The U.S. Can Counter China’s Control of Minerals for the Energy Transition
America needs to invest in mining and build resilient supply chains for the building blocks of electric batteries.
Toyota on Tuesday announced an expansion of its planned North Carolina battery plant to accommodate additional volume for EVs and plug-in hybrids. A new investment of nearly $8 billion will add eight EV and plug-in hybrid battery production lines to the two previously announced, Toyota said in a press release. Toyota previously announced that the...
Ford is delaying production at one of two EV battery plants located on a common site in Kentucky, the Louisville Courier Journal reports. Citing lower-than-expected demand for EVs, Ford will continue production of the two plants comprising the BlueOval SK Battery Park, a joint venture with battery supplier SK On in the state that's being financed...
Factorial Energy recently announced the opening of a new manufacturing facility it claims is the largest thus far in the U.S. for solid-state batteries—although there's not yet a timeline for scaled-up production. Located in the Boston suburb of Methuen, Massachusetts, near Factorial's existing headquarters and R&D center, the $50...
Toyota is partnering with Japanese oil company Idemitsu Kosan to move solid-state EV battery tech closer to production. The partnership will progress through three phases, the two companies said in a joint announcement Thursday. The first phase will focus on development sulfide solid electrolytes (the solid electrolyte is where solid-state...
The largest Rivian battery pack, dubbed the Max pack, is now entering production, but with less capacity than original discussed. When it announced the Max pack about two years ago, Rivian mentioned a gross capacity of 180 kwh. But this past week, Rivian confirmed to Car and Driver that it's largest pack has a gross capacity of just 149 kwh. Since...
Toyota on Wednesday announced a "long-term" battery supply agreement with LG Energy Solution, which the automaker claims will secure batteries for U.S. EV production. Under the contract, LG will supply battery modules at an annual capacity of 20 gigawatt-hours starting in 2025, according to a Toyota press release. Comprised of...
Swedish battery firm Northvolt on Thursday said it would build a $5.2 billion (USD) EV battery factory in Canada's Quebec province—its first outside of Europe. Known as Northvolt Six, the factory will be located just outside Montreal, according to a company press release. The first phase of construction is scheduled to start this year, with...
Israel-based battery firm StoreDot on Thursday announced a "strategic collaboration" with Volvo to develop very fast-charging battery cells for future EVs. The partnership will produce cells "optimized and tailored for Volvo's future electric vehicle architecture," according to a StoreDot press release. The company expects to deliver the first...
EVs produce no "tailpipe" emissions, but the environmental impact of battery production has car shoppers concerned about EVs' overall carbon footprint, according to a new Ipsos survey. Of the consumers surveyed, 73% said they were concerned about how EV battery production might affect the planet. Further, 74% said they were concerned about the...
Hot weather can cause EV batteries to degrade faster, but there are some simple things owners can do to help protect their cars, according battery-health analysis firm Recurrent. Recurrent publishes battery health reports for used EVs, but also uses the data pulled from vehicles to study the impact of hot and cold weather on range and battery...
Toyota on Thursday provided an update on its battery development plans, including a more detailed roadmap for the rollout of solid-state batteries. The automaker has five next-generation battery designs, including both liquid and solid electrolytes. Toyota expects the solid-state batteries, which the company has been researching with Panasonic, to...