Cars Clips: December 20, 2021

Clean Car Standards

Sources: Biden Could Release Stronger Car Rules This Week. According to E&E News, “The Biden administration is preparing to release new emissions standards for cars and trucks as early as this week, according to three sources familiar with the matter. The final rule from EPA is expected to be more stringent than the agency’s August proposal, which environmental and public health groups criticized as too weak. Transportation is the single largest source of carbon pollution in the country, with cars spewing the bulk of those heat-trapping emissions. The standards, which would apply to vehicles from model years 2023 through 2026, seek to restore former President Obama’s greenhouse gas and fuel economy rules for cars and light-duty trucks, which were rolled back by former President Trump.” [E&E News, 12/20/21 (=)]

White House

The White House Wants A Robust Electric Vehicle Charging Network. Here’s The Plan. According to NPR, ‘For electric vehicle owners who long for the freedom of the open road, range anxiety has been a constant source of concern. The Biden administration hopes to change that, announcing this week a multi-billion-dollar plan to beef up the nation’s electric vehicle charging system — a step experts say is vital to reducing America’s carbon footprint and improving the accessibility and practicality of nontraditional vehicles. The White House has pledged $7.5 billion from a bipartisan infrastructure law to go toward improving and increasing the national charging network. The plan would create new public chargers both for local commuting and longer-distance traveling. The announcement comes on the heels of commitments from some of the nation’s most popular automobile brands, including General Motors, Volvo and Lexus, to expand their electric vehicle offerings. A big barrier to buying an electric vehicle, Vice President Harris said as she described the White House’s plan, is figuring out where and how to charge it.’ [NPR, 12/18/21 (=)]

Infrastructure Package

EV Tax Credits: Manchin A No On Build Back Better Bill, Putting $12,500 Incentive In Doubt. According to CNET, ‘President’ Biden’s Build Back Better bill is on life support following comments from West Virginia’s Democratic Senator Joe Manchin. During an interview on Sunday, the senator said he plans to vote no on the spending plan, which includes a $12,500 refundable tax credit for electric vehicle purchases. With Manchin’s decision seemingly final, it’s unclear where the bill goes from here. Biden needs every Democrat in the Senate to vote for the measure with the party’s slim majority. Read on for the latest. Is the EV tax credit amount increasing? As of Dec. 19, it’s a solid maybe. The Build Back Better bill includes a $12,500 EV tax credit, up from the current $7,500 available to qualifying cars and buyers. Its inclusion comes as the bill sheds multiple other elements to compromise with various Democrats, though the bill could wind up dead in the coming weeks after Manchin’s comments.’ [CNET, 12/19/21 (=)]

Auto Manufacturers

Tesla Offers Free Supercharging In Off-Peak Hours For Holidays To Help Curb Traffic. According to Electrek, ‘Tesla announced that is going to offer free Supercharging during off-peak hours for the holidays in order to help curb traffic at charging stations. The holidays have been tough stress tests for Tesla’s Supercharger network, and it has not always passed with flying colors. Especially in California, one of Tesla’s biggest markets per capita and where there’s the largest concentration of Tesla vehicles globally. After the launch of Model 3, some owners ended up experiencing extreme wait times to get a charge at Supercharger locations enabling long-distance travel on popular routes in California during the Thanksgiving holiday in 2018. Since then, Tesla has been experimenting with discounted Supercharging rates in order to encourage people to travel during off-peak times.’ [Electrek, 12/18/21 (=)]

Ford Pro Charging Launches In North America. According to Elecdrive, ‘Ford’s commercial vehicle arm, Ford Pro, announced the launch of Ford Pro Charging, a solution for managing commercial EV fleets and charging needs. Fleet owners will receive software and commercial hardware infrastructure to support charging and energy management. Ford Pro Charging says it aims to be part of every fleet customer’s electrification journey by consulting on the design and construction of charging sites that can scale with operations while collaborating with local utility partners on the company’s energy and infrastructure needs. The new business unit further expects the depot charging industry to grow to nearly 900,000 full-size trucks and vans in the US by 2030. With 125,000 US fleet customers of all sizes, Ford added it was ‘uniquely positioned to build on these relationships as a trusted partner that can enable their transition to electric vehicles.’ Some fleets will then need the control and certainty of depot chargers on company property.’ [Elecdrive, 12/18/21 (=)]

Electric Vehicles

While Electric Cars Clean Up The Roads, Neighbors Of Auto Plants Still Hit By Pollution. According to Energy News Network, ‘While electric vehicles are better for the environment, the plants that produce them might not be. A new report wants everyone — especially automakers and policymakers — to think about how the production of ‘green’ cars can still be harmful to disadvantaged communities. The report — Driving Toward Environmental Justice & Health: Challenges, Opportunities & Tools for an Equitable Electric Vehicle (eV) Transition — is led by the consulting firm Empowering a Green Environment and Economy (EGE2). EGE2’s mission is to ‘work with institutions that make decisions impacting communities of color by helping them collect data to make the best decisions that aren’t harming these communities that are often dealing with political injustices,’ according to the firm’s founder, Dr. Jalonne White-Newsome. Aligning with the timing of Stellantis’ plant expansion on Detroit’s east side to produce low-emission Jeep vehicles and GM’s announcement of the reopening of their Hamtramck plant — now Factory Zero — for electric vehicle production, the report highlights best practices for leaders to implement in neighborhoods that have and continue to bear the costs of vehicle production in their backyards. Uncovering the historical injustice of the auto manufacturing industry, examining current issues within the sector, incorporating studies and lessons learned from other regions experiencing environmental injustice, and looking ahead at strategies to be implemented by automakers and leaders as they move toward a greener approach, White-Newsome was hoping to capture the ‘intersection of environmental health and justice in the manufacturing sector within the [electric vehicle] transition,’ she said. While the study focuses on various areas within the Midwest region, it especially highlights Stellantis and the impact the facility has on its surrounding community.’ [Energy News Network, 12/17/21 (=)]

International

Bloomberg | Egypt Seeks To Build $20K Electric Vehicles In Green Push. According to E&E News, “Egypt is joining the Middle East’s push to adopt electric cars, tasking a state-owned company to build affordable vehicles with a Chinese firm while taking advantage of its renewable energy boom to power them. Authorities are in contact with three potential companies as they seek a partner for El Nasr Automotive Manufacturing Co. on the project that’ll see 2 billion Egyptian pounds ($127 million) invested, Public Enterprise Minister Hisham Tawfik said in an interview, without giving names. Production is set to begin in 2023, with output increasing to an annual 20,000 units over three years. Tawfik said Egypt’s electric model, to be named either E70 or A70, will sell for around $20,000, with half of buyers probably taxi or Uber drivers. That’s roughly the same price as Europe’s cheapest EV, Renault’s made-in-China Dacia Spring.” [E&E News, 12/20/21 (=)]