Charging network operator Electrify America has entered into a 15-year virtual power purchase agreement (VPPA) with developer Terra-Gen to build a solar photovoltaic project in California’s Mojave Desert. The Electrify America Solar Glow 1 project is expected to have a peak capacity of 75 MW, and estimated annual energy production of 225,000 MWh—enough to more… Read more »
Author: Charles Morris
New report: over 5,000 e-buses now on US streets
Electric transit buses are becoming increasingly common sights on US streets. A new report from clean transport consultancy CALSTART found that there are some 5,480 full-size zero-emission buses in operation in the US—an increase of 66 percent since 2021—and another 859 in Canada. The entire US fleet of full-size transit buses numbered about 72,700 in… Read more »
GM selects PyroPhobic’s LithiumPrevent 200 fire safety material for its Ultium battery platform
PyroPhobic Systems, a provider of fire-resistant thermoplastic resins for batteries, has announced that its LithiumPrevent 200 material has been selected for application in GM’s Ultium battery platform. LithiumPrevent 200 has “unique intumescent properties, meaning it expands to create a barrier, reducing the propagation of fire,” says PyroPhobic. “Injection-molded into EV battery pack components, LithiumPrevent 200… Read more »
Rincon Power introduces new 900 V, 350 A contactor
Rincon Power has announced a new addition to its line of sealed contactors and manual disconnect switches. The new RXC35 is a hermetically sealed contactor that offers the ability to isolate high-voltage systems in a compact and robust package. The RXC35 offers 350 A of continuous current carry capability for applications ranging from 12 V… Read more »
Ford to build new LFP battery plant in Michigan
Ford plans to invest $3.5 billion to build an LFP battery plant in Marshall, Michigan. BlueOval Battery Park Michigan will initially employ 2,500 people when production begins in 2026. The automaker will offer LFP (lithium iron phosphate) as a second battery chemistry option in addition to NCM (nickel cobalt manganese), allowing customers to choose an… Read more »
White House sets reliability standards for federally-funded EV chargers
Please excuse us for beginning this article with a statement that is not news: The public EV charging experience stinks (unless you drive a Tesla, then it’s pretty darn good). Drivers complain of poorly-designed charging sites, pointlessly complicated charging procedures, and above all, abysmal reliability. If competition can’t make charge point operators clean up their… Read more »
Tesla to open up its US Supercharger network, double the number of chargers
The day when all EVs can use the same DC fast chargers just moved a little closer, as the White House announced that Tesla will move forward with plans to open its Supercharger network to non-Tesla EVs in the US. (Is that how it works when a company has no PR department?) Tesla, which rolled… Read more »
FREYR and Nidec finalize battery manufacturing JV, release results of cell testing
In September, FREYR Battery and Japanese electric motor producer Nidec announced plans to establish a downstream joint venture to produce battery modules and packs. Now the new JV, Nidec Energy, has been officially established. Mass production is expected to commence in 2025, and the goal is to manufacture more than 8 GWh per year of… Read more »
How NanoGraf is commercializing the “world’s most energy-dense” 18650 battery cell with stable silicon dioxide
Q&A with NanoGraf COO Connor Hund Graphite, a pure form of carbon, is a critical material for battery anodes. Graphite’s physical structure allows it to store lithium ions, which merrily migrate to the anode when the battery is charged. Unlike cathodes, which can be composed of various combinations of chemicals (cobalt, nickel, manganese, lithium, iron,… Read more »
TWAICE battery analytics software earns TISAX label for automotive cybersecurity
TWAICE, a provider of battery analytics software, has obtained the TISAX label for cybersecurity. TISAX (Trusted Information Security Assessment Exchange) is a globally recognized standard for cybersecurity in the automotive and industrial automation sectors. To earn the TISAX label, TWAICE completed an assessment process to verify that it meets TISAX’s standards for information security, including… Read more »
