The Opel Grandland will be succeeded by an electric model next year. The parent company Stellantis is investing €130 million in the German plant in Eisenach to prepare it for the production of the e-SUV based on the new STLA Medium EV platform.
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About two years after the start of construction, CATL plans to hire more employees for its battery cell factory near Erfurt in the next few weeks. The workforce is expected to increase from around 180 employees from Thuringia at present to about 225 by the end of the year.
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In Germany, Fraunhofer IKTS has just launched the research project called BattLife at the newly founded Battery Innovation and Technology Center BITC at Erfurter Kreuz. As part of the project, a digitised test centre for batteries and battery components will be established at BITC.
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The Fraunhofer IKTS has opened a branch office called the Battery Innovation and Technology Center (BITC) in Germany at Erfurter Kreuz. The location of the battery research centre is not a coincidence of course.
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Two weeks after CATL received notice of the premature start of construction of its battery cell plant near Erfurt, capital of the German state of Thuringia, the official ground-breaking ceremony took place on Friday.
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In Germany, Chinese battery giant CATL has been given the go-ahead from the region of Thuringia’s Minister of the Environment, Anja Siegesmund, to start the new construction of its battery cell plant in Erfurt.
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The Swiss raw materials company Blackstone Resources intends to invest 200 million euros in the production of battery cells for electric cars, most likely in Germany. They hope the move will garner subsidies both from the Germans as well as the EU.
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The Chinese battery cell giant CATL has moved into the offices near the planned battery factory in Erfurt, Germany. Moreover, they are also accelerating their entire schedule, according to European boss Matthias Zentgraf, who said “it is all about tempo”.
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It can hardly become more official: CATL released construction details of their first battery factory outside China. The facility in Erfurt, a town in the East of Germany, targets a capacity of 14 GWh and will cost CATL 240M euros.
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Harald Krüger, head of the BMW board, announced the contract with the Chinese battery manufacturer for cells valued at over one billion euros. The announcement came in an interview, where it was also confirmed that CATL will be opening a factory near Erfurt, Germany.
Read moreThe Chinese battery manufacturer has decided to start producing battery components in Germany. According to electrive.net, CATL is looking to Erfurt to set up a manufacturing facility for battery cells.
Read moreThe German federal state of Thuringia has revealed its charging infrastructure plan LISS until 2020. It plans 370 new EV chargers in the next three years, where a total of 32 local utilities will work together to install 300 regular and 70 fast-chargers. The federal state is funding slower chargers with 975 euros, while 2.46m euros will be invested in fast-chargers at a federal level. The utilities are investing a combined 2.61 euros.
thueringen24.de, thueringen.de (articles in German)
Good-bye free charging: As reported, Tesla cars ordered after January 15th will not be allowed to charge for free at Superchargers. Only the first 400 kWh will be included in the price of the car. After that, Tesla will charge per kWh, meaning the fee will differ from area to area. The carmaker also emphasised that it will not profit, but will merely cover costs.
insideevs.com, teslarati.com, tesla.com
Ultimate charge and fly: No less than 102 parking spots have been fitted with EV chargers at the Hartsfield-Jackson Atlanta International Airport in Atlanta, Georgia. Another 200 more parking spots will also be modernised in the coming years.
airport.blog.ajc.com
Electric Vehicle Arteries: Project EVA+, which was unveiled in Brussels and is being funded with 4.2m euros by the EU, wants to set up 200 multi-charger stations in Italy and Austria in the coming three years. For the project, utility Enel and Verbund have teamed up with BMW, Nissan, Renault and Volkswagen.
insideevs.com, enel.com
Plugging-in: The British government is looking for ways to simplify charging and cut cost. Parallel pricing, as well as a pricing cap are among propositions on the table, as is a standard charge chard that will work at all EV chargers in the country.
autocar.co.uk, insideevs.com
Dubai goes hybrid: The country’s Roads and Transport Authority has issued a five-year plan that also calls for half of all taxis to be fitted with hybrid drivetrains by 2021. That would be the equivalent of 2,280 hybrid taxis.
arabianbusiness.com
Charging Germany: 370 new charging stations, including 70 rapid-charging stops, shall be installed in Thuringia by 2020. The state-sponsored initiative is a result of the EMOTIF programme, which helped municipalities acquire 18 EV, 48 electric cars and 19 e-bike charging stations.
mdr.de (in German)
Moving Manila: E-trikes only is the aim of the capital of the Philippines. The government will take the first step and buy 10,000 electric trikes, which it will rent to drivers at a price they would usually pay for petrol. Charging is free. The new e-trikes sit seven and will replace almost half of all rickshaws in Manila.
philstar.com
Plug-ins for Texas: Austin wants to acquire 330 plug-in vehicles until 2020. The lease programme that would see the city buy the cars for 1 dollars after the three year term is up could start next year. Only the City Council’s approval is pending. The Texan capital’s eyes are on the Nissan Leaf and Chevy Bolt.
austinmonitor.com
BYD taxis in Singapore: The first ten electric cabs will hit Singapore this October. Taxi company Hold Dreams Together (HDT) says it is only the beginning. In 2017, the fleet shall grow to 100 electric taxis, all delivered by BYD. For some reason, fares will be higher than unusual.
vulcanpost.com
Federal charging stations: The small company Apollo Sunguard Systems has won a contract worth 900,000 dollars from the public buildings division of the Government Services Administration. It will now distribute 183 charging stations made by ChargePoint at federal government buildings across the states.
heraldtribune.com, chargedevs.com
Short on charging: With the increasing number of employees going to work in their electric cars, Silicon Valley companies are facing a shortage of charging stations. To avoid incidents of “charge rage” among drivers, companies began to draft guidelines and making charging stations available on reservation only.
businessinsider.com
Thuringia means EV business: The German county will continue its programme for EV promotion with a focus on companies and research institutes willing to participate in testing. The Thuringian Ministry of Economics will release a total of 300,000 euros (406,000 dollars) and has already received eleven applications. Last year, the fund co-financed the purchase of twelve EVs and eight charging stations while the participating companies invested about 530,000 euros (718,000 dollars).
insuedthueringen.de (In German)
Swiss struggle for transport taxes: The multi-canton republic is faced with rising costs of rail and road infrastructure, while fuel tax revenue is decreasing due to more fuel-efficient vehicles. The Federal Council now proposed a road fund similar to the planned rail fund. Money for the roads is supposed to come from a higher fuel tax rate and an increase in car taxation. From 2020, electric car owners, currently exempt from taxes, will be asked to pay their share as well.
20min.ch (In German)
