Japanese automaker Nissan Motor has announced it will take a 25% stake in ChargeScape, a software company that connects electric utilities, automakers and drivers, and that it is deploying two power management systems using second-life batteries from the Nissan LEAF. ChargeScape is a joint venture founded in 2023 by BMW, Ford and Honda, each with… Read more…

German technology company Siemens has integrated its numerical control system, SINUMERIK ONE, into the latest model of Prima Power’s 3D laser cutting machine, Laser Next, for automotive manufacturing. Prima Power, a manufacturer of sheet metal working machinery and 3D laser cutting technology, said it has enhanced its machine’s compatibility and integration capabilities. Incorporating the advanced… Read more…

Lithium-sulfur batteries, which feature high energy density, and don’t need problematic minerals such as nickel, cobalt, manganese and graphite, are widely seen as a possible replacement for today’s lithium-ion batteries. Lyten, which calls itself a “supermaterial applications company,” has long been a pioneer in Li-S technology. Now the company has announced plans to invest more… Read more…

PhoenixEV, a division of California-headquartered commercial EV manufacturer Phoenix Motor, plans to deliver four 35-foot electric transit buses to the University of California San Diego in early 2025. The new buses will bring the university’s fleet to 20% electric as part of its commitment to decarbonization by 2045. “This project will mark the third University… Read more…

Austria-based Miba Battery Systems has introduced its new Terra #11 battery system equipped with 46xx cell technology for off-highway vehicles, construction machinery and utility vehicles. Terra #11 operates at 650 V, and has a capacity of 42.8 kWh. Its dimensions of 1700 x 700 x 140 mm give manufacturers the flexibility to integrate it into… Read more…

Battery technology provider A3 Global’s NuVant Systems subsidiary has introduced its new LVc-40 tool for diagnosing, repairing, balancing and reconditioning hybrid and EV batteries. The LVc-40 features 40 individual channels and includes an integrated computer, enabling it to run NuVant’s Pack-Builder software and leverage AI-driven algorithms to maximize battery performance. The system provides key diagnostic… Read more…

Mercedes-Benz Trucks, a division of Daimler Truck, has received an order for 75 Mercedes-Benz eActros 600 trucks from Netherlands-headquartered logistics service provider Simon Loos, which plans to expand its electric fleet to a total of 135 trucks. Simon Loos was the first company outside Germany to start practical tests of the near-series prototype eActros 600…. Read more…

US-based battery manufacturer Enovix has started shipping EX-1M battery cell samples from its new Agility Line in Malaysia. The start of shipments follows the shipping of initial samples from the company’s Fab1 in California, and the opening of the high-volume Fab2 in Malaysia this summer. The company says it is on track to commence high-volume… Read more…

An old saw often uttered by an electrical engineer (or their hapless techs) when an electronic device releases its magic smoke goes something like this: “The transistor bravely sacrificed itself to protect the fuse.”  This is a succinct way of saying that conventional fuses (and most types of circuit breakers) shouldn’t be counted on to… Read more…

Toyota Motor and Revel, an operator of an EV taxi service and a network of high-speed charging stations, have signed an agreement that will give owners of Toyota and Lexus EVs complimentary access to Revel’s DC fast charging network in New York City.  The agreement runs through October 14, 2027.  Revel, which began life as… Read more…

Canadian battery raw material and technology developer Volt Carbon Technologies has designed a high-entropy electrolyte to improve battery performance at low temperatures, which has demonstrated functionality at temperatures as low as -80° C in testing. Solid UltraBattery, a Volt subsidiary, in collaboration with Volt Board Member, Dr. Aiping Yu, Professor and Director of the Carbon… Read more…

Lithium ceramic battery (LCB) developer ProLogium Technology has introduced a new silicon composite anode battery, which Germany’s FEV Group is using to develop a next-generation battery pack. According to the companies, the new battery system can reduce vehicle weight, increase energy efficiency, and improve charging speed. The system offers energy density of 749 Wh/L, and… Read more…

The state of Delaware has received $14.3 million in federal grants to install medium- and heavy-duty EV charging stations along the portion of Interstate 95 that is within its borders to improve air quality and expand alternative fuel infrastructure. The creation of electric vehicle infrastructure along I-95 is part of an initiative organized by the… Read more…

UK-based battery materials recycling company Altilium has announced a project to produce EV battery cells using cathode active materials recovered from end-of-life EV batteries and validate them for use in vehicles for UK-based luxury car manufacturer JLR.  The project is supported by the Advanced Propulsion Centre UK under the latest round of its Advanced Route… Read more…

Three companies in Central Europe—Test-Fuchs, SFC Energy and Auto Group—have announced the release of the H2Genset, a hydrogen-powered mobile generator. The trailer-mounted power generator can be used to charge electric vehicles in situations where it is preferable or necessary to bring the power source to the vehicles.   Austrian Airlines has deployed the H2Genset on the airport… Read more…

US-based battery recycling materials and management company Cirba Solutions has been selected to enter negotiations with the US Department of Energy for up to $200 million in funding under the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law for the construction of its lithium-ion processing facility in Columbia, South Carolina. The facility will manufacture battery-grade salts for the EV market… Read more…

As Charged readers know, EV designers are free from many of the considerations that generations of ICE vehicle designers regarded as givens. For one thing, motors can be mounted in various different positions on the chassis. For another, a transmission or gearbox may be an optional component. Jeff Seger, a clean energy consultant for the… Read more…

The H2020 SOLiDIFY consortium, coordinated by Belgian research organization Imec, has developed a lithium-metal solid-state battery with high energy density. The prototype battery pouch cell, manufactured by Imec in the assembly lab at EnergyVille, Belgium, has a “liquid-to-solid” processed solid electrolyte, which was jointly developed by Imec and its 13 consortium partners. The cell has… Read more…

It’s instantly recognizable as a VW Bus, but what does it compete against? And will its allure last? The 2025 Volkswagen ID.Buzz, an electric reinvention of VW’s 1960s Microbus, is finally here. After a seven-year wait, the high-style 3-row box on wheels will hit dealerships in November and December—with priority going to those dealers who… Read more…

US-based Able Electropolishing has added a fourth-generation scanning electron microscope (SEM) to its product lineup, to provide customers in the EV manufacturing industry access to in-house analytic and testing capabilities. The JCM-7000 NeoScopeä Benchtop SEM features a platform for applications from measurement and analysis of surface defects to elemental analysis. The SEM offers part magnification… Read more…