Just under a year after the initial concept idea, Audi Sport has started testing the new Audi RS Q e-tron series hybrid, with which Audi will tackle the Dakar Rally in January 2022. (Earlier post.) Audi wants to be the first car manufacturer to use an electrified drivetrain in combination... Read more →

General Motors will introduce new Super Cruise capabilities on six model year 2022 vehicles in the first quarter of 2022. Super Cruise is the first true hands-free driver-assistance technology allowing drivers to travel hands-free on more than 200,000 miles of compatible roads across the US and Canada. Super Cruise adds... Read more →

Experts from GM and LG have identified the simultaneous presence of two manufacturing defects in the same battery cell as the root cause of battery fires in certain Chevrolet Bolt EVs. (Earlier post.) As a result, GM will be conducting a new recall for the previous population of Bolt EVs... Read more →

The generator that will be at the heart of the most powerful hybrid-electric aero power and propulsion system in aerospace has arrived for installation at Rolls-Royces’s specialist testbed. PGSy1 The generator and related 3,000-volt power electronics system was delivered to the newly-renovated Testbed 108 in Bristol, UK, from the Rolls-Royce... Read more →

Hyzon Motors Inc., a global supplier of hydrogen fuel-cell-powered commercial vehicles, has developed new onboard hydrogen storage system technology that it says is capable of reducing the weight and manufacturing cost of commercial vehicles powered by Hyzon’s hydrogen fuel cells. The new patent-pending onboard hydrogen storage system technology integrates lightweight... Read more →

Air Products has selected Haldor Topsoe’s low-carbon SynCOR technology for a world-scale net-zero hydrogen energy complex in Canada. Topsoe’s SynCOR technology will enable capture of more than 95% of CO2 emissions from the production of blue hydrogen from natural gas for the recently announced Air Products facility to be built... Read more →

Tenneco is putting its 100-plus years of powertrain expertise in improving vehicle fuel efficiency and reducing emissions to work to explore synthetic fuels (e-fuels) as a viable near-term solution to further maximize the efficiency and minimize the carbon footprint of internal combustion engines (ICE). Tenneco’s Powertrain business group is partnering... Read more →

Mercedes-Benz is getting ready to go all-electric by the end of the decade, where market conditions allow, shifting from electric-first to electric-only. By 2022, Mercedes-Benz will have battery electric vehicles (BEV) in all segments the company serves. From 2025 onwards, all newly launched vehicle architectures will be electric-only and customers... Read more →

Mercedes-Benz has acquired YASA, a pioneer in next-generation electric drive technology. Under the terms of the acquisition, YASA will operate as a wholly owned subsidiary of Mercedes-Benz, developing ultra high-performance e-motors, while retaining its own brand, team, facilities and continuing to supply existing automotive supercar customers. YASA’s axial-flux electric motor... Read more →

BHP will supply Tesla Inc. with nickel from BHP’s Nickel West asset in Western Australia; BHP says that Nickel West is one of the most sustainable and lowest carbon emission nickel producers in the world. Nickel is a key metal used in Tesla’s battery technology. Demand for nickel in batteries... Read more →

Rio Tinto has approved a $108-million investment in underground development to enable early orebody access and undertake orebody characterisation studies for underground mining at the Kennecott copper operations in the United States. The investment builds on $25 million approved in early-2020 to complete a pre-feasibility study to determine the viability... Read more →

by Michael Sivak, Sivak Applied Research. Among the variables included in my ongoing monthly monitoring of key transportation indexes is revenue passenger miles for domestic flying. That monitoring has shown a huge pandemic-related drop in flying during the spring of 2020 and a gradual rebound later in 2020 and in... Read more →

Argo AI, Lyft and Ford Motor Company are collaborating to commercialize autonomous ride hailing at scale. The partnership brings together all of the pieces necessary to create a viable autonomous ride hailing service, including the self-driving technology, vehicle fleet and transportation network needed to support a scalable business and deliver... Read more →

Deutsche Aircraft, the new purpose-driven German aircraft Original Equipment Manufacturer (OEM) (earlier post), and Universal Hydrogen Co. (earlier post) announced a technical collaboration to complete a design study to incorporate Universal Hydrogen’s modular capsule technology into the Dornier 328 program. The joint effort will analyze the size and integration of... Read more →

Rolls-Royce Power Systems has outlined its road map for climate neutrality: Net Zero@Power Systems. By 2030, the Rolls-Royce business unit is to cut greenhouse gas emissions by 35% compared to its 2019 level through the use of new net zero and zero carbon technologies. This near-term target plays a significant... Read more →

US production capacity for renewable diesel could increase significantly through 2024, based on announced projects and those that are under construction, according to the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). Growing targets for state and federal renewable fuel programs and incentives for renewable diesel production are driving this expansion. As of... Read more →

XL Fleet Corp. announced a battery and power electronics development and supply agreement and an investment in eNow, Inc., a provider of solar and battery power systems that enable fully-electric Transport Refrigeration Units (eTRUs) for Class 8 commercial trailers. Under the terms of the agreement, XL Fleet will supply battery... Read more →

Mercedes-Benz is launching the new S 580 e plug-in hybrid, with which the fourth generation of the hybrid drive system is celebrating its premiere in the S-Class. The plug-in hybrid is available to order, in both short and long wheelbase versions, with price starting at €123,736 (US$146,000). S 580 e... Read more →

In a post published on Medium, Gill Pratt, Toyota Motor Corporation’s Chief Scientist and the CEO of Toyota Research Institute, explains why he is not a proponent of ditching ICE and switching to only BEVs as soon as possible. He argues that a diversity of electrified drivetrain types are better... Read more →

In June, Porsche announced an investment in its new joint venture company Cellforce Group GmbH. Porsche and joint venture partner Customcells, a spin-off from Fraunhofer, also announced the launch of production of high-performance battery cells at Porsche’s Weissach Development Center. (Earlier post.) The new high-performance cells will use silicon as... Read more →

Suzuki Motor Corporation and Daihatsu Motor Co., Ltd. have joined the Commercial Japan Partnership (CJP) commercial vehicle project (earlier post) to accelerate their carbon neutrality initiatives in minivehicles through the dissemination of CASE technologies (connected, autonomous, shared and electric) and services. As part of their participation in the project, Suzuki... Read more →

Surf Air Mobility Inc., has signed a purchase agreement with Textron Aviation for up to 150 Cessna Grand Caravan EX single-engine turboprop aircraft, with an initial fleet order of 100 aircraft and an option for 50 more. The Cessna Grand Caravan EX is designed and manufactured by Textron Aviation Inc.,... Read more →

A study recently published by the European Commission’s Joint Research Center assesses how best to identify at the European level an additional fifth category of batteries—those used for Light Means of Transport (LMT) such as e-bikes and similar new products—which would ensure their appropriate collection and recycling. The current 2006... Read more →

Li-Cycle Corp., the largest lithium-ion battery recycler in North America, is partnering with Univar Solutions OnSite Services, a leader in waste management, to provide waste management solutions for lithium-ion batteries. Through the partnership, Li-Cycle and Univar Solutions customers will benefit from a waste management solution for lithium-ion battery waste across... Read more →

GKN Automotive is accelerating its development of next generation eDrive technologies in response to the rapidly increasing global demand for electrified vehicles. These future systems, utilizing 800V technologies, are already at advanced stages of development and being tested in real-world conditions. GKN Automotive says it is now working with the... Read more →

ROUSH CleanTech, Penske Truck Leasing, and Proterra Inc announced a new collaboration under which Proterra will supply its battery technology to ROUSH CleanTech for the development of its next-generation Ford F-650 all-electric commercial truck. ROUSH CleanTech will integrate its advanced clean technology and control systems to leverage Ford’s medium-duty chassis... Read more →

Advocacy group Coltura has published a report that finds converting the biggest users of gasoline to EVs in the next ten years is critical to reaching climate goals and that present EV policies are poorly suited to accomplishing that conversion. The report, “Gasoline Superusers,” presents the data available on drivers... Read more →

The ICCT has conducted a comprehensive global and temporal life-cycle assessment of GHG emissions from a variety of alternative passenger car powertrains and fuels. The results show there is no realistic pathway to full decarbonization of internal combustion engine vehicles, and that only battery and hydrogen fuel-cell EVs have potential... Read more →

The US Department of Energy (DOE) is awarding a total of $125 million to support 110 clean energy technology projects (DE-FOA-0002381). Within that total, DOE’s Office of Energy and Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE) will award $57.6 million to 53 projects by 51 small businesses and entrepreneurs with phase II... Read more →

The Volkswagen Group continued to gain momentum with its electric offensive in the first half of 2021. In total, 170,939 BEV models were delivered throughout the world up to the end of June—more than twice as many as in the prior-year period (+165.2%). The following new BEV models were launched... Read more →