RECENT POSTS

Thursday, August 4, 2022

U.S. Senator Joe Manchin backs $369 billion energy and climate bill: Infrastructure Reduction Act

 Overall, this bill is incredibly favorable to Panasonic.

Several key measures include: 
  • The creation of a new clean commercial tax credit for EVs
  • A long-term extension of the light-duty EV tax credit, with additional modifications
  • A long-term extension of the Alternative Fuel Refueling Property Tax Credit (Section 30C) with a lift of the project cap and bidirectional charging included
  • $3 billion in funding to electrify the U.S. Postal Service
  • $60 million for the Diesel Emission Reduction Act program
  • $2 billion for the Domestic Manufacturing Conversion Grant program
  • $3 billion for the Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing program
  • A long-term extension of the Advanced Manufacturing Production Credit
  • $600 million for a Clean Heavy-duty Vehicle Grant program
  • $2.25 billion to reduce air pollution at ports through deploying zero-emission technology
  • A strong Environmental and Climate Justice Block Grant program
  • A strong Greenhouse Gas Reduction Fund
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AMPLY Power partners with Lightning eMotors on charge management software for seamless fleet customer experience

The partnership launches “Powered by AMPLY,” a new offering that lets OEMs integrate charge management software with EV purchases, simplifying the adoption of EVs for fleet operators.

From transits and shuttles to trucks and delivery vans, OMEGA serves as the nucleus of any fleet charging operation and is the single platform operators need to to effectively manage their EVs. The software optimizes EV charging for low-cost energy, vehicle availability and other factors, while responding dynamically in real-time—with no active management needed.
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Robyn Marquis of CALSTART talks innovative developments for EV infrastructure

California leads the nation with its EnergIIZE Commercial Vehicles Project, which provides incentives for zero-emission fleet charging infrastructure equipment. What has been the impact of this been on electric vehicle uptake?

A: EnergIIZE in particular, which is for commercial vehicle infrastructure, has a series of funding rounds. And we recently launched the first of the funding rounds. 

EnergIIZE in particular is the first of its kind and the largest, medium and heavy-duty incentive program in the market. So, we’re really hopeful that that’s going to continue to drive the uptake of electric vehicles. The industry is really evolving rapidly to address the concerns that we’ve been hearing particularly early on in some of these vehicle developments and deployments about range, anxiety and the different duty unique duty cycles, particularly in commercial vehicles.

The ways in which commercial vehicles are utilised are quite different in terms of duty cycles. So, their charging needs are different as well and that has led to some issues in terms of transitioning fleets to zero emission. So, through this kind of incentive program, and then complimenting that with incentives on the vehicle side as well, we’re really hoping to drive a more rapid uptake in, in this transition to zero emission fleets. And hopefully it works because infrastructure is the key part of everything.
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Panasonic's Q1 profit hit by China lockdowns, rising material costs



Japan's Panasonic Holdings Corp (6752.T), which supplies batteries to Tesla (TSLA.O), posted a 39% drop in first-quarter earnings on Thursday as China's COVID-19 lockdowns and rising material costs disrupted production and squeezed profitability.

A two-month lockdown in Shanghai this spring kept people at home and forced factories to curtail output, exacerbating shortages of components including semiconductors. At the same time, rising material costs caused by Russia's invasion of Ukraine have eroded profits.

The Japanese conglomerate, however, stuck with its full-year operating profit forecast of 360 billion yen ($2.66 billion) for the year to March 31 as it bets that it can boost earnings by increasing prices on some products and cutting costs. That outlook is lower than an average profit estimate of 412 billion yen from 19 analysts, according to Refinitiv.

The quarterly numbers "look weak," Panasonic's chief financial officer Hirokazu Umeda said at a news briefing, but "we judged that it is not necessary to make a change to our outlook."

Operating profit for the three months to June 30 was 63.7 billion yen ($470.77 million), missing an estimated mean of 73.3 billion yen from nine analysts. ($1 = 135.3100 yen)

Panasonic said earlier this year that it would not be able to pass on all of the higher material costs to its customers, who have tightened their spending in the face of surging inflation and growing fears of recession.

Panasonic does not currently plan to increase the price of the auto batteries it builds for Tesla, even though it is paying more for the cobalt and other materials it uses to make them.

That business is expanding rapidly as the U.S. electric vehicle maker cranks up production.

This month, Panasonic said it had picked Kansas as the site for a new plant that will primarily supply batteries to Tesla, adding to a line of investments from Asian EV battery makers in the United States. 
The unit is working to supply Tesla with a larger battery known as the 4680 model, starting with production in Japan in its next fiscal year.

By 2029, Panasonic plans to expand battery production capacity by three to four times, with most of the increase in North America.
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BorgWarner to buy Rhombus in latest EV charging deal

Auto-parts maker BorgWarner Inc said on Wednesday it would buy electric-vehicle charging provider Rhombus Energy Solutions, the latest deal in the sector as sales of eco-friendly vehicles boom.

The enterprise value of the deal can go up to $185 million, the company said, adding it would help add charging presence in North America and expand in Europe.

BorgWarner, which supplies to car makers including General Motors Co (GM.N) and Ford Motor Co (F.N), has targeted more revenue from electric vehicles by 2030.

Electric vehicle charging companies are undergoing a sweeping consolidation and revaluation, according to a Reuters analysis, amid a boost by governments to promote EV sales.
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Panasonic: How valuable is load management as part of a home solar + storage system?

“Load management helps you save more by regulating your energy consumption during peak demand hours,” says Vikki Kumar, Systems Engineering Manager with Panasonic. At a basic level, the Panasonic EverVolt energy storage system (ESS), homeowners have the ability to set the system on Time-of-Use 
mode during peak hours to offset their energy usage through the mobile app.
More>>

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Toyota-Panasonic battery venture gains U.S. lithium supply

An electric vehicle battery venture owned by Toyota Motor and Panasonic Holdings has struck a deal to access lithium from a U.S. mine held by Australian company ioneer, the commodities supplier said Monday. Ioneer plans to start production of lithium from the Rhyolite Ridge project in Nevada in 2025. Under the agreement, the Toyota-Panasonic venture Prime Planet Energy & Solutions will receive 4,000 tonnes of lithium carbonate annually over five years.
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EV manufacturers, including Panasonic & regulators debate US ability to hit 50% sales goal by 2030

Panelists from the U.S. Department of Energy, General Motors, Panasonic and the International Council on Clean Transportation debated the United States’ ability to reach the Biden administration’s goal that half of all new vehicle sales in the U.S. be zero-emission vehicles by 2030, at an annual seminar in Michigan held by the Center for Automotive Research.

Janet Lin, vice president for strategy and business development at Panasonic USA, encouraged the development of new sources of raw materials as well as more domestic recycling operations.

Lin said, “This is a massive industrialization effort and we need to be standing up a significant amount of industry to prepare for this. So if that happens, it will happen.”
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Sourcing Of Battery Materials Causes Rethink Of EV Incentives

As predicted, the proposed Inflation Reduction Act and its package of EV incentives is roiling the political waters in Washington as those who like the bill fight to get it passed and those who don’t like the bill fight to get it changed. Either way, it’s a great time to be a lobbyist in the nation’s capitol.

Reuters reports that several automakers are upset by the sourcing requirements for battery components and critical minerals that have to be met in order for the vehicles they manufacture to qualify for the proposed incentives, which include a $7,500 point of sale rebate for light duty cars and trucks and a $40,000 rebate for heavy trucks weighing more than 14,000 pounds.
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Rivian's patent for an EV Charger

LINK to document
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EV maker Rivian laying off approximately 840 employees

The cost-cutting move is aimed at ensuring the company can continue to grow its manufacturing operations without raising additional funds, according to Rivian CEO Robert Scaringe, in an email to the Wall Street Journal. It reported that the company’s sole manufacturing plant in Normal, Illinois, will not be affected by the layoffs.

Amazon (NASDAQ: AMZN), Rivian’s largest customer and backer, lost $11.5 billion on its Rivian stock investment over the first six months of 2022. That includes $3.9 billion lost on the investment in the second quarter, recorded as a non-operating expense.

The cuts at Rivian follow reports of Xos Trucks cutting 8% of its workforce and layoffs at Canoo, as competition intensifies in the EV market amid signs of a looming recession.

Amazon has started deliveries with Rivian electric delivery vehicles (EDVs), a rollout that “is the start of what Amazon plans to be thousands of EDVs in more than 100 cities by the end of 2022 — and 100,000 EDVs across the U.S. by 2030,” Amazon stated in its second-quarter results.
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With millions in federal funding, PennDOT charges ahead on EV infrastructure development in Pa.

State officials and community partners – including representatives from Pittsburgh Region Clean Cities, Sheetz, and PPL Electric Utilities – gathered at the charging stations of a Sheetz gas station in Carlisle on Thursday to discuss how federal funding from the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law (BIL) will be used for EV infrastructure development in Pennsylvania.


“The Bipartisan Infrastructure Law has given us a great opportunity, and I’m proud of the progress that we – along with our partners – have made to prepare Pennsylvania for a future filled with electric vehicles,” Department of Transportation Secretary Yassmin Gramian said.

The commonwealth is slated to receive $171.5 million in National Electric Vehicle Infrastructure funds over the next five years with an additional $2.5 billion in grant funding available for charging and fueling infrastructure.

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Wednesday, August 3, 2022

Why Is Shell Making Electric Micromobility Products?

Shell is already being forced by Dutch courts to cut carbon emissions by almost half by 2030. And as stricter international regulations on carbon emissions progress, more oil companies will need to change to combat climate change this decade. Shell knows it’s kind of playing the self-aware wolf here. I mean, it’s selling electric vehicle charging equipment, too.

Shell itself isn’t the one building and selling the scooters. Rather, the gas company licensed out its name to US-based manufacturer Lotus International last year, which then gave birth to Shell Ride-branded e-scooters and e-bikes. Lotus doesn’t necessarily make them either, but handles the distribution and marketing. The Shell Ride SR-5S Electric Scooter that’s capable of up to 20 miles of range, up to 15mph speeds, and sells for $549.99.

There are Shell Ride e-bikes in the pipeline as well, and they’ll cost between $1,199.99 and $1,899.99.
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