White House

 

Scoop: Biden's EV Surprise — “The Biden administration’s plan to jump-start a domestic supply chain for electric vehicles (EVs) is on track to shatter expectations. The big picture: Democrats offered carmakers new tax credits as an incentive to scale up domestic battery manufacturing — and they’re racing to take advantage. Some experts say the value of those tax credits may be four times higher than Congress’ budget experts anticipated. Why it matters: This is what President Biden and congressional Democrats wanted — to seed a domestic EV supply chain and reduce America’s dependence on China, while accelerating the transition to cleaner transportation. Companies announced more than $73 billion in planned U.S. battery plants in 2022 alone, according to Atlas Public Policy. Details: The Inflation Reduction Act, passed last year, is loaded with goodies for consumers and carmakers to spur EV sales. The most lucrative incentive offers battery manufacturers a tax credit of $35 per kilowatt-hour for each U.S.-made cell, which slices their production costs by a third. Example: If a manufacturer produces 70-kWh batteries for 1 million vehicles, its total credits would be worth $2.45 billion a year.” [Axios, 2/1/23 (+)]

 

 

Congress

 

ME First — Senators Urge DOE To Go Beyond Lithium — “A bipartisan group of senators is calling on the Energy Department to ensure funding from the infrastructure law advances both lithium and non-lithium alternative battery technologies. The department received billions under the bill for battery material processing, manufacturing and recycling grants — but senators say they’re concerned the programmatic funding awards so far have been for only projects related to the lithium-ion battery supply chain. The letter signed by Sens. Angus King (I-Maine), Joe Manchin (D-W.Va.), Jim Risch (R-Idaho.), Shelley Moore Capito (R-W.Va.) and Sheldon Whitehouse (D-R.I.) calls for the agency ‘to accelerate the deployment of domestic alternative battery manufacturing for grid-scale battery energy storage’ that goes beyond the current lithium-ion batteries. King told ME the emphasis on lithium-ion isn’t surprising since it’s the current favorite, but he says a broader set of technologies will be needed for the grid, whether that be pumped storage or another type of battery chemistry. DOE predicts lithium-ion batteries will dominate the market for short-term energy storage — even though the supply chain depends upon other countries, largely China. DOE said in a statement to ME it was working to build a domestic energy storage supply chain for both lithium ion and other technologies.” [Politico, 2/2/23 (=)]

 

 

Federal Agencies

 

Meeting Minimum EV Charger Standards Could Eat Up $1.3 Billion Alone — “The U.S. would need to spend up to$1.3 billion just to meet minimum standards for electric vehicle charging infrastructure — more thana quarter of the $5 billion program — which would build around 1,100 chargers, a far cry from the ultimate goal of building 500,000 stations. Current inventory: The country currently has 4,943 public, non-Tesla electric vehicle charging stations with DCFC fast-chargers, according to a new report from the Great Plains Institute and Carbon Solutions. But just 509 of those stations comply with the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure (NEVI) formula program. The goal: The $5 billion NEVI program, created by the 2021 infrastructure law, H.R. 3684 (117), mandates that charging stations be capable of simultaneously charging four EVs at 150kW at four DCFC ports and that they be located no more than one mile from the designated alternative fuel corridor. According to the report, the country needs to build at least 1,104 more stations to comply with NEVI, which also requires a gap of no more than 50 miles between stations. Fifty miles as the crow flies is often far longer when driving on actual road networks, the report observes. The cost: Building those 1,104 stations alone would cost $794 million to $1.3 billion, the groups said — between 16 percent and 26 percent of the $5 billion program. The Biden administration has said its goal is to build a nationwide network of 500,000 EV chargers by 2030, using that $5 billion pot as well as an additional $2.5 billion from a discretionary grant program for communities to expand EV charging.” [Politico, 2/1/23 (=)]

 

 

Manufacturers, Fleets, & OEMs

 

Geely

 

Volvo Readies EV Blitz In Biggest Product Revamp Under Geely — “Volvo Cars is gearing up for an electric blitz to convert all its mainstay models - three SUVs and two sedans - into electric vehicles and to introduce a luxury electric van aimed at boosting sales in Asia, two people with knowledge of the plans said. The Swedish carmaker, 82%-owned by China’s Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, is expected to launch at least six new battery electric vehicles through 2026, the two people told Reuters. Volvo has announced an objective to make its entire lineup fully electric by 2030. The company’s Australia unit has said it plans to sell only EVs in that market by 2026. The previously unreported product plans amount to the largest revamp of Volvo’s model line-up since Geely acquired the brand from Ford Motor Co (F.N) in 2010. Under Geely, Volvo initially started to share technologies such as car platforms with Geely.” [Reuters, 2/2/23 (=)]

 

Volvo To Launch Two New Electric Sedans — “Volvo Cars is planning to turn its S60 and S90 sedan models into pure e-cars. According to the news agency Reuters, the two mid- and luxury-class sedans are part of a plan to launch at least six new electric models by 2026, citing two people familiar with the plans.” [Electrive, 2/2/23 (=)]

 

General Motor Corp.

 

G.M. Posts Solid Profit As It Pushes To Take On Tesla In E.V.s — “In electric vehicles, G.M. has been gearing up to compete head-on with Tesla, the leader. G.M. said that it expected to produce about 400,000 electric vehicles from 2022 through the first half of 2024, and that it would be capable of annual E.V. production of more than one million in North America in 2025. A new battery plant in Ohio began production in August, and a second battery plant is to open in Tennessee this year. The company has started selling some high-end electric vehicles using battery packs made in Ohio, and it expects its E.V. sales to increase this year as it adds more affordable models, like an electric Chevrolet Silverado pickup truck and electric Chevrolet Equinox and Blazer sport utility vehicles. All told, G.M. should have nine electric models available in the United States by the end of the year, Ms. Barra said. To support its E.V. push, G.M. announced Tuesday, it is investing $650 million in a mining company, Lithium America, to develop a Nevada mine extracting lithium, a key battery ingredient. Production there is expected to start in 2026, Ms. Barra said. But competition is getting keener. Automakers including Ford Motor, Volkswagen, Hyundai and Kia have also rushed new E.V.s to the U.S. market. And on Monday, Ford cut prices of its Mustang Mach-E electric S.U.V., after Tesla cut its prices in mid-January by as much as 20 percent.” [The New York Times, 1/31/23 (=)]

 

Rivian Automotive Inc.

 

Rivian To Lay Off 6% Of Workforce In EV Maker’s Second Round Of Job Cuts — “Rivian Automotive Inc. RIVN 1.60%increase; green up pointing triangle plans to initiate another round of layoffs, the latest in the electric-vehicle startup’s efforts to preserve cash as it confronts challenges scaling its business. In a note to employees sent Wednesday, Chief Executive RJ Scaringe said Rivian plans to trim another 6% of its workforce, mirroring a cut of the same size made last summer in response to inflationary pressures and an uncertain economic climate. Mr. Scaringe said that the Irvine, Calif., auto maker needs to give priority to its path to profitability and production of its first models, as well as development of future offerings to expand its lineup, according to the email, which was viewed by The Wall Street Journal. He didn’t give an exact timeline of when the layoffs would occur, only that affected employees would receive an email from their managers. The company is planning an all-hands meeting for employees Friday to discuss the reductions, he said.” [The Wall Street Journal, 2/1/23 (=)]

 

Rivian Cuts 6% Of Workforce, Spares Blue Collar Workers — “Rivian Automotive Inc. is reducing its headcount by 6% in a cost-savings measure, but sparing assembly line workers at its sole operational plant in Normal, Illinois, from the cutbacks. The startup electric-vehicle maker is notifying staff impacted by the belt-tightening measure on Wednesday, according to a memo viewed by Bloomberg. It said the move targeted employees across the Irvine, California-based company, except for ‘manufacturing jobs in Normal.’ ‘To deliver over the long-term, we must focus our resources on ramp and our path to profitability while ensuring we have the right set of future products, services and technology,’ Chief Executive Officer RJ Scaringe wrote in the memo.” [Bloomberg, 2/2/23 (=)]

 

Rivian To Lay Off 6 Percent Of Staff To Cut Costs Amid EV Price War — “Rivian is laying off 6 percent of its employees in an attempt to cut costs amid dwindling cash reserves and a weakening economy – not to mention the industry-wide price war that has just begun. In an email to employees seen by Reuters, Rivian CEO RJ Scaringe announced the job cuts, explaining that the company is focusing resources on ramping up vehicle production and becoming profitable.” [Inside EVs, 2/2/23 (=)]

 

Tesla Inc.

 

As Tesla Ignites An EV Price War, Suppliers Brace For Musk Seeking Givebacks — “Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) suppliers are bracing for pressure from Chief Executive Elon Musk and his team to cut their prices further after the electric car leader aggressively slashed vehicle prices in a slowing economy, industry officials who work with the automaker and its suppliers said. The suppliers saw as ominous last month’s comments by Tesla Chief Financial Officer Zach Kirkhorn that the carmaker was ‘attacking every other area of cost’ including the supply chain, and would work closely with suppliers. During Tesla’s earnings conference call last week, Musk said a recession could lead to ‘meaningful decreases’ in almost all its input costs. ‘It is never good for suppliers when (automakers) cut vehicle prices because that pressure rolls downhill,’ said Dan Sharkey, an attorney who represents suppliers to Tesla and other automakers. ‘I never like it, because I know eventually they’re going to try to get it out of one of us.’ ‘My message is, there’s not going to be any room there,’ added the co-founder of Brooks Wilkins Sharkey & Turco. ‘Many suppliers are financially struggling.’” [Reuters, 2/2/23 (=)]

 

Tesla's Price Reductions Making Major Impact On Rivals In China — “Tesla’s top rivals may not be in the US, but rather, in China. In fact, CEO Elon Musk made a reference to ‘Some company out of China’ during Tesla’s recent Q4 2022 earnings call when talking about the US EV maker’s biggest rival. Recent reports suggest that Tesla’s price cuts in the country are impacting the sales of local EV brands, including Li Auto, Nio, and Xpeng. Musk has talked about Tesla’s top rivals in the past being gas-powered cars, not EVs. However, China has the biggest automotive market in the world, with many successful companies producing and selling EVs. That said, perhaps Tesla’s biggest competitors on a global scale are gas cars, but in China, it’s locally produced EVs that the US brand is primarily focused on beating in sales.” [Inside EVs, 2/2/23 (=)]

 

Nevada Says Tesla’s Possible Tax Breaks Stay Secret, For Now — “The details of any potential tax breaks for Tesla’s $3.6 billion expansion of its Nevada factory will remain secret until late February, under a nondisclosure agreement that state officials signed with the electric carmaker. The governor’s economic development office will release the tax-abatement request on Feb 27, just three days before the office votes on whether the planned factory expansion is eligible to receive those tax breaks, spokesperson Gregory Bortolin said. He said the nondisclosure agreement means he can’t give exact figures for any possible tax abatements. Tesla, run by billionaire CEO Elon Musk, intends to produce high volumes of semitrucks and make enough cell batteries for 2 million light-duty vehicles annually in Nevada. The project was announced last week, and will expand an existing operation at the Truckee Reno Industrial Center, about 20 miles (32 kilometers) east of Reno-Sparks along Interstate 80. The plan takes the company a step closer to accomplishing previously announced plans to ramp up production of fully electric Tesla Semi vehicles, in order to make 50,000 trucks in North America in 2024.” [Associated Press, 2/1/23 (=)]

 

Tesla Steps Up Production To Meet Growing Demand — “Tesla plans to produce an average of 20,000 vehicles at its Shanghai factory in February and March. This is according to an internal planning memo available to the news agency Reuters. That would bring the production roughly back to the level of September 2022, when the factory turned out 82,088 Model 3 and Model Y.” [Electrive, 2/2/23 (=)]

 

Volkswagen Group

 

'Voltswagen' Gag Not Used To Mislead Investors, Car Co. Says — “Volkswagen and its investors disputed in a Virginia federal court on Wednesday whether its U.S. subsidiary’s 2021 April Fools’ Day joke saying the auto company would change its name to ‘Voltswagen’ as part of an electric energy campaign qualified as fraud under U.S. securities law. U.S. District Judge Rossie Alston Jr. said the court was more interested in looking at the context and significance of the pleas, and not the facts of the case, which have generally been agreed upon by both parties. Volkswagen is hoping that the court will dismiss the suit, which accuses the company of knowingly violating securities law, arguing that the investors’ claims should be tossed because the marketing gag lasted only a few days and the American depository receipts (ADRs) the plaintiffs hold were issued without the ‘approval or involvement’ of Volkswagen. The plaintiffs have argued that investors who purchased the ADRs following the announcement were hurt by purchasing the securities at prices that were artificially inflated by the company’s false and misleading statements.” [Law360, 2/1/23 (=)]

 

Volkswagen May Build Sub-ID.4 Electric SUV In North America — “Volkswagen is reportedly planning to build a second electric SUV in North America after production of the ID.4 started at its plant in Chattanooga, Tennessee last year. According to a report from German business newspaper Handelsblatt, VW has decided last week to build a compact electric SUV smaller than the ID.4. The new model would be made from the middle of the decade either at its US plant in Chattanooga or in Puebla, Mexico. A spokesperson confirmed such plans to the publication but declined to comment on details. While the article does not mention on which platform the new EV would be based, the revised MEB+ architecture looks like a safe bet. This could mean the new model is likely to be made in Chattanooga, which is already building an MEB-based model, the US version of the ID.4.” [Inside EVs, 2/1/23 (=)]

 

 

Electric Vehicles

 

EV Sales & Transition

 

America Has Come A Long Way From An Early Electric Car Casualty — “Twenty-two years ago, Chelsea Sexton was laid off from one of her first jobs: General Motors had tasked her and a small group of 20-somethings to help bring the first modern electric vehicle, the EV1, to market. When GM killed the electric car, it jump-started Sexton’s career of activism. She featured in the famous documentary chronicling the EV1’s demise, then consulted on its more upbeat sequel. She consulted automakers and utilities on going electric, co-founded the consumer advocacy organization Plug In America and advised a venture capital firm to place an early bet on a little company called Tesla. Today, Sexton has a big job helping dole out billions of dollars worth of US Energy Department loans to companies driving the next phase of the transition to sustainable transportation. She spoke with authority alongside CEOs and senior policymakers at the BNEF Summit in San Francisco this week about just how much impetus there is now for America’s electric vehicle industry to succeed.” [Bloomberg, 2/1/23 (=)]

 

The EV Price War Hasn’t Really Started Yet — “Simply put, Tesla can afford to make this move with other car companies still scrambling to get EVs on the road even if they aren’t yet profitable. Other automakers can cut EV prices, but given their high production costs, that means a loss for the bottom line. Marin Gjaja, chief customer officer of Ford’s electric vehicle business, even admitted yesterday that not all Mustang Mach-E models will be profitable at certain trim levels after these discounts. ‘In this EV arms race, Tesla is uniquely positioned around scale, brand, battery technology, and the Musk DNA while others are aggressively going after market share in this all-out Game of Thrones battle,’ said analyst Dan Ives of Wedbush Securities, a Tesla bull but also an occasional Elon Musk critic. Ives added, ‘There is a window of opportunity to gain share in the burgeoning EV market in our opinion and 2023 is a pivotal year that will establish the winners and losers in this EV landscape with Tesla high on top of the mountain.’ Ives said GM has an advantage here, having built out the Ultium EV platform that will underpin scores of new EVs, from upscale Cadillacs to affordable pickup trucks. But for the traditional automakers, the battle moving forward will mean striking a balance between profits and achieving sales volume with EVs, Ives said.” [The Verge, 2/2/23 (=)]

 

EV Infrastructure

 

U.S. Highways Need 1,000 EV Fast-Charging Stations — Report — “A new study estimates the United States will need more than 1,000 big charging plazas, at a cost of up to $1.3 billion, to stand up a basic charging network on interstate highways. The analysis applied some hard data to an important question as Americans start to buy electric vehicles in significant numbers: Where should federal assistance to build out charging stations go? The Great Plains Institute, a nonprofit based in Minneapolis that advocates for low-carbon energy, worked with Carbon Solutions LLC, a data startup, and released the report Wednesday. The study started with a key Biden administration goal — building charging stations at 50-mile intervals along nearly every U.S. interstate highway — and applied data from the U.S. Census Bureau and other federal agencies to pinpoint exactly where new stations are needed and how much they might cost. This kind of analysis is ‘critical to providing drivers with the confidence they need to make the switch to an EV,’ said Kellen Schefter, senior director of electric transportation at the Edison Electric Institute, a trade group for the nation’s investor-owned electric utilities, in a statement accompanying the report’s release. ‘This road map provides the clearest view yet of the gaps in the national EV fast-charging network.’” [E&E News, 2/2/23 (=)]

 

Chargepoint, Stem Strike EV Charging And Battery Storage Deal For Highway Corridor Fast-Charging Networks — “ChargePoint Holdings, an EV charging network company, and Stem, a utility- and industrial-scale battery storage and software company, announced Tuesday they’ll accelerate EV charging and battery storage for highway corridor fast-charging networks. By combining EV charging with battery storage and AI-driven energy management, operators of EV sites can benefit from lower operating costs and added energy resiliency, the companies said. ‘An integrated ChargePoint and Stem solution broadens the number of sites that can support high-speed charging economically at scale,’ said Pasquale Romano, ChargePoint’s CEO. ChargePoint will analyze EV charging demand at sites where DC chargers will be installed and assess their eligibility for financial incentives as part of the National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure program. The Bipartisan infrastructure law authorizes the Federal Highway Administration’s NEVI Formula Program to provide funding to states to strategically deploy EV charging stations and establish an interconnected network for data collection, access and reliability.” [Smart Cities Dive, 2/2/23 (=)]

 

EV Resources & Technology

 

Will The World Run Out Of Critical Minerals? — “Over 20 years ago, two geologists made a stark prediction in Scientific American: ‘Probably within 10 years,’ they wrote, ‘global production of conventional oil will begin to decline.’ This argument, which became known as ‘peak oil,’ captured public attention for well over a decade, sparking worries that abundant reserves of oil would give way to scarcity, runs on gas stations and sky-high inflation. Peak oil, however, never came to pass. U.S. oil production increased far beyond the peak oil predictions, thanks to the increased use of ‘fracking’ and other production methods. The term faded out of use, and concerns about oil shifted from a fear of running out of oil to fears of runaway global warming. Now, as the world begins to slowly shift to renewable energy sources, there is a new focus on the materials that will be required to build electric vehicles, solar panels, wind turbines and much more. According to the International Energy Agency, the average electric car requires six times the mineral inputs of a conventional gas-powered car; an offshore wind-turbine, meanwhile, requires nine times the mineral inputs of a typical gas-fired power plant.” [The Washington Post, 2/2/23 (=)]

 

 

States & Local

 

Georgia

 

Another Hyundai Supplier Plans Plant Near Future Georgia EV Factory — “A Korean automobile parts supplier announced Wednesday that it will open a factory in Coastal Georgia to support Hyundai Motor Group’s future $5.54 billion electric vehicle plant.” [The Atlanta Journal-Constitution, 2/1/23 (=)]

 

Massachusetts

 

For EVs To Take Off, Boston Needs More Equitable Placement Of Chargers — “Nicole Mushero bought her Chevy Bolt a year-and-a-half ago to do her small part to tackle climate change. But she lives in a condo in Jamaica Plain without an easy way to install a charger. She said there’s only one public charging station within walking distance to her home — with Level 2 chargers that can take up to 10 hours to recharge — and the spots fill up fast. So Mushero got up early on a Saturday to snag a spot; when she arrived at 9 a.m., she got the last available plug. WBUR is a nonprofit news organization. Our coverage relies on your financial support. If you value articles like the one you’re reading right now, give today. ‘There really needs to be a lot more charging stations to support that need that already exists, never mind that we want to grow,’ Mushero said. Currently, most EV charging happens at home. But people who can’t afford to install an EV charger, don’t have a driveway, or rent a home without a charger will have to rely on public charging.” [WBUR-Radio, 2/2/23 (+)]

 

North Carolina

 

Public Can Weigh In On Cooper’s Clean Trucks Mandate — “Have thoughts and ideas about the state’s plans to require manufacturers to sell more zero-emission vehicles? Public feedback has prompted the N.C. Department of Environmental Quality, or DEQ, to now host two virtual webinars, one in the afternoon and one in the evening, Wednesday seeking public input about Gov. Roy Cooper’s Advanced Clean Trucks program. Cooper last fall signed Executive Order 271, requiring DEQ to create the program, which aims to shift the sale of gas-powered commercial vans and trucks in the state to electric vehicles. ‘ACT will position North Carolina to benefit from the global market transition to commercial electric vans and trucks by requiring manufacturers to sell an increasing percentage of zero-emission vehicles over time,’ according to a DEQ release. ‘ACT would also provide flexibility, through credits, trading and other features, as segments of the market grow at different speeds. The sales targets would drive investment in other zero-emission technologies, including charging and fueling infrastructure.’” [Coastal Review, 1/31/23 (=)]

 

Virginia

 

Youngkin Cites China Concerns On EV Plant While Critics See Presidential Ambitions — “Virginia Gov. Glenn Youngkin’s (R) announcement removing his state from consideration for a Ford electric vehicle (EV) battery plant over connections to China has triggered a controversy, with critics saying he is picking fights as a prelude to a possible 2024 White House run. Youngkin announced in January that he had withdrawn Virginia from the selection process for the plant. A Virginia facility would have been located in Pittsylvania County near the North Carolina state line. The governor cited the involvement of Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. (CATL), a Chinese battery manufacturer that would have operated the facility as a joint venture with Ford. ‘This is an easy one where Virginia taxpayer money along with federal taxpayer money wasn’t going to go to the benefit of a [Chinese Communist Party]-influenced company and a workaround arrangement for what federal law is,’ Youngkin told Fox News’s Neil Cavuto last week. The planned joint venture would be operated by CATL but owned by Ford, which could have made the plant eligible for subsidies under the Inflation Reduction Act.” [The Hill, 2/2/23 (=)]

 

 

International

 

Chinese Electric Cars Are Filling European Streets — “Chinese electric vehicles are making their way into European markets at large. XPeng announced its first deliveries to Norway in October 2020. Around the same time, John Voelcker, a seasoned auto reviewer, drove the company’s P7 electric sedan, and pronounced it pretty darn good — it had ‘perhaps 75 percent of the features and capability of a Tesla,’ and at the time, carried about 50 percent of the price tag. (That may no longer be the case, thanks to Tesla’s recent price cuts, but the Chinese brand’s prices are still tempting.) Two years later, Chinese EVs from XPeng, BYD, and MG are common sights on the streets of Oslo (to say nothing of models from Volvo and Polestar, both owned by Chinese firm Geely). As every China-watcher knows, the country’s strong push into electrification is not just about cleaning up choking air pollution — it’s also about muscling into the global auto industry. China has been building decent cars for many years, but most buyers, including Chinese ones, seem to prefer more prestigious brands such as Mercedes and BMW (and, for obscure reasons, Buick). However, as they watched Western automakers being dragged kicking and screaming into the electric era, Chinese industrialists saw an opportunity, and they seized it.” [CleanTechnica, 2/1/23 (=)]

 

 

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