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The Electric

By Steve LeVine

The Electric is a publication from Steve LeVine and The Information focused on crucial industries for the energy transition, including next-generation batteries, electric vehicles and autonomous driving. The newsletter is only for subscribers of The Information.

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Recent Editions

Battery developer Enovix has replaced almost all its senior managers as part of an effort to right itself. Photo: Shutterstock
The Electric

The Electric: As 2024 Nears, Are Next-Gen Battery Companies on the Verge of a Culling?

By Steve LeVine · Dec 18, 2023 4:30am PST
In the 1920s, more than 700 U.S. manufacturers vied in a brutal competition to sell a new product—electric washing machines. Cheap electricity had reached urban homes, and American households snapped up the labor-saving washers, which quickly became ubiquitous. But just five U.S. washing machine manufacturers survive. It’s the same with... In the 1920s, more than 700 U.S. manufacturers vied in a brutal competition to sell a new product...
In February, Ford CEO Jim Farley announced the company would make inexpensive iron-based batteries in Marshall, MI. But the batteries would use Chinese technology, igniting criticism. Photo: Bill Pugliano/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: Five Proposed Western Gigafactories Are Now Unlikely to Be Built

By Steve LeVine · Dec 14, 2023 4:30am PST
In September, Ford halted construction of a $3.5 billion gigafactory meant to produce the batteries to power 2 million electric vehicles a year, explaining that it was reassessing the economics of the plant. As a result, we lowered our assessment of the Marshall, Mich., plant’s likelihood of being built; in our Gigafactory Database, we listed... In September, Ford halted construction of a $3.5 billion gigafactory meant to produce the...
Battery production in China's Jiangxi province, where lithium is mined from lepidolite. Photo: by VCG/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: Plunging Lithium Prices Could Herald Cheaper EVs

By Steve LeVine · Dec 11, 2023 4:30am PST
In a May 2022 note titled, “The End of the Beginning,” Goldman Sachs analyst Nicholas Snowdon said high lithium prices had ignited a surge of new production in Australia, Chile and China, creating a coming flood of supplies that would knock the metal’s price into a sharp decline. From $65 a kilogram at the time, he predicted lithium would fall... In a May 2022 note titled, “The End of the Beginning,” Goldman Sachs analyst Nicholas Snowdon...
Mujeeb Ijaz, who stepped down as CEO of Our Next Energy. Photo: Courtesy ONE.
The Electric: Our Next Energy CEO’s Demotion Followed Investor Withdrawal
By Steve LeVine · Dec 10, 2023 3:38pm PST · 1 comment
Mujeeb Ijaz, who stepped down as CEO of Our Next Energy. Photo: Courtesy ONE.
The Electric

The Electric: Our Next Energy CEO’s Demotion Followed Investor Withdrawal

By Steve LeVine · Dec 10, 2023 3:38pm PST · 1 comment
The surprising demotion Sunday of the CEO of next-generation battery developer Our Next Energy was triggered by the withdrawal of a $100 million investment by a U.K. firm, according to people familiar with the situation. The surprising demotion Sunday of the CEO of next-generation battery developer Our Next Energy...
Rivian's R1T electric pickup. Photo: Bing Guan/Bloomberg/Getty
The Electric

Exclusive from The Electric: Rivian Becomes the Latest to Lay Off Battery Workers

By Steve LeVine · Dec 7, 2023 9:22pm PST · 1 comment
Electric vehicle manufacturer Rivian this week laid off about 20 members of its long-range battery cell development team including Victor Prajapati, the company’s lead cell engineer and a former senior manager at Tesla, according to people familiar with the matter. It is the latest in a surge of battery and electric vehicle industry cutbacks as... Electric vehicle manufacturer Rivian this week laid off about 20 members of its long-range...
The Electric Newsletter
An exclusive publication covering the nascent battery and electric vehicle revolutions.
By providing your email, you agree to The Information’s Privacy Policy
Protesters at a Green Charter Township, MI, board meeting. Photo: Screenshot via YouTube.
The Electric

The Electric: A Small Michigan Town Threatens Gotion’s U.S. Battery Plans

By Steve LeVine · Dec 7, 2023 4:30am PST
For a year or two, Chinese auto and battery companies have circled North America in search of an opening to sell their products in the U.S.—the world’s second-largest car market, but one hostile to goods made in China, the U.S.’s chief geopolitical rival. None of the Chinese companies, however, has been as bold as battery developer Gotion,... For a year or two, Chinese auto and battery companies have circled North America in search of an...
A CATL battery production plant in Shanghai, China. Photo: Qilai Shen/Bloomberg/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: How to Use Chinese Battery Material in US EVs

By Steve LeVine · Dec 4, 2023 4:30am PST
The Biden administration has issued rules intended to keep Chinese battery materials out of U.S. vehicles, undermine China’s dominance of the global battery supply and jump-start a competing U.S. battery industry. But the administration left a narrow pathway for automakers such as Ford to employ Chinese battery technology in their electric... The Biden administration has issued rules intended to keep Chinese battery materials out of U.S....
SK On's battery gigafactory in Commerce, GA. Photo: Elijah Nouvelage/Bloomberg/Getty
The Electric: A Layoff Surge in EV Batteries
By Steve LeVine · Nov 30, 2023 4:30am PST
SK On's battery gigafactory in Commerce, GA. Photo: Elijah Nouvelage/Bloomberg/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: A Layoff Surge in EV Batteries

By Steve LeVine · Nov 30, 2023 4:30am PST
Traditional and next-generation electric vehicle battery companies have laid off hundreds of employees in the U.S. and Europe in the last couple of weeks, a symptom of a new industry malaise triggered by lower-than-expected EV sales growth. The layoffs are part of a broad move by the battery makers to conserve cash as costs have soared and... Traditional and next-generation electric vehicle battery companies have laid off hundreds of...
Ford's flagship electric Mustang Mach-E SUV. Photo: Alex Wong/Getty Images
The Electric

The Electric: In 2024, a New Reality for the EV and Battery Industries

By Steve LeVine · Nov 27, 2023 4:30am PST
For automakers, 2023 began with chronic shortages and soaring prices of key metals used in batteries. Electric vehicles were in short supply and consumers seemed prepared to buy any EV they could get their hands on almost regardless of the price.The year could hardly be ending more differently: The world is unexpectedly awash in battery-grade... For automakers, 2023 began with chronic shortages and soaring prices of key metals used in...
At Freyr's pilot plant in Mo i Rana, Norway. Photo: Courtesy Freyr
The Electric

The Electric: Freyr Takes Drastic Action After Trouble Scaling Up 24M’s Battery

By Steve LeVine · Nov 20, 2023 4:30am PST
A surprising manufacturing setback by Freyr Battery has more than halved its share price and struck a blow at the reputation of 24M Technologies, a Massachusetts Institute of Technology spinoff that licenses a novel battery that Freyr has planned to manufacture in gigafactories in Norway and Georgia. A surprising manufacturing setback by Freyr Battery has more than halved its share price and...
The Electric Newsletter
An exclusive publication covering the nascent battery and electric vehicle revolutions.
By providing your email, you agree to The Information’s Privacy Policy
ExxonMobil's Dan Amman. Courtesy: ExxonMobil
The Electric

The Electric: After GM and Cruise, Dan Ammann’s New Adventure—Big-Time Lithium Mining

By Steve LeVine · Nov 16, 2023 4:30am PST
Two years after abruptly exiting robotaxi developer Cruise, Dan Ammann is onto a new big thing—large-scale lithium mining. His employer is oil behemoth ExxonMobil, which—if Ammann is successful in an Arkansas drilling operation he announced this week—is poised to become a global player in lithium just as it is today in oil, gas and chemicals. Two years after abruptly exiting robotaxi developer Cruise, Dan Ammann is onto a new big thing—...
Ijaz, at company headquarters. Photo: Courtesy ONE
The Electric: Raising $1 Billion to Make Batteries in the U.S.—An Afternoon With Our Next Energy CEO Mujeeb Ijaz
By Steve LeVine · Nov 13, 2023 4:30am PST
Ijaz, at company headquarters. Photo: Courtesy ONE
The Electric

The Electric: Raising $1 Billion to Make Batteries in the U.S.—An Afternoon With Our Next Energy CEO Mujeeb Ijaz

By Steve LeVine · Nov 13, 2023 4:30am PST
In the 2000s, Mujeeb Ijaz—managing a team that made experimental electric vehicles for Ford—designed a sedan that would operate on two batteries rather than just one, like most EVs even today. One battery would be conventional lithium-ion, and the other a hydrogen fuel cell. The magic of the approach was that the car—a Ford Focus—could deliver... In the 2000s, Mujeeb Ijaz—managing a team that made experimental electric vehicles for Ford—...
Ford Executive Chair Bill Ford at the February 2023 announcement of a new $3.5 billion battery plant that has since been put on hold. Photo: Bill Pugliano/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: UAW Battery Workers Will Earn Lower Pay Than Auto Workers

By Steve LeVine · Nov 9, 2023 4:30am PST
The United Auto Workers union won big pay raises for its members in recent negotiations with Detroit’s Big Three, but the accord will leave battery factory employees earning substantially less than co-workers who produce cars. The United Auto Workers union won big pay raises for its members in recent negotiations with...
24M CEO Naoki Ota. Photo: Courtesy 24M.
The Electric

The Electric: 24M Fires a Shot Across the Bow of the Battery Industry

By Steve LeVine · Nov 6, 2023 4:30am PST
Massachusetts-based battery developer 24M Technologies claims it has significantly increased how tightly electrodes can be stacked in a battery pack, improving energy density and electric vehicle driving range. If 24M’s assertions are true, its new battery could outperform groundbreaking, roughly similar batteries made by China’s Byd and... Massachusetts-based battery developer 24M Technologies claims it has significantly increased how...
UAW President Shawn Fain. Photo: John J. Kim/Tribune News Service/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: The Labor Fight Moves to Nonunion Plants

By Steve LeVine · Nov 2, 2023 4:30am PDT
Moving fast with a pay bump for its U.S. employees and a new $8 billion investment in batteries, Toyota has offered a sign of how the next stage of the fight over auto industry pay and job security will play out: with a fierce struggle in dozens of nonunion electric vehicle and battery plants across the U.S. Moving fast with a pay bump for its U.S. employees and a new $8 billion investment in batteries,...
The Electric Newsletter
An exclusive publication covering the nascent battery and electric vehicle revolutions.
By providing your email, you agree to The Information’s Privacy Policy
Biden praised GM CEO Mary Barra as the country's EV leader, even as the company badly trailed Tesla. Photo: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty
The Electric: From Big Auto to Big Oil, a Big Bet on a Long Tail for Combustion
By Steve LeVine · Oct 30, 2023 4:30am PDT
Biden praised GM CEO Mary Barra as the country's EV leader, even as the company badly trailed Tesla. Photo: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: From Big Auto to Big Oil, a Big Bet on a Long Tail for Combustion

By Steve LeVine · Oct 30, 2023 4:30am PDT
For more than two years, Ford, General Motors and Volkswagen have followed a similar script: In just a few years, each company claimed, it would puncture Tesla’s dominance of electric vehicle sales and possibly overtake the industry leader. Now, though, all three have ripped up their talking points—and turned back the clock: In place of more... For more than two years, Ford, General Motors and Volkswagen have followed a similar script: In...
Graphite mining in Quebec, Canada. Photo:
The Electric

The Electric: In Batteries, China Owns the 2020s—and Possibly the 2030s, Too

By Steve LeVine · Oct 26, 2023 4:30am PDT
A U.S. official said a new Chinese restriction on the export of graphite is a warning that Beijing could also crack down on other materials vital to the electric vehicle industry. Giulia Siccardo, director of the U.S. Department of Energy’s office of manufacturing and energy supply chains, said U.S. auto companies should rethink their reliance... A U.S. official said a new Chinese restriction on the export of graphite is a warning that...
In 2021, SES AI founder Qichao Hu unveils the company's gigantic 107 ampere-hour cell. Photo: Courtesy SES AI
The Electric

The Electric: Bunkers, Blasts and Production Hell—An Afternoon With SES AI Founder Qichao Hu

By Steve LeVine · Oct 23, 2023 4:30am PDT
In 2021, Qichao Hu began planning a pilot factory in South Korea to produce next-generation electric vehicle batteries for the startup he founded, SES AI, when a debate erupted among his staff scientists: Should the plant include explosion-proof bunkers? Some of the scientists argued that such fortifications were a waste of money—ordinarily the... In 2021, Qichao Hu began planning a pilot factory in South Korea to produce next-generation...
On Battery Day in 2020, Musk, right, and deputy Drew Baglino triggered a race to eliminate wet electrode production. Photo: Courtesy Tesla
The Electric

Exclusive From The Electric: The Lead Inventor of Dry Electrode Coating Exits Tesla for a Startup

By Steve LeVine · Oct 19, 2023 4:30am PDT
Hieu Duong, lead inventor of a process touted by Tesla CEO Elon Musk as a way to sharply cut the carmaker’s battery costs, has left Tesla for a startup that’s pursuing the same advance using a different approach. In a surprising development, AM Batteries, a tiny Chelmsford, Mass., company with no revenue, hired Duong as chief manufacturing... Hieu Duong, lead inventor of a process touted by Tesla CEO Elon Musk as a way to sharply cut the...
Xiaomi founder Lei Jun began snapping up EV-related investments in 2014. Photo: Getty
The Electric: Xiaomi Is Likely to Upstage Apple With a Tech-Laden EV
By Steve LeVine · Oct 16, 2023 4:30am PDT
Xiaomi founder Lei Jun began snapping up EV-related investments in 2014. Photo: Getty
The Electric

The Electric: Xiaomi Is Likely to Upstage Apple With a Tech-Laden EV

By Steve LeVine · Oct 16, 2023 4:30am PDT
Since 2014, Apple has worked on a quasi-secret project it calls Titan—an effort to create an electric vehicle worthy of the company’s name. The company has cycled through four Titan leaders, changed its vision for the car, changed it back again, spent more than $1 billion in some years on the project—and still produced no EV. Adding insult to... Since 2014, Apple has worked on a quasi-secret project it calls Titan—an effort to create an...