Geely recently launched its Methanol Hybrid Emgrand (earlier post) in the Chinese market. The methanol hybrid is based on Geely’s fourth-generation B-segment Modular Architecture (BMA) Emgrand sedan. Geely also offers a non-hybrid methanol-fueled version of the Emgrand. Previous generation methanol vehicles faced difficulties with cold starts but with Geely Auto’s... Read more →

In 2021, China imported more liquefied natural gas (LNG) than any other country, according to data from Global Trade Tracker and China’s General Administration of Customs, gathered by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). Prior to 2021, Japan had been the world’s largest LNG importer for decades, according to data... Read more →

Chinese lithium and cobalt sulfate prices fell this month as strict COVID-19 lockdowns in Shanghai and elsewhere limit demand in the world’s largest electric vehicle market. Chinese battery-grade lithium prices fell by 5% this month to a mid-point of RMB 478,000 (US$72,600) per tonne, according to Benchmark Mineral Intelligences’s Lithium... Read more →

China processed record amounts of crude oil in 2021 to meet rising domestic consumption of petroleum products, according to analysis by the US Energy Information Administration (EIA). In the second half of the year, China processed slightly less crude oil and began exporting significantly less gasoline and diesel than in... Read more →

Pony.ai has been awarded a permit by Beijing city authorities to offer driverless service in southeastern Beijing. (Baidu also received a permit to offer driverless rides to passengers in the same area.) Pony.ai has had a permit to driverless test since October 2021 but not with the general public in... Read more →

Dongfeng Honda Automobile Co., Ltd., a Honda automobile production and sales joint venture in China, has begun sales of the all-new e:NS1 electric vehicle (EV) model. Honda Motor (China) Investment Co., Ltd.(HMCI), a wholly-owned Honda subsidiary in China, announced that GAC Honda Automobile Co., Ltd., another Honda automobile production and... Read more →

Pony.ai, a global autonomous driving technology company, announced it is the first autonomous driving (AD) company to obtain a taxi license in China. Pony.ai was awarded a permit to operate 100 autonomous vehicles as traditional taxis in Nansha, Guangzhou. In May, Pony.ai will start charging fares in the entire 800... Read more →

Yichun Contemporary Amperex Resources Limited, a subsidiary of China-based battery giant CATL, won the bid for the exploration rights to a lithium clay project in Yichun, east China’s Jiangxi province at a cost of 865 million yuan (about $135 million). In October 2021, CATL broke ground on a new lithium-ion... Read more →

China-based battery giant CATL officially launched its EVOGO battery swap services (earlier post) in Xiamen, southeast China’s Fujian Province, making it the world’s first EVOGO city. The first four fast battery swap stations that have started operation are located in Siming District, Huli District and Haicang District of Xiamen. The... Read more →

Audi has unveiled plans for the Audi urbansphere concept car. Designers and engineers initially created the Audi urbansphere for use in traffic-dense Chinese megacities, although the concept is also suitable for any other metropolitan center in the world. In these urban areas, where personal space is in particularly short supply,... Read more →

The global push to convert the world to electric vehicles will cause supply chain complexities that could undermine the alternative energy transition in the United States, according to a new report from Rice University’s Baker Institute for Public Policy. The detailed report—Need Nickel? How Electrifying Transport and Chinese Investment are... Read more →

DeepRoute.ai, an international autonomous driving technology company, announced a leading-edge Robotaxi fleet comprising 30 SAIC Motor MARVEL R SUVs equipped with DeepRoute’s proprietary L4 Driver 2.0 solution. This fleet distinguishes itself from other Robotaxis in its sleek rooftop design, replacing the traditional bulky sensor suite. With a 360-degree view and... Read more →

A research team led by Prof. Pan Xiulian and Prof. Bao Xinhe from the Dalian Institute of Chemical Physics (DICP) of the Chinese Academy of Sciences has achieved the direct synthesis of isoparaffin-rich gasoline from syngas using ZnAlOx-SAPO-11 oxide-zeolite (OXZEO) catalysts. Isoparaffins are preferred components of high-quality gasoline because they... Read more →

Global Internet of People, Inc. (SDH), an operator of a knowledge sharing and enterprise service platform, announced that its wholly-owned subsidiary, Zhuhai (Zibo) Investment Co., Ltd. has entered into an investment agreement with the following parties to form a joint venture dedicated to the production of high-grade lithium-ion power battery... Read more →

Protean Electric, a leader of in-wheel motor (IWM) technology for passenger cars, light commercial vehicles and future transport solutions, announced a new partnership between Dongfeng Motor Corporation Technical Center and Protean’s joint venture in China, Wuxi Weifu Electric Drive Technology (WFDT). The DFM Technical Center and WFDT partnership that will... Read more →

Bosch and the Mitsubishi Corporation, with Blue Park Smart Energy (BPSE), are partnering to create Battery as a Service (BaaS) innovations. The main idea here is that fleet operators will no longer have to purchase the batteries; they will simply pay to use them. This reduces not only the initial... Read more →

The BMW Group continues to broaden its portfolio of electrically powered vehicles with the addition of the fully electric BMW 3 Series, which will enter the Chinese market in May 2022. The BMW i3 eDrive35L is based on the successful BMW 3 Series, which led the premium-compact segment in China... Read more →

BYD and Shell signed a strategic cooperation agreement to help accelerate the energy transition and improve charging experience for BYD’s battery electric vehicle (BEV) and plug-in hybrid electric vehicle (PHEV) customers. The partnership will start in China and Europe and will extend to other regions across the globe. A BYD... Read more →

Geely is testing the world’s first methanol hybrid sedan in sub -40 °C (-40 ˚F) Arctic conditions in the frigid northern Chinese province of Heilongjiang. Geely’s latest Methanol Hybrid Emgrand is based on Geely Auto’s fourth-generation B-Segment Modular Architecture (BMA) Emgrand sedan. The new Emgrand runs on 100% clean methanol... Read more →

Inceptio Technology, an autonomous driving truck t... Read more →

Honeywell and Oriental Energy Company announced that a sustainable aviation fuel (SAF) production facility with an annual output capacity of 1 million tons will be built in Maoming, Guangdong Province in China. The new facility will help meet a growing SAF demand, facilitate greenhouse gas emission reduction in aviation fuel... Read more →

Audi FAW NEV Company Ltd.—the first cooperation company with a majority interest held by Audi in China—is set too begin construction on its new EV plant in Changchun, following approval by the Chinese authorities. The new plant in Changchun will be the first production site in China where only all-electric... Read more →

DSM Engineering Materials is expanding its high-performance materials production capacity at its Jiangyin plant in Jiangsu Province, China. Work on an additional compounding line began in February 2022, with completion expected in 2023. The new line will help DSM to meet growing demand for high-performance polymers used in a wide... Read more →

Graphex Group has entered into an exclusive non-binding memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the Municipal Government of Mashan District, Jixi City, Heilongjiang, China with the intention of expanding its graphite processing and production capacity within the Jixi Mashan Graphite Industrial Park. Graphex currently produces 10,000 metric tons per annum (TPA)... Read more →

The Audi-FAW NEV Company Ltd., a company jointly founded by Audi and its partner FAW, is is set to begin construction on a new plant in China for fully electric Audi models using the Premium Platform Electric (PPE). On an area of approximately 150 hectares, a highly modern plant for... Read more →

The BMW Group has extended the contract for the BMW Brilliance Automotive Ltd. (BBA) joint venture until 2040. The agreement on the contract extension was signed by the two joint venture partners back in October 2018, on BBA’s 15th anniversary. The corresponding amendment to the contract comes into force with... Read more →

BASF and Heraeus have agreed to form a joint venture (BASF: 50%; Heraeus: 50%) to recover precious metals from spent automotive catalysts. The new company, named BASF HERAEUS (China) Metal Resource Co., Ltd will be set up in Pinghu, China. The founding of the legal entity is targeted in Q1... Read more →

ABB has increased its majority stake in Chinese electric vehicle (EV) charging provider Chargedot Shanghai New Energy Technology Co. to 80%. ABB acquired a 67% stake in Chargedot in March 2020. The additional investment is part of ABB E-mobility’s growth strategy and further strengthens ABB’s position in the rapidly growing... Read more →

Shell has started operations at the power-to-hydrogen electrolyzer in Zhangjiakou, a joint venture between Shell (China) Limited and Zhangjiakou City Transport Construction Investment Holding Group Co. Ltd. The electrolyzer—one of the world’s largest—will provide about half of the total green hydrogen supply for fuel cell vehicles at the Zhangjiakou competition... Read more →

Baidu’s intelligent electric vehicle arm JIDU has closed Series A financing, raising nearly $400 million. This round of financing was backed by Baidu and its strategic partner multinational auto manufacturer Zhejiang Geely Holding Group. JIDU’s first Robocar concept car will be unveiled at the Beijing Auto Show in April this... Read more →

Contemporary Amperex Energy Service Technology Ltd. (CAES), a wholly-owned subsidiary of Contemporary Amperex Technology Co. Ltd. (CATL), has launched its battery swap solution EVOGO featuring modular battery swapping. Comprising battery blocks, fast battery swap stations and an app, EVOGO will be first launched in ten cities, said Chen Weifeng, general... Read more →

Researchers in China report using air oxidation–water leaching to recover lithium selectively from spent LiFePO4 (LFP) material, in which the high leaching efficiency of lithium and the good separation effect of lithium and iron were achieved simultaneously. An open-access paper on their work is published in the RSC journal Green... Read more →

In its latest report, Tech, Media, & Telecom (TMT) Predictions 2022 – Thematic Research, data and analytics company GlobalData predicts that Tesla and China are set to maintain their dominance in the EV sector. GlobalData also suggests that the lithium shortage will not affect all players equally. In the short... Read more →

BASF has signed a joint development agreement with China BlueChemical Limited Company, a leading natural gas producer, and the chemical engineering company Wuhuan Engineering Co., Ltd. to promote low-carbon development and utilization of marine gas resources. In the Dongfang Industrial Park of Hainan Province, China BlueChemical extracts large quantities of... Read more →

Kandi Technologies Group signed a framework agreement with Hunan Hengrun Automobile Co., Ltd. jointly to produce battery-swap enabled pure electric vehicles. According to the agreement, Kandi and Hengrun will use their respective capabilities to produce battery-swappable pure electric vehicles. The specific division of labor and cooperation content will be clarified... Read more →

Autonomous driving technology company Pony.ai recently formed a joint venture with Sinotrans, part of China Merchants Group and one of China’s leading logistics and freight forwarding companies. The two companies will work together to build a smart logistics network featuring autonomous driving trucking technologies. PonyTron and Sinotrans self-driving truck The... Read more →

Tesla’s embrace of lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries has propelled the chemistry into the mainstream of the automotive industry. Automakers including Volkswagen, Daimler, and Ford have also adopted the cost-effective technology in their lower-range EVs. However, more than 90% of the world’s LFP battery cell manufacturing capacity is based in... Read more →

Honda Motor (China) Investment Co., Ltd., a wholly-owned Honda subsidiary in China, announced that Dongfeng Honda Automobile Co., Ltd., a Honda automobile production and sales joint venture in China, will build a new dedicated electric vehicle (EV) production plant to establish sufficient production system and capability in preparation for the... Read more →

04/01/2022 Images are for editorial use only. Partnership builds on existing relationship to deliver increased automation and sustainability for auto parts production New joint venture agreement signed by both parties on December 30th 2021 and expected to commence operation in Q2, 2022 Automation expert ABB and China’s leading automotive parts... Read more →

China Yuchai International, a leading manufacturer and distributor of engines for on- and off-road applications in China through its main operating subsidiary, Guangxi Yuchai Machinery Company Limited (GYMCL), announced that the company’s YCK05 hydrogen-powered engine achieved stable ignition and operation in a recent demonstration at the Beijing Institute of Technology.... Read more →

Chinese EV maker XPeng delivered 16,000 EVs in December 2021, exceeding its monthly delivery benchmark of 15,000 units for the second consecutive month despite ongoing global supply chain challenges. The December deliveries represented a 181% increase year-over-year. Deliveries in December 2021 consisted of 7,459 P7 sedans; 5,030 P5 sedans; and... Read more →

Chinese lithium carbonate prices soared in 2021, due to a surge in demand for lithium iron phosphate (LFP) batteries in the country, according to the end-of-year analysis by Benchmark Minerals Intelligence. Transacted prices in China began to breach the RMB 200,000/tonne mark in November—a historical milestone for lithium pricing. Battery-grade... Read more →

Nidec Corporation announced that its in-wheel moto... Read more →

Daimler Greater China Ltd. and its long-term Chinese partner BYD Auto Industry Co., Ltd. (BYD) signed an equity transfer agreement to realign the structural setup of their originally 50:50 joint venture Shenzhen DENZA New Energy Automotive Co., Ltd. (DENZA). (Earlier post.) Both partners intend to complete an equity transfer in... Read more →

Cummins Inc. and China Petrochemical Corporation (Sinopec Group) have formed a 50:50 joint venture: Cummins Enze (Guangdong) Hydrogen Technology Co., Ltd. The joint venture will accelerate the affordability and availability of green hydrogen through increased technological innovation, research and development, and manufacturing capacity. Cummins Enze, located in Foshan, Guangdong Province... Read more →

​ At NIO Day 2021 in Suzhou, China, NIO unveiled ET5, its new mid-size smart electric sedan. Inheriting NIO’s high-performance DNA, the 360 kW ET5 accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in 4.3 seconds with its dual-motor architecture (150 kW induction asynchronous motor in the front and 210 kW permanent... Read more →

Giga Carbon Neutrality (GCN) has secured a contract to supply 200 hydrogen and battery EV powered heavy trucks and associated engineering machinery from The People’s Government of Ejin Horo Banner, an administrative division of Ordos City of the Inner Mongolia Autonomous Region in China. The GCN trucks will be produced... Read more →

The Wall Street Journal reported that China will create one of the world’s largest rare-earths companies with the aim of maintaining its dominance in the global supply chain of the strategic metals as tensions deepen with the US. Citing unnamed “people familiar with the matter”, the WSJ said that the... Read more →

Lithium prices continued to rise in November, with Chinese battery-grade prices surpassing the RMB 200,000/tonne (US$31,395/tonne) mark, according to Benchmark’s Lithium Price Assessment. Source: Benchmark Mineral Intelligence The rise in lithium carbonate prices could increase production costs of lithium-iron phosphate (LFP) battery cells by at least 16%, Benchmark Mineral Intelligence... Read more →

Pony.ai has received approval to run paid autonomous Robotaxi services in the Beijing Intelligent Networked Vehicle Policy Pilot Zone in southeastern Beijing. With this approval, Pony.ai will be permitted to charge fees for Robotaxi services provided to the public. This represents a significant milestone on the company’s path to commercialization,... Read more →