Charged Magazine

Battery company Zenlabs Energy has received a $4.8-million contract from the US Advanced Battery Consortium (USABC) to develop low-cost, fast-charging batteries. The goal of the contract is to develop optimized cell designs and a scalable pre-Li method for high-capacity silicon oxide anodes. The 50 percent share contract funds a 30-month …read more

YASA,
a UK manufacturer of axial-flux electric motors, has announced availability of
the first in a new series of motor controllers for EVs and PHEVs.

The Si400 controller delivers 200 kVA from a 5-liter package. The 12.8 lb controller features thermal management, including dielectric oil cooling, and is compatible with induction, permanent magnet …read more

Sacramento County, California will award up to $15.5 million for businesses and nonprofits to install commercial-grade Level 2 chargers and high-powered DC fast chargers. The Sacramento County Incentive Project is led by the California Electric Vehicle Infrastructure Project (CALeVIP).

CALeVIP is accepting applications for DC fast charger installation rebates of …read more

Bel Power Solutions, a manufacturer of power management devices, is now manufacturing a 25 kW on-board battery charger for industrial, construction, and mining applications. The charger, known as the BCN25-700-8, converts 3-phase AC voltage to DC voltage. It measures 20.63” x 13.39” x 3.31” and weighs 42.77 pounds. The enclosure …read more

Tesla and Panasonic have suspended plans to expand the capacity of Gigafactory 1, Nikkei reported. The two companies had planned to increase capacity at the Nevada plant by about 50 percent by 2020, but financial problems have forced them to put those plans on hold, the newspaper said.

Panasonic will “study …read more

The University of Georgia has ordered 20 Proterra Catalyst E2 buses. A $10-million grant awarded to the university by Georgia’s State Road and Tollway Authority made the purchase possible.
The Catalyst E2 features two electric motors, 510 horsepower and 24.6 MPGe.
Catalyst buses have previously been ordered by Florida State University, University …read more

Since 2016, German parts maker ZF has supplied technology for French EV maker Venturi’s team in the FIA Formula E racing series.
ZF has developed an electric drive for the team, which includes a 250 kW electric motor with a specially designed transmission ratio and power electronics. ZF says this drive …read more

A new solution from Fortum, a Finnish clean-energy company, increases the amount of material in Li-ion batteries that can be recycled to more than 80%, according to the company. The current EU-mandated recycling rate is only 50% of the total weight of the battery.
First the company makes the used batteries …read more

Fiat Chrysler (FCA) has reached a deal with Tesla to count the California carmaker’s EVs as part of the FCA fleet in order to avoid paying fines for violating new European Union emissions rules. The Financial Times reported that the deal is worth “hundreds of millions of euros.”
More stringent emissions …read more

Toyota will grant royalty-free licenses on 23,740 patents it holds for hybrid technologies. For a fee, the company will also provide technical support to manufacturers that use Toyota’s tech, including motors, batteries, power control units and system controls.
Since 2015, Toyota has offered 5,680 patents related its fuel cell EVs. The …read more