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☆ Stellantis halts battery plant construction over dispute with Canadian government
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-15 | by ( ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau wears safety glasses as he attends a tour of the Stellantis Windsor Assembly Plant in Windsor, Ontario, Canada. Automaker Stellantis has stopped all construction at a more-than C$5 billion ($3.74 billion) electric vehicles battery manufacturing plant in Windsor, Canada, over a disagreement with the federal government about subsidies, a spokesperson for the company said on Monday. "Effective immediately, all construction related to the battery module production on the Windsor site has stopped," the spokesperson said. The move comes days after the carmaker and South Korea's LG Energy Solution Ltd (373220.KS) said they were implementing "contingency plans" related to a more-than C$5 billion ($3.74 billion) battery plant investment in Canada. LGES and Stellantis announced their battery plant investment in the country last year, aiming for an annual production capacity in excess of 45 gigawatt hours (GWh) and expected to create an estimated 2,500 new jobs in the Windsor area.

But just when it looked as though the incentive monster was being cut down to size, the CHIPS Act and the Inflation Reduction Act are threatening to give it an enormous infusion of steroids. The CHIPS Act, at least, requires companies to do some good in return. In February, Ford agreed to build its new electric vehicle plant in Michigan, but only after extracting a promise of as much $1.75 billion in state and local incentives. To limit the damage to state and local budgets and ensure meaningful community impacts, there are a few things we can do. First, Congress should consider amending the U.S. CHIPS Act to ensure that there are no requirements that projects receive any state or local funding in order to obtain federal dollars.

☆ Stellantis, LGES implementing 'contingency plans' for battery plant in Canada
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-13 | by ( Ismail Shakil | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

[1/2] A Stellantis sign is seen outside the company's headquarters in Auburn Hills, Michigan, U.S., June 10, 2021. REUTERS/Rebecca Cook/File PhotoOTTAWA, May 12 (Reuters) - Automaker Stellantis (STLAM.MI) and South Korea's LG Energy Solution (373220.KS) (LGES) are implementing "contingency plans" related to a more-than C$5 billion ($3.7 billion) battery plant investment in Canada because the federal government has not delivered on its promises, a Stellantis spokesperson said on Friday. "As of today, the Canadian Government has not delivered on what was agreed to, therefore Stellantis and LG Energy Solution will immediately begin implementing their contingency plans," Stellantis said in a brief emailed statement, without elaborating. LGES and Stellantis announced the investment last year to establish a large-scale, domestic, electric vehicle battery manufacturing facility in Canada. Canada's deal with Volkswagen for a battery gigafactory, announced this year, is the biggest single investment ever in the country's electric-vehicle supply chain.

☆ Tesla to recall 1.1 million cars in China over potential safety risks, Chinese regulator says
▼ + stars: | 2023-05-12 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +2 min

Hong Kong CNN —Tesla will recall more than 1.1 million cars in China due to potential safety risks, the country’s top market regulator said on Friday. The models to be recalled include imported Model S, Model X, Model 3 and China-made Model 3 and Model 6. An aerial view of Tesla's Shanghai Gigafactory on March 29, 2021. The company plans to make adjustments or add notification features to the recalled vehicles to reduce the risk, it added. In March, Tesla recalled more than 2,600 imported Model S cars in China, according to the SAMR.

☆ Tesla raises 2023 spending forecast as it races to ramp up output
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-24 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 24 (Reuters) - Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) raised its capital expenditure forecast for 2023 on Monday as the automaker ramps up output at its factories to take advantage of the rising interest in electric vehicles. The company, led by Elon Musk, said in a filing that it expects to spend between $7 billion and $9 billion this year, higher than its previous outlook of $6 billion to $8 billion. It maintained the spending outlook for the next two years at $7 billion to $9 billion. Achieving that goal will make Tesla twice the size of any automaker in history, accounting for roughly 20% of the global vehicle market. The company is also ramping up output at its factories in Berlin and Austin, and plans to open a gigafactory in Mexico as the EV behemoth pushes to expand its global output.

☆ Volkswagen Canada battery plant targets 90 GWh capacity, its biggest yet
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

[1/4] Canada's Prime Minister Justin Trudeau arrives to attend a news conference to announce details on the construction of a gigafactory for electric vehicle battery production by Volkswagen Group's battery company PowerCo SE in St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada April 21, 2023. REUTERS/Carlos OsorioCompanies Volkswagen AG FollowBERLIN, April 21 (Reuters) - Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) is targeting 90 gigawatt-hours of capacity at its planned battery factory in Ontario, Canada, the carmaker said on Friday, its largest planned battery plant to date. The carmaker is investing up to C$7 billion ($5.17 billion) in the plant, a statement said. The plant will cover most of the battery capacity it needs in North America, which battery chief Thomas Schmall said in March was between 60-100 gigawatt hours. ($1 = 1.3528 Canadian dollars)Reporting by Victoria Waldersee Editing by Madeline ChambersOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ CNBC Daily Open: It’s all about Elon Musk
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-21 | by ( Yeo Boon Ping | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Tesla CEO Elon Musk attends the start of the production at Tesla's "Gigafactory" on March 22, 2022 in Gruenheide, southeast of Berlin. This report is from today's CNBC Daily Open, our new, international markets newsletter. CNBC Daily Open brings investors up to speed on everything they need to know, no matter where they are. Which might be a good summary of Twitter, Musk's most contentious company — but investors needn't worry about it since Musk has taken it private, anyway. Subscribe here to get this report sent directly to your inbox each morning before markets open.

[1/9] View shows the site where the gigafactory for electric vehicle battery production by Volkswagen Group's battery company PowerCo SE will be built in St. Thomas, Ontario, Canada April 21, 2023. REUTERS/Carlos OsorioCompanies Volkswagen AG FollowStellantis NV FollowBERLIN, April 21 (Reuters) - Canada and Volkswagen (VOWG_p.DE) on Friday together committed more than C$20 billion ($14.8 billion) for a battery gigafactory in St. Thomas, Ontario, the biggest single investment ever in the country's electric-vehicle supply chain. Europe's largest carmaker is investing up to C$7 billion to build the plant, Volkswagen said in a statement. The battery plant is expected to be Volkswagen's largest and create up to 3,000 jobs. "This secures the future of St. Thomas," the city's mayor, Joe Preston, told Reuters earlier this week.

☆ Tesla shares fall on year-over-year income, earnings drop
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-20 | by ( Rohan Goswami | In Rohangoswamicnbc | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Tesla CEO Elon Musk attends the official opening of the new Tesla electric car manufacturing plant on March 22, 2022 near Gruenheide, Germany. The new plant, officially called the Gigafactory Berlin-Brandenburg, is producing the Model Y as well as electric car batteries. Shares of electric vehicle manufacturer Tesla fell around 7% on Thursday, a day after the company reported a more than 20% drop in both net income and GAAP earnings compared to the year-ago quarter. Tesla has cut the price of its Model 3 by 11% this year. WATCH: Tesla price cuts "one way" to stay on customers' minds

Elon Musk-led Tesla reported total gross margin of 19.3%, compared with expectations of 22.4%, according to 14 analysts polled by Refinitiv. For the first quarter, Tesla's automotive gross margins, a closely watched figure by analysts and investors, dropped. Finance chief Zachary Kirkhorn promised in January that Tesla would not go below automotive gross margins of 20% and an average selling price of $47,000 across models. Excluding items, Tesla reported a profit of 85 cents, in line with estimates. Deliveries of higher-priced Model S and Model X vehicles slumped from the previous quarter, it said.

[1/6] Tundra trucks and Sequoia SUV's exit the assembly line as finished products at Toyota's truck plant in San Antonio, Texas, U.S. April 17, 2023. TOYOTA'S PAST SUCCESSWashington's push to accelerate the shift to battery-electric vehicles amplifies the threat posed by Tesla to Toyota's position as the world's largest automaker. Toyota San Antonio has weathered a series of challenges since it built its first truck in 2006. The future for factories like Toyota San Antonio will play out across the next several years. Reporting by Norihiko Shirouzu in San Antonio, Texas, Joseph White in Detroit and David Shepardson in Washington Written by Joseph White Editing by Ben Klayman and Matthew LewisOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Tesla set to report first-quarter earnings after the bell
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-19 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +2 min

Employees of the Tesla Gigafactory Berlin Brandenburg work on the final inspection of the finished Model Y electric vehicles. Tesla is scheduled to report first-quarter earnings for 2023 after the close of trading on Wednesday. A month earlier, Musk announced plans to build a Tesla factory in Monterrey, Mexico, a day's drive from a relatively new factory in Austin, Texas. And more recently, Tesla said it plans to set up a factory to make Megapacks, or large lithium ion battery-based energy storage systems, in Shanghai. WATCH: CFRA's Garrett Nelson bullish on long-term earnings growth for Tesla

☆ Factbox: Tesla's Shanghai plant, targeted by worker protest, is key hub for EV maker
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Here are key facts about Tesla's operation in Shanghai:BACKGROUNDTesla’s Shanghai plant, which began operations in late 2019, is the automaker’s largest manufacturing hub. The plant employs some 20,000 workers and accounted for more than half of Tesla’s global output in 2022. Some Tesla workers were told their performance bonuses were being cut because of the accident and took to social media to protest. KEY EXECUTIVETesla promoted its China chief Tom Zhu to take oversight of its global production and sales earlier this year. Under Zhu, the Tesla Shanghai plant managed a quick rebound from lost production last year due to COVID lockdowns in China.

☆ Tesla workers criticized Elon Musk online, and some people even complained to his mom, after performance bonuses were cut at its Shanghai factory
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Workers at Tesla's Shanghai Gigafactory were told about bonus cuts over the weekend, per Reuters. Some Tesla workers at the company's biggest factory are complaining to Elon Musk and his mom on social media, after bonuses were cut following a fatal accident, Reuters reported. "Please pay attention to the performance of frontline workers at Tesla's Shanghai factory being arbitrarily deducted," one account tweeted. Two factory workers told Reuters that supervisors mentioned a "safety incident" when asked why their quarterly performance bonuses had been cut. "Deducting the performance bonus, which should be related to workers' output and has nothing to do with work safety, is even more unfair," he said.

☆ Tesla Shanghai: Social media protests over 'unfair' bonus cuts
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-17 | by ( Laura He | ) edition.cnn.com time to read: +3 min

Hong Kong CNN —Workers at Tesla’s electric vehicle manufacturing plant in Shanghai are reportedly using social media to protest against what they call unfair cuts in performance-related pay and to ask CEO Elon Musk to intervene. Social media posts published over the weekend by people who say they work at the factory — the company’s main export hub — expressed anger over recently announced cuts in their monthly bonus pay. They said they were given news of the “significant” and “malicious” cuts after a fatal accident occurred at the Tesla (TSLA) facility in February. Just six months later, in November, the Shanghai factory set a fresh monthly delivery record of more than 100,000 vehicles. In 2022, Tesla delivered 1.31 million vehicles globally, more than half of which were from Shanghai, according to the company’s financial results.

☆ Chinese battery maker SVOLT plans five Europe plants - Bloomberg News
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-13 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

April 13 (Reuters) - Chinese battery maker SVOLT Energy Technology Co is set to expand its footprint in Europe to as many as five factories, Bloomberg News reported on Thursday. SVOLT is looking at locations in eastern, northern and western Europe, with one larger site in the 20-gigawatt range, according to the report. The company is targeting production capacity of at least 50 gigawatt-hours in Europe by the end of the decade, SVOLT Europe head Kai-Uwe Wollenhaupt said in an interview with Bloomberg. Besides, SVOLT is in talks with several European car makers about battery cell supply agreements, the Bloomberg report said. Data shows some 44% of planned battery capacity in Europe by 2030 is expected from Asian companies, with Chinese battery giant CATL on top of the list.

☆ Tesla's shares are up over 70% this year. One market pro is bullish — but another isn't convinced
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-11 | by ( Zavier Ong | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +5 min

Shares of electric vehicle giant Tesla have risen more than 70% this year, after falling 65% in 2022 in its largest-ever annual decline. Bull vs. bear Ross Gerber, president and CEO of Gerber Kawasaki Wealth Management, is an unabashed Tesla bull. Gerber is excited about the prospects for Tesla's first pickup truck — the Cybertruck — which is expected to begin production by end-2023. Tesla cannot be the EV leader without cutting prices, Bido added. One of the most important components of an EV is the battery, and Gerber said Tesla is a leader in battery technology.

☆ Tesla to build Shanghai factory to make Megapack batteries
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SHANGHAI, April 9 (Reuters) - Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) is opening a factory in Shanghai, capable of producing ten thousand Megapack energy product per year, to supplement output of Megapack factory in California, the company said in a tweet on Sunday. Complementing a huge existing Shanghai plant making electric vehicles, the new factory will initially produce 10,000 Megapack units a year, equal to around 40 gigawatt hours of energy storage, to be sold globally, Xinhua said. Chinese battery giant CATL (300750.SZ) has also been deepening its collaborations with clients including Tesla in energy storage battery supplies, which its Chairman Robin Zeng expected to have a larger market than batteries powering electric vehicles (EV). The company began producing Model 3 cars in Shanghai in 2019 and now is capable of producing 22,000 units of cars per week. Tesla planned to expand the Gigafactory Shanghai, its most productive automaking plant, to add an annual capacity of 450,000 units, Reuters reported last May.

☆ Tesla to build Shanghai factory to make Megapack batteries, Xinhua reports
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-09 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

SHANGHAI, April 9 (Reuters) - Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) will build a factory in Shanghai to make the Megapack energy storage product, Chinese state media outlet Xinhua reported on Sunday. Elon Musk's automaker will break ground on the plant in the third quarter and start production in the second quarter of 2024, Xinhua reported from a signing ceremony in Shanghai. Complementing a huge existing Shanghai plant making electric vehicles, the new factory will initially produce 10,000 Megapack units a year, equal to around 40 gigawatt hours of energy storage, to be sold globally, Xinhua said. Chinese battery giant CATL (300750.SZ) has also been deepening its collaborations with clients including Tesla in energy storage battery supplies, which its Chairman Robin Zeng expected to have a larger market than batteries powering electric vehicles (EV). Tesla planned to expand the Gigafactory Shanghai, its most productive automaking plant, to add an annual capacity of 450,000 units, Reuters reported last May.

☆ Tesla nominates former CTO JB Straubel to board
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-06 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Companies Tesla Inc FollowApril 6 (Reuters) - Tesla Inc (TSLA.O) on Thursday nominated former Chief Technology Officer JB Straubel to the electric-vehicle maker's board. The company made a proxy filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission listing four Tesla proposals and one from a shareholder regarding a key-person risk report that the board advises voting against. Straubel would succeed Hiromichi Mizuno, who will not stand for re-election. Straubel joined Tesla in 2004 and spent 14 years as the chief technology officer. Reporting by Hyunjoo Jin in San Francisco and Akash Sriram in Bengaluru; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta and Devika SyamnathOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Elon Musk is selling Tesla beers for more than $30 to celebrate the company's Berlin Gigafactory, over a year since its delayed opening
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Pete Syme | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +2 min

Tesla's "GigaBier" is now on sale, 17 months after Elon Musk first revealed it in Berlin. It costs about $98 for a pack of three bottles, which are supposed to look like Tesla's Cybertruck. The beer is Tesla's second foray into the liquor market, having previously sold a $250 tequila. The "GigaBier" was first revealed in October 2021 to celebrate the opening of Tesla's Berlin Gigafactory. The "GigaBier" marks Tesla's second foray into the booze market, having previously launched Tesla Tequila in 2020.

☆ Tesla shares drop after deliveries report raises investor concern that more price cuts are coming
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Lora Kolodny | ) www.cnbc.com time to read: +3 min

Tesla shares fell more than 7% on Monday after the company's quarterly deliveries report led some investors to worry that more price cuts will be needed to drive sales, eating into margins. The record numbers represented 4% growth in deliveries from the prior period and followed repeated price cuts in the U.S., China and Europe. Sacconaghi said, "The key question for investors is what might margins be, amid significant price cuts but improving commodity costs?" According to FactSet, analyst were expecting Tesla to report deliveries of around 432,000 vehicles for the quarter. He wrote that "incremental price cuts likely needed," especially as the company ramps up production at new factories in Austin, Texas, and outside of Berlin.

☆ Northvolt, a $12 billion startup founded by an ex-Tesla VP, thinks crushing and shredding old batteries is the way to make electric vehicles truly sustainable
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-03 | by ( Tasmin Lockwood | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +8 min

NorthvoltHow Northvolt's process worksNorthvolt's recycling process, which was dreamed up in 2018 and planned and tested in the following years, involves crushing, shredding, and filtering dismantled batteries. Northvolt is left with a black powder called black mass, which contains nickel, manganese, cobalt, and lithium. Once Northvolt's latest venture, Revolt Ett, is up and running at full capacity, it's expected to recycle 125,000 tons of battery materials each year. Cylindrical cells; shredded pieces of steel, copper, aluminium, plastic, and black mass from mechanical recycling; black mass; and a mix of nickel, manganese, and cobalt sulfates. The Hydrovolt pilot runs Northvolt's recycling process up to the black-mass stage.

☆ Mexico sees growth of up to 3% this year, eyes nearshoring boost
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-31 | by ( Anthony Esposito | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +3 min

Mexico's inflation rate by the end of this year is seen slowing to 5.0%, and then to 4.0% by the end of 2024. Mexico's central bank raised rates 25 basis points to 11.25% Thursday, but hinted the hiking cycle could be nearing its end. Mexico is also primed to benefit from private investment fueled by "nearshoring," the trend of moving production to North America and away from Asia, the ministry said. Nearshoring could add up to 1.2 percentage points to GDP the ministry said, without specifying a time frame. In particular, the ministry anticipated a boost to foreign investment in manufacturing, and said the automotive industry was a "natural candidate" to take advantage of nearshoring.

☆ Battery maker Northvolt in talks for over $5 billion in financing -FT
▼ + stars: | 2023-03-26 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

March 26 (Reuters) - Swedish lithium-ion battery producer Northvolt is in talks to secure more than $5 billion of financing to pursue its goal of becoming Europe's biggest battery manufacturer, the Financial Times reported on Sunday. The company is negotiating with a number of banks to raise the amount and an agreement could be reached later this year, the FT said, citing people with knowledge of the matter. Northvolt has so far raised billions via debt issuance to fund its factory investments, including $1.1 billion in convertible notes last year that have helped it ramp up production at its gigafactory in Skelleftea, Sweden. Reuters last month reported that Northvolt is close to hiring banks for an initial public offering (IPO) in Europe or New York that could value the company at more than $20 billion. Reporting by Aarati Krishna in Bengaluru; Editing by Edwina Gibbs, Elaine HardcastleOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

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