Japan’s Nidec Corporation just opened new offices in Serbia and is setting up two new factories in the city of Novi Sad. These are just part of a wider network that is to bring Nidec to the forefront of the global electric car market. This is their latest strategy briefing.

The Bulgarian electric bus manufacturer Chariot Motors has received an order from Belgrade. The public transport company GSP from the Serbian capital wants ten electric buses of a special kind – Chariot will use ultracapacitors which won them the tender.

The Serbian capital Belgrade is aiming to invest a total of 5.2 billion euros by 2030 together with private stakeholders to reduce CO2 emissions and improve air quality. In doing so, the metropolis is also focusing on the electrification of the transport sector.

The Japanese supplier Nidec has announced that it will invest up to ten billion US dollars in the automotive electric motor business over the next five years. According to the CEO, the company intends to “dominate the market for electric vehicle engines”.

The Serbian government is introducing purchase premiums for electric and hybrid vehicles, including electric mopeds and motorcycles. The budget for the grants is one million euro this year.

Tesla has completed a new supercharger corridor in Canada, which extends from Vancouver to Halifax. The expansion of Tesla’s own fast-charging network is to continue in 2020 – the company also plans to expand in Europe.

Tesla CEO Elon Musk has said Tesla would open stores in Slovakia, Croatia, Serbia and most Eastern Europe states by early next year. Meanwhile, Model 3 has arrived in Australia, and back in the company’s home country, a judge in Delaware, USA orders Tesla to defend Elon Musk’s potential payout.

Germany’s ZF Group has stated its intent to invest 85 million euros to built an electric vehicle component factory in Pancevo, in northern Serbia. The project will be scaled up in stages from 2019 and ultimately employ up to a 1,000 people.