12 Dec 2018 | Daimler Drops A Cool 20bn On Batteries, Self Service Tesla Rental and California Races Past 500k EVs
Daimler Drops 20 Billion Euros On Battery Cells | LG Chem's EV Battery Business Expected To Become Profitable In Q4 | China’s CATL Gets Close To Us’ Traditional ‘Motor City’ In Detroit | Pininfarina Picks Battista As Official Name For PF0 Hypercar | Lotus' First Electric Car Might Be A 1,000hp Monster | Californians Have Now Purchased 500,000 EV | Camaro Chief Engineer Heading To General Motors EV Program | Self Service Tesla Rental | Tesla Patents AR-Based System To Build Your Model 3
Can you help me fight the fossils? Help spread the word far and wide about EVs? Click 👉 EVne.ws/patreon
Read today’s show notes on https://www.evnewsdaily.com
Good morning, good afternoon and good evening wherever you are in the world, welcome to EV News Daily for Wednesday 12th December 2018. It’s Martyn Lee here and I’ve been through EV story today so you don’t have to.
Thank you to MYEV.com for helping make this show, they’ve built the first marketplace specifically for Electric Vehicles. It’s a totally free marketplace that simplifies the buying and selling process, and help you learn about EVs along the way too.
DAIMLER DROPS 20 BILLION EUROS ON BATTERY CELLS
- Dieter Zetsche, Chairman of the Board of Management of Daimler confirmed the news: "With the purchase of battery cells for more than 20 billion euros, we are systematically pushing forward with the transformation into the electric future of our company."
- Board Member Wilko Stark said: "“With extensive orders for battery cells until the year 2030, we set another important milestone for the electrification of our future electric vehicles of the EQ product and technology brand. In this way, together with our partners, we ensure the supply of our global battery production network today and in the future using the latest technologies."
- "Daimler is investing more than one billion euros in a global battery production network within the worldwide production network of Mercedes-Benz Cars. The company purchases the cells on the world market. This ensures the best possible technology and focuses on the core competence of battery assembly. The global battery production network of Mercedes-Benz Cars will in the future consist of eight factories on three continents. The first factory in Kamenz is already in series production and the second factory there will start series production at the beginning of 2019."
- "By 2022, the entire Mercedes portfolio is to be electrified, with various electrified alternatives available in every segment, from the smart to the SUVs. In total, there will be well over 130 variants, from the 48-volt electrical system to EQ Boost and plug-in hybrids and more than ten all-electric vehicles powered by batteries or fuel cells."
- Rough maths: $22bn at $100/kWh / 70kWh is 3.14 million packs. Of course some will be smaller PHEV batteries, some will be pure BEVs. So I'll say the unthinkable - 20bn is actually THAT much over 10 years!
https://www.daimler.com/innovation/case/electric/battery-cells.html
LG CHEM'S EV BATTERY BUSINESS EXPECTED TO BECOME PROFITABLE IN Q4
- "LG Chem is expected to begin generating profits from its electric vehicle (EV) battery operations in the fourth quarter of 2018." reports Just Auto: "The chemicals company has yet to make a profit from its EV battery operations to date but a number of local analysts believe the business has turned a corner as global demand for electric and plug-in hybrid vehicles continues to rise and as raw materials prices continue to fall as due to improving supply. LG Chem does not disclose separate financial performance data for its EV battery business but local market analysts believe the division will generate profits of around US$173m in 2019."
CHINA’S CATL GETS CLOSE TO US’ TRADITIONAL ‘MOTOR CITY’ IN DETROIT
- "CATL, a major Chinese manufacturer of lithium-ion batteries, has just opened its first sales and service centre in North America." according to Energy Storage News: "The company has made the ascent from supplying 2.19GWh of batteries in 2015 to 11.84GWh worldwide in 2017."
- CATL's North America general manager Allan Wang said: “2017 was the best year yet for EV sales in the US and around the world. Recent surges in demand require greater innovation in the manufacture and supply of parts and services to support vehicle electrification. Our new Detroit subsidiary, our first in North America, will allow us to serve local needs. By locating close to our customers, we will be able to better understand their needs and improve our global supply chain.”
https://www.energy-storage.news/news/chinas-catl-sets-up-shop-in-detroit
PININFARINA PICKS BATTISTA AS OFFICIAL NAME FOR PF0 HYPERCAR
- "Forget the PF0 because Pininfarina now announced that its upcoming electric hypercar officially goes under the model name Battista. The vehicle's moniker stems from the first name of Carrozzeria Pininfarina founder Battista Farina" according to Motor1.com: "Pininfarina promises the Battista to be "fastest and most powerful car" ever to come from Italy, which is a tall order given the country's fame for producing sporty machines from famous brands like Ferrari and Lamborghini, among many others. The company will partner with Rimac on the vehicle's powertrain that will allegedly produce 1,900 horsepower (1,417 kilowatts) and 1,696 pound-feet (2,300 Newton-meters) of torque. According to the company, the model will be able to sprint to 62 miles per hour (100 kilometers per hour) in less than 2 seconds and have a top speed of at least 250 mph (402 kph). The battery pack will allow for over 300 miles (483 kilometers) of range on a charge."
- You've got $2million spare right? You can see more at the Geneva Motor Show 2019.
https://www.motor1.com/news/295796/pininfarina-battista-official-name-announcement/
LOTUS' FIRST ELECTRIC CAR MIGHT BE A 1,000HP MONSTER
- "Autocar sources claim Lotus' first EV will be a 1,000BHP (about 1,013HP) hypercar costing about £2 million, or roughly $2.5 million. It'd compete with the likes of the Bugatti Chiron and McLaren P1 where current models like the Evora are aimed more at 'ordinary' sports cars."
https://www.engadget.com/2018/12/10/lotus-first-electric-car-leaks/?guccounter=1
ELECTRIC CAR INDUSTRY GROUP SAYS CALIFORNIANS HAVE NOW PURCHASED 500,000 EVS
- Ars Technica reports that: "In November, California reportedly crossed the 500,000 threshold for electric vehicles sold in the state since 2010. Months of strong US sales in 2018, preceded by a strong 2017, are starting to show a trend: electric vehicles are selling well, especially in places where there are strong monetary and non-monetary incentives to buy them."
CAMARO CHIEF ENGINEER HEADING TO GENERAL MOTORS EV PROGRAM
- GM is moving their Camaro chief over to EVs: "Al Oppenheiser will oversee the development of electric vehicles at the biggest of the Big Three in Detroit starting from January 2019. The Detroit-based automaker doesn’t have a lot of experience with electric vehicles, starting with the EV1 and finishing with the Bolt. Two crossovers based on the Bolt are in the pipeline for the not-too-distant future, and even Cadillac prepares to roll out an EV of its own."
SELF SERVICE TESLA RENTAL
- Luxembourg-based start-up UFOdrive opened their first self-service rental car station in Germany. Drivers can now rent and collect one of six Tesla Model S at Hamburg Airport, simply via app. UFOdrives operates EV-only fleets in Luxembourg and Brussels as well." reports Nora Manthey for indsutry website Electrive today: "In Hamburg, passengers can collect one of six Tesla Model S from the so-called UFObay and the company claims the process takes no more than a few minutes. Instead of queuing at a counter, everything is handled using the company’s app."
https://www.electrive.com/2018/12/10/germanys-first-self-service-tesla-car-rental-station/
TESLA PATENTS AR-BASED SYSTEM TO BUILD YOR MODEL 3
- Regular listeners know I think of Tesla more like a Silicon Valley tech company than a car maker. And now they're using Augmented Reality to make production faster and more efficient. "Tesla’s patent uses AR applications and computer vision to “identify an object of interest and the relationship between a user and the object.” The AR device captures a live view of an object, determines the location of the device, as well as the type of the object of interest. By using this system, workers will be able to view instant data about the components they are working on." reports Simon Alvarez at Teslarati.
https://www.teslarati.com/tesla-patents-ar-based-system-faster-more-accurate-model-3-production/
CHINA'S PASSENGER VEHICLE SALES SLIDE - EVS RISE
- "China's passenger vehicle sales have been shrinking for six consecutive months, data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA) showed on Monday." reports CGTN: "Sales of new energy passenger vehicles, however, saw a 57.8-percent rise, amounting to 129,000 last month. China is the world's largest auto market and also the fastest-growing market for new energy vehicles, thanks to the government's preferential policies to boost clean energy use to curb pollution."
https://news.cgtn.com/news/3d3d514d79496a4d31457a6333566d54/share_p.html
COMMUNITY
And thanks to MYEV.com they’ve set us another Question Of The Week. Keep your comments coming in on email and YouTube…
As we head into 2019, let’s find out what’s on YOUR mind. What would you like us to ask for Question Of The Week?
I want to say a heartfelt thank you to the 132 patrons of this podcast whose generosity means I get to keep making this show, which aims to entertain and inform thousands of listeners every day about a brighter future. By no means do you have to check out Patreon but if it’s something you’ve been thinking about, by all means look at patreon.com/evnewsdaily
PHIL ROBERTS / ELECTRIC FUTURE (PREMIUM PARTNER)
DAVID ALLEN (PARTNER)
OEM AUDIO OF NEW ZEALAND AND EVPOWER.CO.NZ (PARTNER)
SASCHA PALLENBERG (PARTNER)
ALAN ROBSON @SCOTTISHEVOWNER (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
ASHLEY HILL (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
ARILD GEIR SKAALSVEEN (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
BÅRD FJUKSTAD (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
BOB MUIR / GINGERCOMPUTERS.COM IN DUNDEE (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
BRIAN WEATHERALL (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
CESAR TRUJILLO (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
CHRIS BENSON (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
CHRIS HOPKINS (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
DARREN BYRD (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
DAVID PARTINGTON (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
DAVID PRESCOTT (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
DAMIEN DAVIS (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
DON MCALLISTER (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
FREDRIK ROVIK (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
GEORGE CLARGO (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
JACK OAKLEY (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
JERRY ALLISON (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
JOHN BAILEY (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
JOHN H MEYER III (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
JON TIMMIS (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
KEVIN MEYERSON (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
LARS DAHLAGER (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
LOUIS HOPKIN (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
LUKE CULLEY (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
MARCEL LOHMANN (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
MARCEL WARD (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
MAZ SHAR (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
MARTIN CROFT (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
MATTHEW ELLIS (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
MATTHEW GROOBY (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
NEIL E ROBERTS FROM SUSSEX EVS (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
PAUL STEPHENSON (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
PAUL SEAGER-SMITH (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
PHILIPPE CALVE (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
RAJ BADWAL (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
RENÉ SCHNEIDER (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
ROD JAMES (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
RUPERT MITCHELL (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
SARAH MCCANN (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
SCOTT CALLAHAN (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
THE LIMOUSINE LINE SYDNEY (EXECUTIVE PRODUCER)
You can listen to all 323 previous episodes of this this for free, where you get your podcasts from, plus the blog https://www.evnewsdaily.com/ – remember to subscribe, which means you don’t have to think about downloading the show each day, plus you get it first and free and automatically.
It would mean a lot if you could take 2mins to leave a quick review on whichever platform you download the podcast.
And if you have an Amazon Echo, download our Alexa Skill, search for EV News Daily and add it as a flash briefing.
Come and say hi on Facebook, LinkedIn or Twitter just search EV News Dai...