U.S. listed Chinese electric vehicle players, have also been gaining traction. In our analysis Nio, Xpeng & Li Auto: How Do Chinese EV Stocks Compare? we compare the financial performance and valuation of the major U.S. listed
Chinese electric vehicle players. Parts of the analysis are summarized below.” [Forbes,
11/4/20
(=)]
Tesla Is No Longer The EV Sales Top Dog In Western Europe, Report Says.
According to CNET, “In case the last few quarters of profitability haven’t hipped you
to this, Tesla sells a lot of electric cars. This is true pretty much everywhere that it operates. However, according to a report published Wednesday by InsideEVs, Tesla is no longer the biggest fish in Western Europe. While other electric vehicle makers have
had a relatively slow increase in sales compared to Tesla’s big spike and subsequent plateau starting in January of 2019, the slow and steady route seems to be paying off for the Renault Nissan Mitsubishi Alliance and the Volkswagen Group, both of which eclipsed
Tesla’s sales as of August of 2019. That trend has continued, with industry analyst Matthias Schmidt stating that Tesla’s Western European (this includes the EU plus UK, Iceland, Norway and Switzerland) market share has fallen from 33.8% down to just 13.5%
over the last year. That’s a massive drop, but why is the Big T losing ground? Part of it has to do with the fact that Tesla is a single brand going up against multibrand conglomerates. Next, Tesla doesn’t really sell super-affordable electric cars; the competition
has more entry-level EVs available for people, even though they don’t offer anywhere near the range or performance of a Model 3, for example. Lastly, and this is a big one, many of these competitor companies are likely willing to sell their EVs with a much
smaller profit margin to meet corporate emissions targets. They can use the EV sales to shore up the emissions side of things while their diesel and gasoline product sales keep the lights on, so to speak. What does this mean long-term? That's hard to say,
but Tesla's German factory will likely help make the vehicles sold in Western Europe more affordable, at least somewhat, and that may make a dent.” [CNET,
11/4/20
(=)]
Research and Analysis
How Predicting The Future Has Changed For Automotive In 2020.
According to Forbes, “There are no crystal balls. There are no Zoltar machines at arcades
that will accurately tell the future. But for automotive marketing departments, they nevertheless must predict society’s needs five to ten years into the future. Connected? Autonomous? Electric? All of these transformative, step-function changes were already
making 2020 a difficult year of soothsaying, and then POOF! Covid-19 hits, and all predictions based upon historical extrapolations seemingly become a metaphorical walk on an unsupported plank. Will ridesharing truly become non-existent? Will commuting miles
be ‘a 20th century’ thing? Will California’s 2035 edict and Tesla’s $25k vehicle make the electric vehicle real rather than an on-again, off-again governmental hope? And how will an explosive U.S. election affect the global marketplace? In the end, how do
any of these companies look into that murky, translucent ball and boldly predict the distant future? ‘Leaders at every organization need to be flexible and willing to step out of their comfort zone to change how they conduct business,’ says Daniel Weissland,
the President of Audi of America. ‘The automotive industry has historically been one of the more traditional industries. We are usually not that quick to shift and change our processes and mindsets. That’s been a big learning from the pandemic.’ Rapid change.
And what Audi as well as others have realized is the pivoting has a lot to do with listening. ‘What I think is most important here is to put the customer at the center of everything we do and in the center of our products,’ says Weissland.” [Forbes,
11/4/20
(=)]
A Ferrari May Be Less Polluting Than You Think.
According to the Washington Post, “Which pollutes the most: a 1.5-liter Volkswagen Golf
or a Ferrari 812 GTS with a 12-cylinder engine? Most people would say the Ferrari, but the correct answer is more nuanced, according to the Italian sportscar manufacturer. Its boss, Louis Camilleri, says it depends on how much you drive it. During an investor
call this week, Camilleri took issue with European environmental regulations that aim to cut transport emissions by penalizing the sale of vehicles with particularly thirsty engines. ‘If you take a V12 Ferrari that only runs 3,000 kilometers a year, probably
it has less emissions than a very small car that runs every day,’ he said. The car industry needs to do a better job of educating regulators, he added. You can see where Camilleri’s coming from. Ferrari’s wealthy customers often own several of its sportscars,
which they treat as prized works of art rather than runabouts. From a climate perspective, what matters is the total volume of carbon spewed into the atmosphere. Still, I think this is one battle Ferrari is destined to lose. Governments are rightly clamping
down on carmakers’ carbon emissions to prevent catastrophic climate change. The earsplitting growl of a Ferrari engine is a potent symbol, even if it isn’t the primary problem. Camilleri shouldn’t lose heart, however. Selling electric vehicles could boost
Ferrari’s already stratospheric profit margins, and catalyze a wider industry shift away from polluting fuels. Until recently Ferrari had little cause for environmental complaint. A low-volume car producer, it isn’t subject to the same stringent rules — starting
this year — that tell European manufacturers to not exceed an average of 95 grams of carbon dioxide emission per km. Ferrari only has to achieve 277g of Co2 per km. Hence its average fleet emissions are still pretty high: The regulatory environment is, nonetheless,
getting tougher. In several large markets there are plans to ban combustion engine vehicles altogether.” [Washington Post,
11/4/20
(=)]
Opinion Pieces
Analysis: Is The Country Ready For A Single-Passenger Electric Vehicle?
According to Rob Nikolewski in the Philadelphia Inquirer, “There’s a new kid on the zero-emissions vehicle block — and it has three wheels. The Solo, from Canadian designer and manufacturer
ElectraMeccanica, is a single-passenger all-electric vehicle with a range of 100 miles and a top speed of 80 mph. It retails for $18,500, and people in a select few U.S. cities on the West Coast and in Arizona can see it for themselves. The car is slightly
more than 10 feet long (122 inches) and 57.5 inches wide at the front wheels — considerably smaller than a typical passenger vehicle. For example, a 2020 Honda Accord sedan is 192.2 inches long and 73.3 inches wide. ‘When you’re driving it, you feel like you’re
sitting in the cockpit of a fighter jet or in a Formula One car,’ said Paul Rivera, CEO of ElectraMeccanica. ‘It’s really cool and really different.’ But a big part of the marketing strategy for the Solo is based on efficiency and practicality. That ties into
why ElectraMeccanica opened its newest storefront Tuesday in San Diego. ‘There’s a lot of interest in electric vehicles in the San Diego market and there’s just a great number of commuters,’ Rivera said. The company quotes statistics showing that each day,
119 million North Americans commute using personal vehicles — and 105 million of them commute alone. The Solo looks to attract ‘early adopters’ — consumers who are attracted to the latest technology — looking for an option in an urban environment. ‘There are
just so many things that you do solo,’ Rivera said. ‘You go get your coffee solo, you go to the gym solo, you go visit friends solo. This is a purpose-built vehicle and it fits beautifully between passenger cars on one end of the spectrum and micro-mobility
(scooters, electric bikes, etc.) on the other end.’” [Philadelphia Inquirer,
11/4/20 (+)]
Chad Ellwood
Senior Research Associate
Climate Action Campaign
202.448.2877 ext. 119