GROB invests in new EV motor production facility


German machine and tool manufacturer GROB says that it spent more than four years of intense R&D to established itself as a leading technical expert in the manufacture of electric powertrain systems. The GROB product portfolio now ranges from the complex stator, rotor and electrical machine assembly systems to complete electrical axle assembly systems. The… Read more »

Sandy Munro says the Tesla Cybertruck’s unorthodox design makes it cheap to manufacture


Sandy Munro, the auto manufacturing expert who delivered some detailed insights about Tesla’s manufacturing strengths and weaknesses after tearing down a Tesla Model 3, recently made some comments about the upcoming Cybertruck. Of course, Munro hasn’t gotten his hands on an actual Cybertruck (as far as we know, Jay Leno is the first non-employee to… Read more »

Battery pack prices continue plummeting towards price parity with ICE vehicles


If you drove an EV back in 2010, it’s likely that you paid an average of about $1,100 per kilowatt-hour for your battery pack. By the end of 2019 this figure had fallen a full 87%, to $156 per kWh. According to BloombergNEF’s 2019 Battery Price Survey, the average price by 2023 will be approximately… Read more »

Musk responds to environmental concerns about Tesla’s Berlin Gigafactory site


Tesla’s board of directors has approved an agreement with the state of Brandenburg to buy a property in an industrial area on the outskirts of Berlin, bringing the company a step closer to opening its European Gigafactory. According to a Brandenburg government spokesman, Tesla will buy the 300-hectare property for a price of around 41… Read more »

DOE announces Energy Storage Grand Challenge


The DOE recently launched the Energy Storage Grand Challenge, which will focus on the development of new energy-storage technologies. It’s part of the $158-million Advanced Energy Storage Initiative proposed in the 2020 federal budget’. The aim of the project is to develop a secure domestic manufacturing supply chain that is independent of foreign sources of… Read more »

Power Integrations launches new SCALE-iDriver gate driver


Power Integrations, a manufacturer of gate-driver technology for medium- and high-voltage inverter applications, has launched a new gate driver for 750 V-rated IGBTs. The new SID1181KQ SCALE-iDriver comes equipped with the company’s FluxLink communications technology and protection features such as desaturation monitoring; primary and secondary Undervoltage Lock-out; and Advanced Soft Shut Down. The SCALE-iDrivers are… Read more »

SK Innovation and Glencore sign six-year cobalt supply deal


Global mining giant Glencore has signed a deal to supply Korean battery-maker SK Innovation with up to 30,000 tons of cobalt contained in hydroxide between 2020 and 2025. Glencore expects global demand for cobalt for EV batteries to reach 92 kilotons by 2025. The quantity of cobalt supplied under this contract will allow SK Innovation… Read more »

Sweden to develop plan to phase out fossil fuel cars


Sweden’s government has appointed a commission of inquiry to offer proposals on when and how sales of new fossil fuel cars, and fossil fuels themselves, should be phased out. The group is also tasked with developing a plan to bring about the same changes in the EU as a whole. The commission is to propose… Read more »

Fastned to bring 13 new fast charging stations to Belgium


Flanders, Belgium, is about to become a whole lot friendlier to EV drivers. Fastned, a growing charging network operator, plans to add 13 new highway fast charging stations to its network. The new stations, featuring charging levels up to 350 kW, will be constructed at current highway parking facilities throughout the Flemish provinces of Limburg,… Read more »

Bloomy releases Battery Simulator 1200 software update for BMS testing


Bloomy, a provider of automated testing, data acquisition and control systems, has released the third version of the Soft Front Panel for its Battery Simulator 1200, which provides 12 programmable cells that sink and source current for testing battery management systems. The new update is designed to simplify the program and allow PC users to… Read more »