Author: Benedict Mcdaniel

Canadian electric vehicle (EV) charging infrastructure manufacturer Flo will cut 80 jobs across North America and shut down one of its three assembly plants, citing rising trade tensions and fluctuating policy support as key challenges to its long-term strategy. The company, which was founded in 2009 in Quebec City, expanded operations in 2021 with a facility in Shawinigan and began constructing a U.S. plant in 2022. The expansion was supported by government subsidies in both Canada and the United States. However, shifting political dynamics and the reduction of such incentives have led the company to adopt a more cautious approach.…

Italian electric motorbike manufacturer Energica, which filed for insolvency in October 2024, may soon find a lifeline as part of its ongoing legal sales process. The company announced that it has received a formal offer with a “significant deposit” from investors based in Singapore. The bid marks a potential turning point for Energica, which had previously been owned by U.S.-based Ideanomics—also facing financial strain. The Italian company said the new investors are “enthusiasts that believe in, and share the common values of Energica,” according to a statement posted on LinkedIn. If the transaction goes through, the Singaporean investors plan to…

Steyr Automotive has signed a contract manufacturing agreement with Chinese electric truck maker SuperPanther, marking the latter’s entry into the European market. The Austrian company will produce battery-electric trucks at its facility in Steyr, with both firms aiming to meet growing demand for zero-emission heavy-duty transport across the region. The collaboration was initially previewed at the IAA Transportation show last year, where the two companies unveiled the eTopas 600, an electric tractor unit tailored for European logistics needs. The truck features LFP battery cells with a total capacity of 621 kilowatt-hours, enabling a driving range of up to 500 kilometres…

Tesla has slashed the price of its Model Y Long Range All-Wheel Drive by CAD 20,000 in Canada, bringing it back to pre-tariff levels amid signs the automaker has begun sourcing the vehicle from its German factory in Grünheide rather than from the United States. The Model Y is now listed at CAD 64,990 (approximately €40,600) on Tesla Canada’s configurator, a sharp drop from the CAD 84,990 price that had been in effect since April following the imposition of new Canadian import tariffs. The timing and scale of the price cut suggest a strategic shift in supply chains to avoid…

Xiaomi Auto has reached a major production milestone, delivering 300,000 vehicles in China just 15 months after entering the market, the company said. The figure marks a sharp rise in delivery pace as the company continues expanding its electric vehicle (EV) lineup and manufacturing capacity. The announcement comes as Xiaomi Auto, the automotive division of Chinese tech giant Xiaomi founded by chairman Lei Jun in 2021, pushes forward with its EV strategy. Its debut model, the SU7 electric sedan, launched in March 2024, quickly gained popularity, helping drive strong sales. In February 2025, the company added the SU7 Ultra sports…

Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD said on Wednesday it will assume full responsibility for any losses incurred by users of its Level 4 (L4) intelligent parking feature in China, marking a first-of-its-kind commitment in the country’s auto industry. The pledge applies to all BYD vehicles equipped with its “God’s Eye” intelligent driving system and reflects the company’s confidence in its autonomous parking technology. “In the Chinese market, we assume full responsibility for the safety and losses of all users of vehicles equipped with God’s Eye in intelligent parking scenarios,” BYD said in a post on Weibo. Level 4 autonomous driving,…

Dutch electric vehicle charging operator Allego has launched its “Summer Pass 2025” programme, offering a 30% discount on ad-hoc prices at more than 5,000 of its own DC fast-charging stations and selected partner locations across Europe. The seasonal promotion is available until Sept. 30 and requires a paid subscription through a dedicated web portal. The Summer Pass is open to EV users residing in 15 European countries, including Germany, France, the United Kingdom, and several Nordic and Baltic states. Customers must subscribe before Sept. 1 to benefit from the discount, which applies exclusively to Allego-operated direct current (DC) and high-power…

Octopus Energy and Chinese electric vehicle manufacturer BYD have introduced the UK’s first fully integrated vehicle-to-grid (V2G) bundle, offering customers a bidirectional BYD Dolphin electric car, smart charging hardware, and a dynamic energy tariff. The package, launched under the name ‘Power Pack Bundle’, is priced at just under £300 per month and aims to transform electric vehicles into flexible energy assets for the power grid. The bundle includes a leased BYD Dolphin, Zaptec Pro bidirectional charger installation, and access to Octopus Energy’s smart V2G tariff via its Kraken energy platform. When used as recommended — plugged in at least 20…

The U.S. National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA) has sent Ford Motor Co a formal request for extensive information about its BlueCruise hands-free driver-assistance system, marking a significant step in an ongoing investigation into two fatal crashes. The letter, dated June 18, comes from the NHTSA’s Office of Defects Investigation (ODI) and includes 25 detailed questions. These range from the identification of all Ford vehicles equipped with BlueCruise to documentation related to software changes, crash data, internal assessments, and technical details about the system’s ability to detect hazards, particularly stationary vehicles. The probe was initiated in April 2024 after two…

South Korea’s LG Energy Solution (LGES) and Japan’s Toyota Tsusho have launched a joint venture to bolster battery recycling infrastructure in the United States, as global automakers work to secure localized, circular supply chains for electric vehicles. The venture, named Green Metals Battery Innovations, will establish its first facility in North Carolina. Scheduled to begin operations in 2026, the plant will have the capacity to process up to 13,500 tons of battery scrap annually—equivalent to over 40,000 EV battery packs—by recovering black mass, a material rich in valuable elements such as lithium, nickel, cobalt, and manganese. “This joint venture will…

VoltAero, a French aviation startup specializing in hybrid-electric aircraft, has introduced the series production version of its Cassio 330 regional plane at the 2025 Paris Air Show in Le Bourget. Unlike many next-generation air mobility projects that rely on vertical take-off and landing (eVTOL) systems, the Cassio 330 is designed for conventional runways, offering a more practical and immediate low-emission solution for regional air traffic. Significant technical refinements have been made to the Cassio 330’s propulsion and airframe design. The aircraft now uses a series hybrid configuration, featuring two Safran ENGINeUS electric motors mounted as rear fuselage pushers, paired with…

Three major Plug & Charge network operators—Hubject, Gireve, and Irdeto—have announced a strategic partnership aimed at achieving interoperability between their platforms, enabling electric vehicle (EV) drivers to access a wider range of Plug & Charge stations without additional registrations. The agreement will allow the companies to integrate their platforms via application programming interfaces (APIs), granting approximately four million Plug & Charge-capable EVs immediate access to thousands of additional charging points worldwide. The move is expected to streamline the charging process for users by allowing them to plug in, initiate charging, and receive billing automatically—without the need for cards or RFID…