US school bus manufacturer Blue Bird has unveiled the operating prototype of an electric step van and underlying stripped chassis.  This prototype of the last-mile delivery commercial vehicle was built in collaboration with US electric truck manufacturer and fleet services provider Xos for the powertrain and US work truck body manufacturer Morgan Olson for the… Read more…

Sponsored by Elektro-Automatik. Electric vehicle battery manufacturers and EV manufacturers are working to overcome the two biggest challenges of electric mobility: range and charging time. Within this framework, testing systems must be flexible to adapt to higher voltages and higher-capacity batteries. The following sections provide an overview of current and future battery technologies for electric… Read more…

Swiss electrical and electronic components manufacturer SCHURTER has released the DKUH-1, a new current-compensated choke designed for currents from 50 A to 100 A and high voltage of 800 VDC, making it suitable for EV fast charging stations, battery storage, photovoltaics and energy converters. The choke is designed to integrate filter elements into printed circuit… Read more…

Power electronics manufacturer Shenzhen Kehua has developed a 40 kW silicon carbide high-efficiency, low-noise charging module, which is intended to serve as a core component of a high-power EV charger. The new module, which Kehua showed off at the recent Intersolar Europe exhibition in Munich, complies with CE and UL certifications, and meets EMC Class… Read more…

The Volkswagen Group will invest up to $5 billion in US EV maker Rivian in a complex deal under which the two companies will form an equally controlled joint venture to share EV architecture and software. As reported by Reuters, Volkswagen will immediately invest $1 billion in Rivian through a convertible note, and also pledges… Read more…

Japanese automotive manufacturers Honda Motor and Mitsubishi have announced plans to establish a new 50/50 joint venture (JV) company called ALTNA in July 2024. The new JV is based on an agreement the two companies signed in October 2023 to collaborate on new EV businesses. ALTNA will combine Honda’s control and connected technologies for EVs… Read more…

Engineered Materials Solutions (EMS), a Wickeder Group company that produces functional clad metals for the Li-ion battery, electrical distribution, thermal control, consumer electronics and automotive markets, has acquired Colorado-based Thin Metal Parts, a provider of micro-components to the defense, aerospace, medical and audio industries. TMP uses its photochemical etching, electroforming and laser cutting technologies, combined… Read more…

Daimler Buses has delivered an electric bus fleet for the German transport company ESWE Verkehr in Wiesbaden and supplied a total of 120 battery-electric eCitaro buses since the start of the project in 2019.  Daimler Buses supervised all construction measures and oversaw the installation of a total of 120 charging stations. The company deployed charged management… Read more…

German chemical company Evonik is expanding its TEGO Therm product range to provide heat protection and fire-resistant coatings for EV battery housings and covers to prevent thermal runaway. The range includes TEGO Therm HPG 4000 granules, which have a microporous silica core for low thermal conductivity, high hydrophobicity, and reduced flammability. TEGO Therm HPG 6806,… Read more…

Sponsored by TE Connectivity. The battery management system (BMS) is critical for optimum battery performance and safety within an EV. It must operate with a high degree of accuracy and reliability. It must be robust enough to withstand the environment it occupies yet remain compact and lightweight and limit any additional bulk to the overall… Read more…

Lithium Australia’s subsidiary Envirostream Australia has signed an exclusive agreement with Volvo Group Australia’s bus division to recycle end-of-life lithium-ion batteries from its electric and hybrid fleet. Volvo manufactures and supplies electric and hybrid buses to customers across Australia, including Public Transport Authority in Western Australia and Transdev in Queensland. The agreement has an initial… Read more…

Natron Energy, a sodium-ion battery manufacturer, has started commercial-scale operations at its facility in Holland, Michigan.  Sodium-ion batteries offer higher power density, higher cycles, and better safety characteristics over other battery technologies, according to the company. The battery chemistry presents zero strain during charging and discharge, 10x faster cycling than traditional lithium-ion batteries and a… Read more…

Circontrol launched its new eHome5 home charger, the fifth generation of its EV charger designed specifically for homes and condominiums, at the recent Power2Drive trade show In Germany. The 22 kW wall charger features a “customizable aesthetic” designed to help the unit to fit in with the user’s garage décor. EV drivers can choose one… Read more…

Fast charging network operator Atlante and shopping center operator Groupe Duval have announced plans to deploy new 130 fast and ultra-fast charging stations as part of their long-term partnership.  The announcement was made as the first site—located in Saint-Chamond in the Auvergne-Rhône-Alpes region in Central France—was powered on. That site now offers 188 fast charging… Read more…

Omron Electronic Components Europe has announced a new high-capacity DC relay for use in household electricity storage systems, bidirectional EV chargers and UPS systems. The G9K8-F general-purpose relay offers a maximum voltage of 800 VDC and maximum current of 100 A. It is suitable for battery applications within the 15 to 40 kW range and,… Read more…

Xendee, provider of a design and operation platform for distributed energy systems and EV fast charging infrastructure, has released the findings of its 2024 Commercial EV Charging Market Survey, the second in a series of annual research studies. Xendee asked leaders in the EV charging industry about challenges and potential solutions related to commercial EV… Read more…

South Korean steel manufacturer POSCO Holdings and Chinese battery precursor producer CNGR have started construction of nickel and precursor production plants for secondary batteries in Pohang, South Korea. The companies will invest approximately KRW 1.5 trillion ($1.09 billion) to build the plants, and mass production is scheduled to begin in 2026. POSCO CNGR Nickel Solution,… Read more…

Netherlands-based Nexperia’s 650 V, 10 A silicon carbide (SiC) Schottky diode is now automotive-qualified (PSC1065H-Q) and available in real-two-pin (R2P) DPAK (TO-252-2) packaging, making it suitable for various applications in EVs and other automobiles. The diode is designed to address the challenges of demanding high voltage and high current applications including switched-mode power supplies, AC-DC and DC-DC… Read more…

Toyota Motor North America and utility Potomac Electric (Pepco) will collaborate on vehicle-to-grid (V2G) research for EVs. Owned by Exelon, Pepco serves Washington DAC and surrounding communities in Maryland. Toyota and Pepco will conduct the V2G research at Pepco’s Watershed Sustainability Center in Montgomery County, Maryland, using a bidirectional charger. The utility will also work… Read more…

Shell has deployed a self-developed megawatt charger for dual use by both electric trucks and waterborne vessels at the company’s Energy Transition Campus Amsterdam (ETCA), a facility where the oil giant demonstrates current energy technologies. The charging station uses the Megawatt Charging System (MCS), a standard for charging heavy-duty EVs that was developed by CharIN…. Read more…