September 25, 2023
The French mining company Eramet and waste management specialist Suez have decided on Dunkirk, near the Belgian border, for the location of their EV battery recycling plant. The first part of the plant is scheduled to be operational by 2025, with a capacity of up to 50 000 tons of battery packs per year. Eramet […]
September 25, 2023
The Vietnamese electric car manufacturer VinFast has now set the fourth quarter of 2023 as the target for the start of deliveries in Europe. The introduction has been postponed several times. At the same time, VinFast presented its first official business figures after it went IPO in August. In the fourth quarter of 2023, the […]
September 25, 2023
All new Jaguars sold in North America from 2025 will come with the North American Charging Standard (NACS). I-Pace drivers will receive an adapter to use the supercharger network. Jaguar is looking to become an all-electric brand starting in 2025. In the US, Canada, and Mexico, its new electric cars will come with the North […]
September 22, 2023
BMW Motorrad has issued a (temporary) sales ban on all its motorbikes with combustion engines throughout North America. This applies not only to new bikes but also to used ones at dealers. Only the electric model CE 04 is currently released for sale in the US and Canada. BMW emphasized that the sales stop is […]
September 21, 2023
Gas network operator Fluxys Belgium, Pipelink, Socofe, and the Federal Participation and Investment Company (SFPIM) join forces to create ‘Fluxys c-grid’, a CO2 network operator that must support the industry “in its transition efforts toward a low CO2 emission future”. Pipelink is a subsidiary of the Port of Antwerp-Bruges, and Socofe is the investment vehicle […]
September 21, 2023
As of next year, Volvo halts production and subsequent sales of diesel engines in its entire model line-up. The news was symbolically released at Climate Week in New York. CEO of Volvo Jim Rowan called electric cars “a key part of our response to climate change”. As of 2024, cars from Volvo will only be […]
September 21, 2023
According to a media report, BMW wants to extend the contract with CEO Oliver Zipse at a supervisory board meeting next week ahead of schedule by another two years until summer 2026. It remains to be seen what will happen after that – but there is already speculation about potential successors. The German specialized newspaper […]
September 20, 2023
A 3,5-year EU project, GIANTS (Green Intelligent Affordable New Transport Solutions), aims to develop technology solutions that will enable the production of affordable LEVs or light electric vehicles (categorized L5, L6, and L7) for urban transport worldwide. Two major car manufacturers are also involved. How can the millions of tuk-tuks in the world’s cities be […]
September 20, 2023
Rixensart-based start-up Risorce has raised 12,5 million euros to build a new factory in Baelen, Liège, which will eventually be able to recycle 2,4 million used car tires a year. This will be done through pyrolysis. In the process, the tires will be processed into mainly oil. By 2025, the plant should be fully operational […]
September 20, 2023
In August 2023, the EU car market expanded by 21%, reaching 787 626 registered units, marking the thirteenth consecutive month of growth, according to the figures of the Association of European Car Manufacturers (ACEA). The market share of battery–electric cars exceeded 20% for the first time (up from 11,6% in August last year). Despite August […]
September 19, 2023
At the top of Hongtu Daban in Tibet, a Porsche Taycan Cross Turismo EV conquered a new record for the greatest altitude change by an electric car: 5 573,979 meters. The Porsche Taycan has secured a new Guinness World Record after completing an extreme 2 783-kilometer journey that saw it go from the lowest natural […]
September 19, 2023
Spain’s Perte plan, a subsidy scheme to transform the country into an industrial hub for electric mobility, is bearing fruit. After Volkswagen, the Stellantis group is tapping into favorable incentives. Models built on the STLA Small architecture will be produced in Spain. Stellantis has three plants in Spain and will now convert those in Figueruelas, […]
September 19, 2023
Tesla has surpassed the five million cars produced for fifteen years of manufacturing. Most remarkably, the jump from four to five million units took the company no longer than half a year. The success is mainly attributed to the highly efficient Shanghai factory, where the symbolic model was assembled. The news on the milestone was […]
September 19, 2023
Gotion High-Tech, a Chinese battery cell manufacturer and Volkswagen partner, now also builds its battery packs in Göttingen. The first battery products are to be delivered to customers in October. “Our Göttingen factory’s production line is highly automated, with an overall automation level of nearly 70% and close to 80% in the module assembly stage,” […]
September 19, 2023
Volkswagen reportedly wants to stop vehicle production in Dresden after more than 20 years. The site is to be retained, and the 300 or so employees will be given other tasks, among others, in the area of innovative production and testing. VW is building the ID.3 in the so-called ‘Gläserne Manufaktur’ or Transparent Factory. According […]
September 18, 2023
Carmakers can sell small electric cars made in Europe for € 25 000 while making a profit, new research from Transport & Environment (T&E) shows. Falling production costs and battery prices would make mass-market B-segment vehicles feasible to electrify by 2025, according to the study by Transport & Environment (T&E) based on analysis by the […]
September 18, 2023
Xpeng will be the next Chinese manufacturer to launch an electric van on the domestic market from the end of this year. It will bear the model designation Xpeng X9 and will go on sale later this year. The first undisguised pictures and technical key data have now emerged from the Chinese Ministry of Industry […]
September 15, 2023
A volcanic crater on the border between Nevada and Oregon is believed to contain an estimated 20 to 40 million tons of lithium, a critical raw material for producing batteries for electric cars. So, report several US media outlets. With an estimated value of 1,5 trillion dollars of precious metal, the amount is almost double […]
September 15, 2023
Danish container shipping company Maersk has launched the world’s first container ship to run on green methanol in its fleet. The ship, the ‘Laura Maersk’ was christened in Copenhagen by European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen. “This ship embodies Europe’s decision to be a pioneer in the fight against climate change,” von der Leyen […]
September 15, 2023
Toyota has revealed more details about its next-gen battery tech for electric vehicles, including three new liquid battery technologies and the start of mass production of solid-state batteries. The aim is to offer 1 200 km or more range, faster charging times, and a lower height for better aerodynamics. In June, Toyota announced it would […]
September 15, 2023
Despite substantial offers from the automakers, negotiations with the United Union of Autoworkers (UAW) fell short on Thursday. With no agreement at the deadline of past midnight, the members kickstarted a historic strike at the carmakers Ford, GM, and Stellantis. “Tonight, for the first time in our history, we will strike all three of the […]
September 15, 2023
Volkswagen is laying off workforce at its biggest plant for EV manufacturing in Zwickau. As incentives are declining and the economy remains weak, demand for the ID. models is underperforming. Volkswagen made the decision official at an extraordinary works council yesterday. The German car giant will not extend the interim contracts of 269 laborers who […]
September 15, 2023
EU Commission President Ursula von der Leyen’s statement on Wednesday that the EU is to launch an investigation into China’s state support for makers of electric vehicles was brushed away by the Chinese government as ‘naked protectionist behavior.’ One that von der Leyen’s home car industry fears will backfire in a Chinese market they desperately […]
September 14, 2023
The clock is ticking for the three big American car groups to reach an agreement with the Union of Auto Workers (UAW). Without a deal on new wages and other demands, the union threatens to strike on Friday, the 15th of 2023. It would dim the spotlights of the Detroit Auto Show, which opened doors […]
September 14, 2023
BMW, Honda, and Ford are combining forces in the US and have founded ChargeScape, a joint venture that connects energy providers and EV customers from the brands. The three automakers have been researching the possibility of a standard charging service network for some time and have turned their findings into a business. ChargeScape is not […]
September 14, 2023
Volvo Trucks announced on Thursday it has finally kicked off serial production of heavy battery electric trucks up to 44 tons in its Ghent factory in Belgium. That is Volvo Trucks’ largest production site with a yearly capacity of around 45 000 trucks. The electric trucks are assembled on the same platform and line as […]
September 14, 2023
After adding Stellantis-dealer Vandecasteele Group in Kortrijk, Chinese carmaker BYD (Build Your Dreams) is expanding to Hasselt as its fifth dealership in Belgium, under the wings of Renault-Dacia specialist Paesmans Auto Group. The Chinese carmaker is looking for five more dealerships in Belgium and Luxembourg. BYD, China’s biggest EV maker, is imported by international car […]
September 13, 2023
VDL Special Vehicles has produced the first of five hydrogen fuel cell trucks for Toyota Motor Europe, which will be used in an extensive five-year test by Toyota’s European logistics providers. The hydrogen truck uses Toyota’s fuel cell technology. Earlier this year, in May, the Dutch VDL group and Toyota Motor Europe announced a partnership […]
September 13, 2023
After a few teasers, Peugeot has finally unveiled its new all-electric e-3008. The popular SUV now resembles a high-riding fastback with a swooping roof line. In addition to its new look, the e-3008 is the first vehicle to sit on Stellantis’ STLA Medium platform, offering from 210 to 320 hp of power and an impressive […]
September 13, 2023
Californian EV start-up Fisker is ramping up production of its Fisker Ocean One EV at Magna Steyr in Austria from 180 to 300 per day, the company announces. So far, 3 123 customer vehicles have been built, but by the end of September, 5 000 is the target. All these Ocean One launch editions have […]
September 12, 2023
After an earlier decision from last year to move the new generation of the electric Mini to China, BMW is making a U-turn. The German carmaker announces a crucial investment that keeps production in Oxford, the birthplace of the famed Mini, for the future zero-emission generation. Brexit hasn’t done any favors for Britain’s car industry, […]
September 12, 2023
Smart is in a complete transformation phase. After recently launching its first SUV, the #1, the brand known for its city cars, has presented the #3, an even larger SUV-Coupé. However, Smart is rumored to return to the small, two-seater city car. It could be named #2 and should be presented as soon as 2025. […]
September 12, 2023
Fiat has kicked off production of its new 600e electric crossover in Stellantis’ Tychy plant in Poland, alongside the technically similar Jeep Avenger. The first test drives of the Fiat 500e’s bigger brother are soon to follow. The new Fiat 600e debuted in July and was presented alongside the Topolino quadricycle, which shares its underpinnings […]
September 12, 2023
Dutch fast-charger network Fastned has signed its first contract in Italy with highway managing A4 Holding Group to build a large charging station along the A4 Brescia – Padova highway in northern Italy, close to the Brescia Est exit. It’s the 8th European country where Fastned has established its presence. Fastned already operates 275 fast […]
September 11, 2023
The Portuguese Environment Agency (APA) has approved the operations of a second lithium mine in the country. The Romano mine will be situated in Montalegre, in the northern region, near the Baroso mine, which was permitted back in May 2023. However, only part of it has been approved, so the owner still has homework. The […]
September 11, 2023
In Turin, car group Stellantis has opened its first battery technology center – one of Europe’s most significant. More than a hundred employees will test, verify, and produce new battery products for its upcoming range of all-electric vehicles. As part of its Dare Forward 2030 plan, Stellantis is subjecting the Italian Mirafiora factory to a […]
September 08, 2023
Brussels-based holding company D’Ieteren Group, best known for importing and distributing cars of the Volkswagen Group and Carglass, posted a gross profit of 548,9 million euros during the first six months of this year. That is almost half as much profit as during the same period last year. The central part of the profit comes […]
September 08, 2023
A recently conducted test on 24 engine families within the Stellantis group has convinced the car giant of the longevity of combustion-engined cars. The company believes that the CO2 benefits from the fuel will keep these cars on the road until 2050. After the European Commission opened the backdoor for e-fuels after 2035, several car […]
September 08, 2023
The VW group boss Oliver Blume has shed some light on the future of its most iconic golf car. As prior reports believed, the next generation won’t be a rebadged ID.2 but a standalone model on the all-new SSP platform specifically developed for returning a profit comparable to ICE models. Clearly, Blume is realigning his […]
September 07, 2023
“The future of Seat is Cupra.” Those were the words of VW Brand CEO Thomas Schäfer at the IAA in Munich. The German manager made a story official that had been circulating for a while. The struggling Seat brand will be eclipsed by an all-electric Cupra around 2030. But that doesn’t rule out a new […]
September 07, 2023
On Wednesday, Avery Dennison, a leading global packaging and materials manufacturer, commissioned Europe’s largest Concentrated Solar Thermal (CST) platform and thermal storage unit at its production plant in Turnhout, Belgium. The project collaborates with Limburg-based Azteq, an organization that builds, develops, and maintains CST facilities. The renewable energy project contains a CST platform with 2 […]
September 07, 2023
Frenchman Pierre Voineau is the new Director General at Citroën Belux, the Stellantis Group Belgium – Luxembourg announced in a press release. Voineau, who was Product and Business Development Director at Renault’s Software République from November 2021 till now, replaces Damien Martin-Cocher, who joined in January 2021 and moves on within the group. According to […]
September 06, 2023
“We don’t partake in price wars; it is unsustainable,” said Thomas Schäfer, boss of the VW brand at the IAA Mobility 2023 in Munich. He bluntly forgot about his company’s operations in China. After a sales revival for the discounted ID.3, Volkswagen’s Chinese joint venture VW-FAW is repeating the move for its sibling ID.4. Today, […]
September 05, 2023
At the IAA Mobility in Münich, automotive supplier ZF puts the spotlights on a new type of motor for electric cars. The I2SM is a variant in the externally excited synchronous family. Still, ZF has found ways to cut its CO2 footprint in half during production and reach interesting levels of sustainability and efficiency. The […]
September 04, 2023
Dutch industrial group VDL has seen turnover from its bus division fall 40% in the first six months, from 251 million euros a year ago to 153 million euros at the end of June. This is shown in the group’s income statement. The division is also loss-making, but for how much VDL does not share. […]
September 04, 2023
At the IAA in Münich, Mercedes has unveiled a future glimpse of how the revival of its smallest range will look like. The Concept CLA provides a new all-electric platform with an ample range of more than 750 kilometres on a single charge while boosting the use of sustainable materials on board. And, yes, there’s […]
September 04, 2023
There’s something old and something new about the ID. GTI Concept that Volkswagen has brought to the spotlights of the IAA in Münich. The name combines the letters from the brand’s all-electric range with those from its hereditary sports badge. But weren’t all-electric go-faster models from Wolfsburg called GTX? Indeed, but it seems Volkswagen wants […]
September 01, 2023
The Biden administration is making up to $12 billion available to the American car industry to fund the conversion of their factories for producing battery-electric, hydrogen fuel cell, and hybrid vehicles to comply with the goal of half of new cars sold being electric by 2030. “This funding will help existing workers keep their jobs […]
September 01, 2023
Further details about Jaguar’s new start as an electric brand from 2025 start to trickle down. According to a portal report, the three models Jaguar plans, based on the new electric platform JEA (in an early stage named Panthera), will be a four-seater GT, a luxury SUV, and a large sedan. The usually well-informed British […]
August 31, 2023
Renault CEO Luca de Meo has given more details about when the electric car business will split from the rest of the company and its planned Initial Public offering (IPO). The split will take place on 1 November 2023. From then on, Ampere will be separated from the Renault Group, but the ownership structure will […]
August 31, 2023
In July 2023, the EU car market continued its growth trajectory, expanding by 15,2%, the twelfth consecutive month of growth, according to the European Car Manufacturers Association ACEA data. New car registrations reached 851 156 units as the market recovers from last year’s component shortages. Most markets posted solid growth, including the four largest: France […]
August 30, 2023
Designwerk, a Swiss company specializing in building custom electric trucks for specific use cases, entered the Benelux market after expanding to Germany. The company is mainly owned by Volvo Trucks and converts diesel-powered trucks into e-trucks with up to 1 000 kWh battery capacities. Designwerk (DW)’s origins trace back to 2008 when converting small vehicles […]
August 30, 2023
Under the name Blue Plug Chargers, Hyundai will start building its own supercharger through its subsidiary, Hyundai Kefico. In its home market, the company wants to get to terms with the more successful rollout of Tesla, which also manufactures high-power chargers. In 2021, Hyundai announced the launch of its own supercharger network under the name […]
August 30, 2023
On Tuesday morning, Prime Minister Alexander De Croo (Open Vld) visited Volvo Car Gent. He saw the training center, was given a tour of the paint shop, and finally took a test drive in a fully electric Volvo. After the visit, he said he was impressed. “Ten years ago, we wondered whether we would still […]
August 30, 2023
More and more experts warn that European countries struggle to persuade people to switch from ICE cars to EVs. Europe sells ten times more electric cars today than it did six years ago (source: IEA), but its fleet is cleaning up too slowly to meet the agreed climate goals. “What we have learned is that […]
August 29, 2023
The California-based electric car manufacturer Fisker has announced that it has launched in three new European markets: Belgium, the Netherlands, and Switzerland. The company has already launched in Austria, Denmark, France, Germany, Norway, Sweden, and the United Kingdom, as well as in Canada and the United States. Deliveries of the first car, the Ocean SUV, […]
August 29, 2023
Mercedes is on track, building its own global fast-charging park. In Europe, where the brand aims at 200 charging points, the car brand announced that it will open its first hub in Mannheim in October 2023. The charging station must set new standards for fast, convenient, and sustainable charging. The rollout of its own charging […]
August 29, 2023
In an interview with the Swiss newspaper Neue Zürcher Zeitung, the CEO of the Swedish/Swiss technology group ABB, Björn Rosengren, says that the time has definitely come to buy an electric car. The development of charging infrastructure is gaining momentum, so the biggest hurdle is disappearing. “Due to Covid-19, I’ve been unable to travel to […]
August 29, 2023
BYD Co Ltd (Build Your Dreams), China’s best-selling EV brand, has tripled its net profit for the third quarter with a 6.82 billion yuan total (€0,86 billion) or a 144.7% increase. That’s impressive again, thanks to record deliveries but less than the first quarter, where profits fivefolded. BYD sold 612 425 battery-only EVs in the […]
August 29, 2023
Chinese electric car manufacturer Xpeng signed a strategic partnership with shared mobility provider Didi. The deal includes the development of a new small electric car brand (project name Mona) and an investment by Xpeng in Didi. Xpeng wants to launch a new EV brand in 2024. It is currently being developed under the project name […]
