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Sportscar maker says priority is plug-in hybrids, while cutting costs will reduce global workforce by 5% The British sportscar maker Aston Martin has further delayed its first battery electric vehicle, as it announced plans to cut 170 jobs – 5% of its global workforce – in the latest step in its quest for profits. The FTSE 250 manufacturer on Wednesday said its priority was plug-in hybrid cars, which combine a small battery with a petrol engine. The first electric model will only come in “the latter part of this decade”. Continue reading...

Northvolt, which claims to run Europe’s first homegrown gigafactory, admits it depends on Chinese suppliers for cathode active material The Swedish startup Northvolt has admitted that a vital component of its batteries is imported amid claims that the company, which claims to run Europe’s first homegrown gigafactory , depends on Chinese suppliers. It comes as a documentary programme to be shown in Sweden on Wednesday by the national broadcaster SVT, exposes the company’s failure to build a truly homegrown battery after its attempts to produce its own cathode active material at its Northvolt Ett factory in Skellefteå, northern Sweden, were unsuccessful. Continue reading...

Volklec aims to start making batteries at part-government-funded site near Coventry before building its own factory A startup has said it has learned from Britain’s faltering attempts to manufacture batteries for electric vehicles, as it signed a deal to license technology from an established Chinese firm. Coventry-based Volklec plans to manufacture batteries for cars, boats, construction vehicles and aircraft using technology from China’s Far East Battery (FEB), a maker of batteries mainly for electric bikes. Continue reading...

The tycoon’s links with Donald Trump and Germany’s far-right AfD have slammed the brakes on sales and put the car’s owners in a spin Tesla sales almost halve in Europe over Musk’s ties to Trump When Mike Schwede first sat in a Tesla Roadster 15 years ago, he felt like it was a glimpse into the future. By 2016, he was the proud owner of a Tesla, revelling in the thumbs up he would get from other drivers as he whizzed along Europe’s highways in the electric vehicle. But of late the sheen of owning a Tesla has begun to wear off. For years the brand has been synonymous with Elon Musk and his stance against the climate crisis. Recently, Schwede watched aghast as the Tesla CEO poured hundreds of millions into backing Donald Trump as he made promises to ramp up domestic oil and gas production. Continue reading...

German carmaker will review plans for site which had been forecast to secure 4,000 jobs in EV production BMW Group has paused a £600m investment into a Mini car assembly plant on the outskirts of Oxford, amid a declining demand for electric vehicles. In 2023, the German carmaker, which has owned Mini since 2000, announced the investment to upgrade its Cowley plant for electric production of the Mini. It was supported by government-backed investment, and was forecast to secure 4,000 jobs in electric vehicle production. Continue reading...

Japanese carmaker’s shares rise almost 10% after reports that a group wants US EV firm to put in money Elon Musk has rebuffed the idea that Tesla could put money into the struggling carmaker Nissan, after a report that said a Japanese group was seeking its investment sent shares soaring. Nissan’s stock market value jumped by 9.5% on Friday after claims that the former prime minister Yoshihide Suga was among those who want the US electric carmaker to become a strategic investor, possibly in exchange for Nissan’s American factories. Continue reading...

After becoming embroiled in scandal, formerly hot startup and Wall Street star had said it would likely run out of cash Troubled electric vehicle maker Nikola has filed for Chapter 11 bankruptcy protection months after saying that it would likely run out of cash early this year. Nikola was a hot startup and rising star on Wall Street before becoming enmeshed in scandal and its founder was convicted in 2022 for misleading investors about the Arizona company’s technology. Continue reading...

Demonstrations across the US against Musk’s ties to Trump highlight potential risks to Tesla’s reputation and sales Protesters gathered outside Tesla stores across the US on Saturday in response to Elon Musk’s efforts to shred government spending under the president, Donald Trump. Groups of demonstrators up to 100-strong gathered outside the electric carmaker’s stores in cities including New York, Seattle, Kansas City and across California. Organisers said the protests took place in dozens of locations. Continue reading...

Forecast for rising global electricity use likely to stoke fears of rising costs and stalled efforts to fight climate crisis The world’s electricity use will grow every year by more than the amount consumed annually by Japan because of a surge in electric transport, air conditioning and datacentres, according to the world’s energy watchdog. The International Energy Agency has raised its predictions for the world’s rising demand for electricity, pegging the growth at almost 4% a year until 2027, up from its previous forecast of 3.4% year. Continue reading...

Research shows move to electric vehicles may not be enough to enable pollution from cars to be eradicated Microscopic particles emitted from brake pads can be more toxic than those emitted in diesel vehicle exhaust, a study has found. This research shows that even with a move to electric vehicles, pollution from cars may not be able to be eradicated. Continue reading...

Both Japanese carmakers say they will continue to cooperate on electric vehicle technology Japan’s Nissan and Honda have said that their boards have voted to end talks over a merger that would have created a $60bn (£48bn) auto group, but added that both companies would continue to cooperate in electric vehicles. A merger would have spawned the world’s fourth-biggest carmaker by vehicle sales after Toyota, Volkswagen and Hyundai. Continue reading...

Industry says ‘pavement tax’ due to disparity in VAT rates is holding back transition away from fossil fuels Electric vehicle drivers will spend an extra £85m on UK tax when using public car chargers this year because of a disparity in VAT rates that the industry has said is holding back the transition away from fossil fuels. Home users of electricity pay just 5% VAT compared with the 20% rate that applies to businesses – including electric car charger operators. That means that people charging a car using public chargers face higher costs . Continue reading...

Secondhand market thrived as sales of new EVs also reached highest levels to date, SMMT trade body says Business live – latest updates A record number of used electric vehicles (EVs) were sold in the UK last year, as prices eased and the choice of cars widened, according to industry data. Total sales of used cars rose by 5.5% in 2024, as 7.6m vehicles changed hands, according to the Society of Motor Manufacturers and Traders (SMMT) . Sales rose in every month last year, as they did in 2023. Continue reading...

Heading off the environmental crisis and growing the economy are not at odds. They are two sides of a coin – as our politicians should realise If you care about the world we are handing on to future generations, the news on Thursday morning was dramatic. This January was the warmest on record ; temperatures in 18 of the past 19 months have exceeded pre-industrial averages by 1.5C. There can be no comfort that the epoch-changing climate crisis is 20 or even 10 years away. It is already upon us. Temperatures should have been moderated this winter by cooler air over the Pacific; it did not happen. Scientists are bewildered and scared. James Hansen, doyen of climate crisis research, believes that, unless this pace of deterioration is reversed, warm ocean waters flowing from the southern to the northern hemisphere will be trapped as vast sea currents cease. Sea levels will rise to impose a civilisational threat. It is a global imperative to dial down the rate of carbon emissions. Continu...

Highway agency ordered states to no longer spend funds allocated under Biden’s EV charging station program The Trump administration has ordered US states to suspend a $5bn electric vehicle charging station program in a further blow to the environmental movement since the president’s return to the White House. In a memo issued on Thursday to state transportation directors, the transportation department’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) ordered states not to spend any funds allocated to them under the Biden administration as part of the national electric vehicle infrastructure (NEVI) program. Continue reading...

Musk believes Tesla’s rivals are more vulnerable to Trump’s moves against electric vehicles Donald Trump ’s attempts to slash incentives for electric cars would cause sales of the vehicles to plummet, with this effort cheered on by a seemingly confounding supporter – Elon Musk , the billionaire chief executive of Tesla and erstwhile champion for action on the climate crisis . Trump has said that he “will revoke the electric vehicle mandate, saving our auto industry and keeping my sacred pledge to our great American auto workers”. Continue reading...

After one year of the zone, which is the second largest in England, GP visits for respiratory illnesses were down by a quarter Bradford’s clean air zone has reduced air pollution and saved the health service about £30,700 a month in its first year, a study has found . Low emission or clean air zones are often controversial, especially when they are first proposed. The expansion of London’s ultra-low emission zone became a major election issue, spawning disinformation , protest , vandalism and even the bombing of a traffic camera . Continue reading...