In its election manifesto, the SPD is campaigning for tax incentives to boost electric car sales. The incentives should only benefit electric cars ‘made in Germany’. The Social Democrats are also in favour of better depreciation conditions and changes to company car taxation. Read more…

The US Department of Energy (DOE) has given the green light for a direct loan of up to $9.63 billion to BlueOval SK. The money will be used for the construction of “up to three” battery factories in Tennessee and Kentucky. Read more…

The Zeekr 7X is now available to order in the Netherlands, Sweden and Norway. That also means the first European prices for the electric mid-range SUV, characterised by its enormously high charging capacity, are now public. Read more…

The International Council on Clean Transportation (ICCT) has analysed which commercial vehicle manufacturers are leading the European market in terms of electric drives in the third quarter. While a few players are dividing up the cake among themselves in the electric truck segment, more and more players are vying for customers in the electric bus segment. Read more…

The city of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, received a federal grant of almost 15 million dollars to build a network of 53 EV charging stations. The stations will be installed partly through a public-private partnership with a yet-to-be-named partner. Read more…

Tesla has resumed groundwork for entering India after pausing its investment plans earlier this year. The company is scouting locations for a showroom in the national capital New Delhi. Read more…

A Waymo robotaxi was recently captured on video repeatedly circling a roundabout in a quiet residential area. How long the dizzying drive lasted remains unclear, but the company has since confirmed that no passengers were on board during the incident. Read more…

In China, battery manufacturer Sunwoda and materials specialist XTC are joining forces to develop and industrialize preliminary products for solid-state batteries. Sunwoda is known for making steady progress in semi-solid and solid-state batteries. Read more…

In Switzerland, the Federal Council has passed an ordinance regulating automated driving that will come into force on March 1, 2025. The regulations mean that drivers will be allowed to use autopilot functions on freeways and for parking, while fully autonomated routes for pilot projects have been made clear. Read more…

In the United Arab Emirates (UAE), the Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has announced that its network of electric vehicle charging stations now reaches over 740 charge points across the city. Independent Charge Point Operator (CPO) licenses have also been issued to Tesla and UAEV. Read more…

The Danish public transport company Movia has put 66 new electric buses into operation. This means that half of Movia’s bus fleet in the capital region of Copenhagen and on Zealand is now electric – six years earlier than originally planned. Read more…

Chinese electric car manufacturer Nio wants to make a profit from 2026, according to company boss William Li. The urgency to become profitable arises from the fact that Nio’s development is running about two years slower than expected. Read more…

The Federal Ministry of Economics will subsidise the chip factory of the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC) and its partners Bosch, Infineon and NXP in Dresden. Grants of up to 5 billion euros are planned over several years. Read more…

The Chinese battery manufacturer CATL has told its suppliers that it will provide them with financial support if necessary to accelerate technological innovation in battery materials and equipment to further reduce prices. Read more…

The tech company Xiaomi apparently wants to offer its electric cars internationally in future, and no longer just on the Chinese domestic market. Initially, this is planned on a small scale in order to test market reactions and prepare for a larger expansion. Read more…

Mercedes-AMG is starting trials on test sites and on public roads with its recently announced electric SUV based on the AMG.EA platform. The first stop will be winter testing in northern Sweden. Read more…

EVgo has just announced the closing of its $1.25 billion guaranteed loan facility from the US Department of Energy (DOE) Loan Programs Office (LPO). The financing will enable the construction of 7,500 public charge points across the USA. Read more…

Blink Charging has announced new developments and contracts in the UK, including a new charging deal with Power Design, the expansion of infrastructure in Norfolk County and another infrastructure project with the NHS. Read more…

Factorial Energy has scaled up the first of its Solstice solid-state battery cells developed with Mercedes-Benz to a capacity of 40 Ah. The US developer revealed the A-samples, characterized by their dry cathodes, in relevant sizes for electric cars. Read more…

The British-Australian mining group Rio Tinto is investing $2.5 billion in expanding its Rincon project in Argentina. The Rincon mine will supply up to 60,000 tonnes of battery-grade lithium carbonate per year. Subject to approval, the expansion is scheduled to begin in mid-2025 and production in 2028. Read more…