Suzuki electrifies model range in the UK

Industry News

The Swace, Swift Sport, Ignis and Jimny models are affected by the measure, and no new combustion vehicles will be introduced. As a result of this decision, the entire Suzuki range in the UK will be electrified by 2025 – the exact timing will depend on how quickly dealers can sell the stock of vehicles with combustion engines. After the end of pure combustion engines, Suzuki will still sell the full hybrid versions of the Swift small car and the Vitara and S-Cross crossovers – as well as the Across PHEV. In Germany, the Swace mid-size estate is also offered as a full hybrid, but this model is not mentioned in the British media reports. What is clear, however, is that Suzuki UK also intends to offer the brand’s first electric model in the future, which is due to be launched in 2025. The eVX concept car from 2023 provided a preview. As reported, half of Suzuki’s development budget is to be channelled into electric cars by 2030. “The departure of these models will make room for EV and enable us to compete during a period where our sales ratio of hybrid versus EV products will drive our business,” says Dale Wyatt, Director of Suzuki UK & Ireland. “We’re exiting the ICE era with a focus on SUV’s and new Swift, then starting in the second half of 2025 we’ll begin a period of EV growth.” suzuki.co.uk, gbnews.com

Fisker wants to sell off remaining Ocean stock

Industry News

Fisker wants to sell up to 3,231 Ocean to the US leasing company American Lease – for a total price of 46.25 million dollars. That is just over 14,300 dollars per vehicle on average. According to the documents submitted by the insolvent company to the US bankruptcy court in Delaware, the cheapest but partially damaged examples are even expected to change hands for just 2,500 dollars. American Lease, based in New York, intends to lease the vehicles to drivers of chauffeur services. As reported, all ride-sharing services in New York must have switched to purely electric vehicles by 2030. For American Lease, the Fisker Ocean would be just the thing at a bargain price. Owning and operating vehicles from an insolvent company that may soon be wound up is not without its problems, such as the future supply of spare parts. In the case of modern, software-driven vehicles such as the Fisker Ocean, there is an additional factor: without access to software and important servers, there is a risk of restrictions on the use of the vehicles – for which new customers once paid up to 70,000 dollars. This is because the Ocean will probably not only require mechanical repairs, but also work on the software. One example: As InsideEVs reports, the Ocean will need to connect to the Fisker cloud in order to use some functions. This is not just about pure software features (which would be understandable), but also about opening and closing the sunroof or the “dog window”, i.e. the retractable rear window in the boot lid. In the USA, the ‘Fisker Owners Association’ (FOA) was therefore founded in June. The group has already grown to 2,000 members and hopes to keep their vehicles on the road for as long as possible. The FOA has commissioned a law firm to represent the Ocean owners in Fisker’s insolvency proceedings. Among other things, the aim is to gain access to Fisker’s own diagnostic tool. insideevs.com, yahoo.com (both lease deal), insideevs.com (FOA)

EU Commission slightly adjusts China vehicle tariffs

Industry News

With the provisional special duties that have now been imposed, the actual duty rates differ slightly from those announced by the EU Commission in mid-June. According to the latest announcement from Brussels, 19.9 per cent special duty will be imposed on imports of electric Geely models, whereas 20.0 per cent had been announced. SAIC’s rate remains the highest but has been reduced by 0.5 percentage points to 37.6 per cent. There is no change at BYD with 17.4 per cent. Electric cars from other Chinese manufacturers that cooperated with the EU in the investigation will be subject to a special duty of 20.8 per cent. For companies that have not cooperated, the rate will be corrected to 37.6 per cent, similar to SAIC. The special duties – whether manufacturer-specific or in one of the two groups – are calculated in addition to the ten per cent import duty that applies anyway. The actual customs duty is therefore ten percentage points higher and thus amounts to a maximum of 47.6 per cent. ‘Provisional’ in the context of the special duties means that the duties are calculated but not yet collected for the time being. The provisional special duties will apply from 5 July for a maximum of four months until 5 November. By then at the latest, the EU member states must have adopted a decision on the definitive duties. If this decision is adopted, the special duties will apply for five years. And the amounts calculated since 5 July will then be collected retroactively. However, security deposits for the provisional duties must be lodged immediately. Final decision by 5 November It remains to be seen whether this will happen. On the one hand, German Chancellor Olaf Scholz recently intervened in the proceedings with his own proposal, while on the other, negotiations between Brussels and Beijing are once again underway. “Consultations with the Chinese government have intensified in recent weeks, following an exchange of views between Executive Vice-President Valdis Dombrovskis and Chinese Trade Minister Wang Wentao. Contacts continue at technical level with a view to reaching a WTO-compatible solution, which adequately addresses the concerns raised by the European Union,” the Commission announced. It also reiterates its own position: “Any negotiated outcome to the investigation must be effective in addressing the injurious forms of subsidisation identified.” The EU Commission presented the plans for the special tariffs in mid-June following a month-long anti-subsidy investigation. The investigation is said to have revealed that Chinese electric car manufacturers have unacceptable competitive advantages thanks to high subsidies from the government in Beijing and can therefore offer their electric cars in Europe more cheaply than domestic manufacturers. For this reason, the special duties were not levied across the board, but rather on a manufacturer-specific basis according to the subsidies identified in the investigation. This includes not only Chinese brands but pertains to all electric cars built in China. This means that non-Chinese manufacturers who produce electric cars there and sell them in Europe must also bear the special tariffs. These include Tesla with the Model 3 from Shanghai, BMW with the iX3 from Shenyang and Cupra with the Tavascan from Anhui. If the companies have cooperated, they will have to pay 20.8 per cent special duty. cnevpost.com, ec.europa.eu

Hyundai Motor Group to launch BaaS in South Korea this year

Industry News

The Hyundai Motor Group aims to launch a battery subscription service in South Korea in the second half of this year. According to a company official, it is currently in the service demonstration stage and will roll out utilisation plans upon completion. Additionally, the company faces a legal hurdle in introducing BaaS in the home market. The current ‘Automobile Management Act’ in South Korea bars companies from launching a battery subscription service. It states the battery is a product linked to the car and doesn’t allow automakers to separate its ownership. The government is already working on an amendment to give interested companies like HMG the green signal to launch BaaS. HMG will offer BaaS in commercially available vehicles like the Kia Niro Plus. The Purpose-Built Vehicle (PBV) based on the first-gen Kia Niro Electric uses a 150 kW/395 Nm motor and a 64 kWh battery pack and can travel 392 km on a full charge. It costs KRW 46 million (approx. €31,000) onwards and its price includes a 10-year/200,000 km warranty for the high-voltage battery pack. The traction battery pack is the most valuable single component of an EV. In South Korea, it accounts for about 40% of the cost of an electric car worth KRW 50 million (approx. €33,500). Excluding the battery’s full cost can lead to a significantly lower upfront retail price, making them significantly more affordable. Battery swapping will give customers more flexibility, as they can upgrade to a more advanced battery pack when they need more range or downgrade when they don’t need as much range and want to save more. businesspost.co.kr (in Korea), bloomberg.com (paywall)

Ferrari plans battery swap programme for plug-in hybrids

Industry News

Vehicles from Ferraris are not just cars, but also financial investments on wheels. And even if plug-in hybrids largely run on their combustion engine, the battery is an expensive and important component. Due to its performance decreases over time, not only does the electric range of the vehicle decrease, but the vehicle may also no longer be able to achieve the specified drive power – if the ageing battery can no longer supply enough energy to the electric motor: Not exactly a good prospect for the residual value of such an expensive car. With the new battery replacement programme, Ferrari is now offering a kind of warranty extension that regulates the replacement of the batteries at fixed intervals. The “Warranty Extension Hybrid Programme” officially extends the current five-year warranty to eight years. In the event of a problem, Ferrari will replace the battery at no extra cost. The additional “Power Hybrid Programme” extends the warranty on all important drive components (including the battery) to a total of 16 years after these eight years of the first warranty extension. This m The two programmes include the SF90 Stradale models, the associated SF90 Spider convertible, the two sports versions SD90 XX Stadale and SF90 XX Spider as well as the 296 GTB and 296 GTS, which are built in significantly larger numbers. It is not yet known whether Ferrari will also extend the range to its first electric model, which is due to be launched next year. Incidentally, the battery cells for the plug-in hybrids and the electric Ferrari come from SK On. autonews.com, wardsauto.com

CTEK and APCOA join forces on electric car charging in UK car parks

Industry News

CTEK will be installing an undisclosed number of Chargestorm Connected 3 (CC3) charging stations in APCOA car parks. The CC3 chargers are ready for bidirectional charging in line with the ISO 15118 standard, which also enables drivers to feed energy back into the grid for load balancing if suitable technology is installed in the vehicle and the grid utility is similarly technologically prepared. CTEK specialises in load-balancing capabilities for grids and is ensuring that the technology it installs is future-proof. The chargers are also similarly Plug&Charge ready, ensuring interoperability and secure transactions between the vehicle and the charger. The charging power of the stations is not enormous, delivering up to 22kW, as is suitable for charging while the car is parked anyway. The CTEK CC3 charging stations support the latest Open Charge Point Protocol, ensuring interoperability with various systems. The initial implementation phase in this new cooperation includes installations in car parks managed by Hillingdon Council in West London and 37 railway station car parks operated by APCOA for Govia Thameslink Railway (GTR). This will mark a continuation of APCOA’s focus on electric car charging in UK car parks. Currently, APCOA car parks in the UK already feature over 1000 EV charge points, with an additional 300+ installations planned for this year. The company says that existing charge points serve important destinations, which include rail stations, hospitals, educational institutions, hospitality venues, retail centres, local government sites, and airports. Just over a year ago, the company gave the green light for 500 chargers in UK car parks. Both companies are proactively embracing the latest technologies to reduce emissions as well as city traffic. APCOA points out that it decreases the volume of logistics traffic and vehicles searching for parking for which it also utilises its digital services and intelligent Traffic Management System. Via its open digital platform, APCOA Connect, the company also connects on-street and off-street car parks with owners, partners, customers and their vehicles. APCOA is using this technology to transform its car parks into urban hubs that create the physical and digital infrastructure for mobility, logistics and EV charging. CTEK offers electric vehicle solutions range from individual chargers, to larger corporate and commercial installations with multiple charging stations that require grid load balancing (hence the bidirectional charging capability) and integrate with monitoring and payment equipment. In 2020, CTEK and Brighton-based EVC announced a new partnership for CTEK to supply 100,000 chargers. ctek.com

Atlante establishes JV to build 500 HPC stations in France

Industry News

Atlante and Banque des Territoires intend to provide the joint venture, named Alpis, with 40 million euros in equity. The ownership ratio is to be 51 to 49 per cent. Atlante will therefore become a narrow majority shareholder. The deal brings together a charging service provider and a financial specialist. The partners have not yet provided much information about the planned charging network itself. Thanks to battery-buffered fast chargers, coverage is expected to be high and the tariff favourable – “even in areas with limited energy availability and grid limits”, according to an accompanying press release. Both partners are already quite familiar. Banque des Territoires recently served the EU as a realisation partner for a funding round of the Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Facility (AFIF). It provided Atlante with 49.9 million euros for the construction of fast-charging stations in Italy, France, Spain and Portugal. In total, Atlante plans to build 5,000 fast-charging points in these countries by 2025 and over 35,000 by 2030. The AFIR stipulates that a charging station must be installed at least every 60 kilometres on the European Union’s core road network and every 100 kilometres on the trans-European network. In addition, Atlante wants to install charging stations in car parks and in strategic urban areas. Jacques Galvani, CEO of Atlante France, comments: “This collaboration with Banque des Territoires fits perfectly with Atlante’s DNA and objectives: to make 100% green electric mobility accessible to all, across the whole territory. We hope that the technological innovations that Atlante is pioneering in Europe, particularly in terms of the synergy between fast charging, energy storage and solar energy production, will benefit all drivers of electric vehicles and facilitate the transition to decarbonised mobility.” “We are very proud to contribute, through our investment and our role as an implementation partner of the European CEF-T-AFIF mechanism, to the emergence of a leader in electric charging in France and, more broadly, in Southern Europe,” said Pierre Aubouin, Director of Infrastructure and Mobility at the Investment Directorate of Banque des Territoires. “By partnering with Atlante, a qualified, innovative, and committed partner in various market segments across the territory, we are strengthening our support for decarbonized mobility and reaffirming our commitment to ecological transformation.” Atlante has recently signed several deals to develop charging infrastructure, for example with Vinci Autoroutes, Groupe Duval, Autostrade per l’Italia and Emil Frey. In the context of the cooperation with Vinci Autoroutes, the company is now also reporting initial results: According to the company, 25 fast charging stations have been inaugurated at the Saint-Léger Ouest service area on the A10 motorway. Another new development is that Atlante has joined the Plugsurfing network. This gives customers of the network roaming access to Atlante charging stations via the e-clearing.net platform. atlante.energy (PDF), businesswire.com (Saint-Léger), x.com (Plugsurfing)

Stellantis develops battery cells for cheaper electric cars with CEA

Industry News

The CEA is France’s commissioner for nuclear energy and alternative energies. Stellantis is drawing on the expertise of the research institute to develop cells for “affordable next-generation electric vehicles”. The technology is to be provided to its “gigafactories, which will be operated in joint ventures”. This is the decisive hint in the car manufacturer’s announcement that the cooperation is related to the recently announced stops at ACC. The battery cell joint venture between Stellantis, Mercedes-Benz and TotalEnergies – the full name is Automotive Cells Company – is currently pausing construction work on its battery cell plants in Kaiserslautern and Termoli, Italy. This is in order to switch from its nickel-based cell chemistry to more cost-effective battery technologies. At the beginning of June, the declining demand for electric vehicles was cited as the reason for the cutback. The company therefore apparently wants to research and develop more cost-effective batteries in order to supply cheaper electric vehicles. Exactly what will happen in Kaiserslautern and Termoli will be specified at the end of 2024 or the beginning of 2025. It is not yet known to what extent the reorientation phase at ACC will also affect the third factory in France. The first production block with 13.4 GWh is currently being ramped up there. A further two blocks were previously planned in order to reach 40 GWh. The joint venture is currently focussing solely on NMC battery cells (nickel-manganese-cobalt). Competitor Renault has also pursued an NMC-only strategy to date, but according to the latest information is now also opening up to the more favourable LFP technology. The cell chemistry at the centre of the Stellantis-CEA cooperation is not mentioned. There is only talk of “disruptive cell chemistries”, which does not necessarily speak in favour of LFP technology, which is already quite common. The joint research programme includes the development of “advanced technology cells with higher performance, a longer lifespan and a lower carbon footprint at competitive costs”, according to the Stellantis press release. The programme will also focus on life cycle assessment and the development and validation of battery cells. “We know that battery technology is poised for change. While we don’t know exactly how it will change, we are committed to be at the forefront of this transformation. Internally, we are working around the clock placing multiple bets and exploring various technologies,” says Ned Curic, Stellantis Chief Engineering and Technology Officer. At the same time, the company is working closely with tech start-ups, laboratories, universities and the world’s most renowned research institutions such as the CEA. “We believe that this collaboration will accelerate the arrival of disruptive battery cell technology, supporting our mission to offer clean, safe and affordable mobility to our customers.” Philippe Stohr, Head of Energy at CEA, speaks of an ambitious, multi-year R&D programme for battery cells. “This exciting project makes the best use of more than 25 years of expertise in the field of Li-ion batteries at CEA to the benefit of one of the major automotive actors in the competitive race for electrical mobility. Our challenge is to speed up design and fabrication and to allow deep understanding of the most advanced cells technologies by sharing our expertise, skills and vision.” media.stellantis.com

BYD opens its first Southeast Asian auto plant in Thailand

Industry News

BYD has built its Thai factory inside the WHA Rayong 36 industrial estate in Nikhom Phatthana District (Rayong Province). The new plant covers an area of more than 948,000 square metres and has an annual production capacity of 150,000 units. The company built the new plant to manufacture right-hand drive (RHD) models for domestic sales and exports to other ASEAN markets. The Chinese automaker already sells cars in other RHD member states of the union – Brunei, Indonesia, Malaysia, and Singapore. The first car BYD made at its new auto plant was the Dolphin electric hatchback. Along with the rollout of the first unit in Thailand, it achieved a new production milestone of 8 million new energy vehicles. The company also makes the Atto 3 electric SUV and Seal electric sedan there. In the future, the Chinese automaker will also produce the Sealion 6 (Seal U) plug-in hybrid SUV at the Thai factory. BYD markets its passenger vehicles in Thailand through Rever Automotive, which serves as its distributor and after-sales service provider. In other recent news, the Thai government plans to investigate the Chinese automaker through the Consumer Protection Board after it caught the local BYD arm heavily discounting the Dolphin. In April, Rever Automotive lured customers by slashing ฿40,000 (€1,012) off the Dolphin’s price, and the very next day after ending that campaign, it rolled out a significantly higher discount of ฿100,000 (€2,530). This month, the company is offering even bigger reductions of ฿140,000-160,000 (€3,542-4,048). This malpractice results in buyer’s remorse and also affects the resale value of their cars. Excluding discounts, it has priced the small hatchback at ฿699,990 (€17,711) in a ‘Standard Range’ variant and ฿859,999 (€21,759) in an ‘Extended Range’ variant. On the other side of the planet, for the new BYD production in Uzbekistan, BYD has entered into a cooperation agreement with the Uzbek government to promote sustainable mobility. At the opening of the plant in Jizzakh in the south of the country, Wang said that the start of series production in Uzbekistan would “accelerate the green transformation of the local transport system”. BYD is building the Song Plus DM-i and Chazor DM-i plug-in hybrids in Jizzakh. The Song Plus is based on BYD’s e-Platform 3.0 and is one of the best-selling models in the Ocean series, at least in China, as the CN EV Post writes. Production in Uzbekistan is carried out via a joint venture with UzAuto, the country’s only car manufacturer to date. In the first phase, up to 50,000 vehicles will be built in Uzbekistan per year, according to BYD. The aim is to meet demand in the country. However, BYD is not entirely without experience: before the plant was built, BYD sold vehicles imported from China in the country. ev.iphonemod.net, bangkokpost.com, nationthailand.com, cnevpost.com (Uzbekistan)

Polestar widens Q1 losses

Industry News

With 7,200 vehicles delivered in the first quarter, Polestar generated sales of 345.3 million dollars. At the start of 2023 – back then with the Polestar 2 as the only model – the figure was USD 543.4 million, although this figure has since been adjusted (more on this in a moment). Instead of a small gross profit, the balance sheet for Q1 2024 shows a gross loss of 30.8 million US dollars. If you deduct the (fairly constant) “selling, general and administrative expenses” and research and development expenses from this and add other operating income, the operating loss amounts to USD 231.7 million. A year ago it was “only” 219.9 million dollars. Polestar explains the 36 per cent or 198.1 million dollar drop in turnover with lower global vehicle sales, higher discounts as a result of inventory management measures and “complexities in connection with revenue recognition for car sales to Chinese joint ventures”. The Swedish company can credit the reduced selling and administrative expenses as a success, as “active cost management measures offset the costs of promotional activities related to commercial campaigns and events for the global launch of Polestar 3 and Polestar 4”. However, the “active cost management measures” also include the massive job cuts in 2023. What seems worrying in this phase of falling deliveries: Polestar has invested almost 24 million dollars less in research and development. However, the company emphasises that it is “continuing to invest in future vehicles and technologies”. The lower development expenditure is said to be a result of higher capitalisation and also write-downs on the Polestar 2 IPs in stock. Polestar is currently in a difficult situation: demand for the brand’s high-priced electric cars has not developed as expected (despite regular updates for the Polestar 2). As a result, the brand has produced expensive stocks that can now only be reduced with discounts. And promising models such as the Polestar 3 have been delayed for a long time. There are also internal management problems: deficiencies have been identified in previous balance sheets, which is why these had to be revised and corrected. Polestar only presented its financial figures for the full year 2023 (loss of 1.17 billion dollars) a few days ago. And the presentation of the Q1 figures at the beginning of July is also unusually late – this publication had also been postponed. The publication of the Q1 business figures therefore now coincides with the announcement of deliveries in the second quarter. From April to June, Polestar delivered around 13,000 vehicles, around 80 per cent more than in Q1. However, with 20,200 vehicles in the first half of the year, the brand has not yet reached a growth trajectory for the year as a whole: over 56,000 vehicles were delivered in 2023. In the coming months, Polestar is hoping for a further boost from the Polestar 3 and, in the long term, more from the Polestar 4, production of which is already underway in China. However, this would mean that the vehicle would be affected by the announced tariffs in the USA and the EU. From the second half of 2025, the Polestar 4 will also be built in South Korea – and can then be sold much more cheaply in the USA and Europe. Production of the Polestar 3 in South Carolina is scheduled to start at the end of the summer – the SUV has already been in production in China since February. “We have strong momentum as we enter the second half of the year. Our two new SUV’s have received stellar reviews from the global media and first test drive slots were booked out and additional slots are filling up fast,” says Polestar CEO Thomas Ingenlath. “Our retail sales model shift is accelerating in Europe and we have strengthened our sales management team.” poelstar.com