Battery Electric Vehicle News / Enjoying the Transportation Revolution

orrery

Martyn1981 said:

I think this is big news. BYD has outsold Tesla in BEV's, not PEV's (BEV's + PHEV's), but actually in BEV's. No idea if they are profitable (yet) ...

Would that be profitable after all the massive state subsidies or before? Even the steel is subsidised.

Martyn1981

orrery said:

Martyn1981 said:

I think this is big news. BYD has outsold Tesla in BEV's, not PEV's (BEV's + PHEV's), but actually in BEV's. No idea if they are profitable (yet) ...

Would that be profitable after all the massive state subsidies or before? Even the steel is subsidised.

That's a very good question, and I have no idea. A lot of internal support is suggested/assumed, though I believe the direct subsidies paid to manufacturers for each NEV (new energy vehicle (PEV's)) sold have now ended. Also BYD gets a tonne of bad press for their PHEV's, particularly around fires*, but much of it may be spin to harm their sales (in China) by competitors.

*It's claimed that they haven't allowed for greater fuel expansion in the tank (if I remember correctly) that PHEV's need v's ICE, as they won't consume the fuel as quickly, depending on leccy based driving.

thevilla

I followed Google on a 7 minute faster detour on Tuesday.   Confidently took the Leaf through deeper water than I should but the EV managed it with aplomb.   Unfortunately the stone guard under the rear batteries didn't  understand the rules and was near ripped off.  Had to wait 3 hours for the RAC to complete the removal.

Best stay out of floods in future!

Exiled_Tyke

I'm guessing Martin knows more about this than any RE journalist at the BBC, but it is another great story 'enjoying the transportation revolution'. 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-67781109

Martyn1981

Exiled_Tyke said:

I'm guessing Martin knows more about this than any RE journalist at the BBC, but it is another great story 'enjoying the transportation revolution'. 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-67781109

Many thanks ET. As you know I love the stories about 2 and 3 wheelers, as they can (will) move bn's of people off of ICEV's. Small ICEV's also tend to have high pollution levels too, and make a lot of noise.

I was shocked when I posted that info from BNEF recently, showing that 60% of avoided oil demand by EV's was actually from 2/3 wheelers (see page 24.)

The article you posted, mentions short ranges:

And others say the range of an electric bike - between 60 and 80km - is too limiting.

so in case anyone isn't aware of the rollout of battery swapping stations (mainly in Asia), I thought I'd find a pic, to show how they work. I simply grabbed the first pic in Google images, and then the associated article from Electrek:

Taiwan soon to have more Gogoro electric scooter battery swap stations than gas stations

It kinda looks perfect to me, so compact and simple. Battery swap stations for cars may not work out, they are huge, expensive etc etc, but a wall of batts, swapped by hand, couldn't be simpler.

pete-20-11

The scooters for hire near me have swappable batteries. They're not locked. People have been stealing them. Hope these only release with an ID card!! 🤣

Martyn1981

Article on new large scale battery factory for Sodium-Ion batts. The articles states that the batts will be used for transport (scooters), hence posting it here. But of course, building batts, for any purpose, that spread the material load across other technologies, will also help to reduce battery costs, of all types.

BYD Constructing Sodium-Ion Battery Gigafactory (30 GWh)

“On the morning of January 4, the 2024 city-wide major industrial project construction kick-off meeting and the BYD (Xuzhou) sodium-ion battery project kick-off event were held in the Xuzhou Economic and Technological Development Zone,” a Google translation of a news update from a Chinese company, New Energy Think Tank (NETT), stated.

BYD is investing 10 billion yuan ($1.4 billion) into the new battery factory. “After the project is completed and put into operation, it will inject new momentum into the construction of a new energy system demonstration city in Xuzhou,” NETT adds.

These batteries will reportedly be used in electric scooters and “micro vehicles,” as those are seen by BYD to be the best applications for sodium-ion batteries at the moment. “BYD’s subsidiary Findreams Battery signed an agreement with tricycle giant Huaihai Group to construct the Xuzhou sodium battery plant on November 18 in Shenzhen.”

Teeny stretch, as it relates to a Chinese joint venture, but VW deserve a mention for their sodium-ion BEV move, too.

Volkswagen-backed EV maker rolls out first sodium-ion battery powered electric car

JAC Group’s Yiwei, a new EV brand in China backed by Volkswagen, debuted the first sodium-ion battery-powered electric car. The new JAC Yiwei EV rolled off the assembly line Wednesday.

Yiwei is a new EV maker under the JAC Group. It was established earlier this year. Volkswagen owns 50% of JAC’s parent company; the other 50% is state-owned.

Volkswagen invested 1 billion euros for a 50% stake in JAC Group in 2021. The German automaker also took full control of management of its existing EV joint venture with a 75% stake.

The new EV features sodium-ion cylindrical cells from HiNa Battery. The Beijing-based tech company is affiliated with the Institute of Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences.

Exiled_Tyke

Interesting article covering some of the more creative efforts to increase the charging network. A couple of them were new to me. 

https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-67518869

Martyn1981

Australia BEV sales are rising. They are still a laggard with BEV penetration of new sales at ~7.2%*, but in fairness to the Aussies, they weren't being sent many BEV's till recently, as legacy manufacturers were targeting countries/regions with EV sales requirements.

*The global sales numbers (up to Nov 2023) are ~19% PEV's, with 13% BEV's + 6% PHEV.

With the massive penetration of demand side PV in Aus (~30% of households), I can see BEV's exploding (so to speak), for those able to charge when the sun's shining. May even turbo-charge the home battery market for those able to top up a bit each day..

Have Australian drivers finally charged into electric vehicles?

Newcomer brands and luxury marques are dominating booming electric car sales as mainstream players struggle to match the pace of a fast-evolving EV market.

The top three selling electric vehicles in Australia in 2023 were from Tesla and BYD, between them accounting for two-thirds of the 87,217 electric cars sold, according to figures released by the Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries.

Of the top 10 selling EVs, only two mainstream brands – MG and Kia – had cars on the leader board, with the likes of Toyota, Mazda, Hyundai and Nissan nowhere to be seen.

JKenH

Sainsbury's launches its own electric car charging brand

Sainsbury's has launched its own electric car charging brand, becoming the first supermarket in the UK to own and manage its own charging network.

Called Smart Charge, the "game-changing" brand will be introduced with the roll-out of 750 rapid chargers "across more than 100 stores" by the end of this year. The British supermarket chain claims that this will put it in the top five providers of ultra-rapid chargers in the UK.

https://www.autocar.co.uk/car-news/new-cars/sainsburys-smart-charge