DIRS.INFO The most relevant business & tech news

☆ Biden's tariffs don't loosen China's grip on one key mineral in the EV economy
▼ + stars: | 2024-05-16 | by ( Catherine Boudreau | ) www.businessinsider.com time to read: +4 min

The White House decided to delay by two years tariffs on graphite, a key metal in EV lithium-ion batteries that helps them store energy. But a senior Biden administration official said during a call with reporters that some tariffs would kick in in 2026 to allow battery supply chains to transition. However, those batteries can still source graphite from China until at least 2027 under the Biden administration's policy. Beyond graphite, other tariffs that Biden slapped on China's green tech are mostly symbolic. But steeper taxes on batteries this year could affect US automakers such as Ford and Tesla, which import from China.

Persons: Joe Biden, Gene Berdichevsky, Berdichevsky, Sila, EVs, Biden Organizations: Service, White, Business, US Department of Energy, Mercedes, Benz, Manufacturing, Biden, Environmental Defense Fund Locations: China, Washington ,, Moses Lake , Washington, Southeast Asia

☆ Key Solar Panel Ingredient Is Made in the U.S.A. Again
▼ + stars: | 2024-04-25 | by ( Ivan Penn | ) www.nytimes.com time to read: +1 min

A factory in Moses Lake, Wash., that shut down in 2019 will soon resume shipping a critical ingredient used in most solar panels that for years has been made almost exclusively in China. REC Silicon reopened the factory, which makes polysilicon, the building block for the large majority of solar panels, in November in partnership with Hanwha Qcells, a South Korean company that is investing billions of dollars in U.S. solar panel production. As part of the deal, Hanwha this month said it has become the largest shareholder in REC Silicon, which is based in Norway. Executives at the companies say they reopened the factory in part because of incentives for domestic manufacturing in the Inflation Reduction Act, President Biden’s signature climate law. They expressed hope that their decision would also encourage other companies to revive production of a technology that was created in the United States about 70 years ago.

Persons: Hanwha Qcells Organizations: REC, South Locations: Moses Lake, China, Southeast Asia, South Korean, Norway, United States

Both companies say they would have moved ahead even without direct federal funding. Rick Luebbe, the chief executive of Group14, said the company was able to raise additional capital on the back of the federal money, allowing it to build two production lines in Moses Lake rather than one. In 2005, for example, the government introduced tax credits for the installation of solar panels, without restrictions on the country of origin. Over the next six years, imports of Chinese solar panels increased to $2.7 billion a year, up from $21 million a year. China controls three-quarters of the world’s supply of graphite, but “our technology requires sand and energy,” said Gene Berdichevsky, the chief executive of Sila.

Persons: Rick Luebbe, Moses Lake, ”, Moses, It’s, Biden, Gene Berdichevsky, Sila Locations: Moses Lake, Georgia , Louisiana, Tennessee, United States, China

☆ New silicon anodes could help EV batteries go farther, charge faster
▼ + stars: | 2023-04-04 | by ( Paul Lienert | ) www.reuters.com time to read: +2 min

Two startup companies, Group14 Technologies and Sila Nanotechnologies, are focused on new applications for silicon, an abundant element that is being developed as a supplement or replacement for graphite in battery anodes. Seven-year-old Group14 said on Tuesday that it has begun constructing a commercial-grade facility in Moses Lake for its SCC55 silicon-carbon powder. Group14’s joint-venture plant in Korea with battery maker SK is scheduled to open this year, according to Rick Luebbe, CEO and co-founder. Sila has raised more than $900 million, with Mercedes, ATL and Siemens (SIEGn.DE) among its corporate investors. Strong demand for silicon-rich anodes means “we’re under pressure to go faster and bigger,” Luebbe said.

☆ Clarence Gilyard Jr., ‘Walker, Texas Ranger’ and ‘Die Hard’ star, dies at 66
▼ + stars: | 2022-11-29 | by ( ) www.nbcnews.com time to read: +2 min

Clarence Gilyard Jr., an actor best known for starring in “Walker, Texas Ranger” and his supporting performance in “Die Hard,” has died. Gilyard had been working as a film and theatre professor at UNLV College of Fine Arts. “Professor Gilyard was a beacon of light and strength for everyone around him,” UNLV film chair Heather Addison said. Gilyard returned to academia later in life, joining the department of theatre at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas as an associate professor in 2006. Gilyard also worked as a producer and director, helming an episode of “Walker, Texas Ranger.”Gilyard was previously married to Catherine Dutko.

☆ Boeing to pay $200 million to settle civil charges it misled investors about 737 MAX
▼ + stars: | 2022-09-22 | by ( ) www.reuters.com time to read: +1 min

Grounded Boeing 737 MAX aircraft are seen parked at Grant County International Airport in Moses Lake, Washington, U.S. November 17, 2020. REUTERS/Lindsey WassonSept 22 (Reuters) - Boeing (BA.N) will pay $200 Million to settle charges from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that it misled investors about the 737 MAX that was grounded for 20 months after two fatal crashes killed 346 people. The SEC also said former Boeing Chief Executive Dennis Muilenburg had agreed to pay $1 million. The Boeing Company and its former CEO, Dennis Muilenburg, failed in this most basic obligation," SEC Chair Gary Gensler said. Register now for FREE unlimited access to Reuters.com RegisterReporting by David Shepardson, Editing by Franklin PaulOur Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.

☆ Un cascador de 28 de ani a murit, după ce a încercat să doboare recordul la sărituri cu motocicleta
▼ + stars: | 2021-06-18 | by ( Publika.Md - Aici Sunt Știrile | ) www.publika.md time to read: +1 min

Alex Harvill, un tânăr cascador în vârstă de 28 de ani, și-a pierdut joi viața, în statul american Washington, în timp ce se antrena pentru o săritură de record mondial cu motocicleta, informează CNN. Momentul în care acesta s-a izbit de pământ a fost surprins de martori. Înconjurat de susținători, Harvill s-a antrenat la Aeroportul Internaţional Grant County, iar momentul în care acesta a pierdut controlul motorului a fost postat pe reţelele de socializare. În imagini se vede cum motocicleta lui Harvill a lovit marginea superioară a malului de pământ folosit drept rampă de aterizare, iar bărbatul a fost aruncat de pe motocicletă. „Cele mai profunde gânduri ale noastre se îndreaptă către familia, prietenii și cei dragi ai lui Alex”, a declarat joi procurorul comitatului Grant, Craig Morrison.

Persons: Alex Harvill, CNN ., Harvill, Robbie Maddison, Moses Lake Airshow, Alex, comitatului Grant, Craig Morrison Organizations: CNN, Aeroportul Internaţional Grant County, comitatului Locations: american Washington

Search resuls for: "Moses Lake"

7 mentions found