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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

Last month, Ford CEO Jim Farley describes the company's new battery-building association with Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd, China's largest battery manufacturer. Photo: Bill Pugliano/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: How States And Companies Are Frustrating Efforts to Create a China-Free U.S. Battery Industry

By Steve LeVine · Mar 5, 2023 2:00pm PST
Over the last five months, Joshua Hundt and his Michigan negotiating team have outcompeted a dozen U.S. states to land two multibillion-dollar battery factories. But there’s a catch: Both plants involve Chinese companies, clashing with a new U.S. law that aims to exclude them from the U.S. battery industry. Hundt, chief projects officer for... Over the last five months, Joshua Hundt and his Michigan negotiating team have outcompeted a...
A direct lithium extraction pilot in Amboy, CA. There is no commercial-scale DLE production anywhere in the world. Photo: David McNew/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: The Rock Inside the Debate Over the Future Price of Lithium

By · Mar 1, 2023 5:01am PST
A crackdown on illegal lithium mining and pollution in the Southern Chinese province of Jiangxi, the source of about 10% of the world’s supply of the metal, adds fresh drama to a raging debate in the battery industry and on Wall Street: Is lithium in a decadelong shortage or a surplus?Last week, Chinese authorities shut down most lithium mining... A crackdown on illegal lithium mining and pollution in the Southern Chinese province of Jiangxi,...
Tesla invited the media into its new Nevada gigafactory in July 2016, six months before production began. Photo: Troy Harvey/Bloomberg/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: A Fear of Fire and a Hunt for Profit Trigger an Effort to Make Defect-Free Batteries

By · Feb 26, 2023 2:00pm PST
Three years ago, General Motors began receiving worrying reports about the Chevy Bolt, its flagship electric vehicle, which had made a mark by beating the Tesla Model 3 to the market in 2016. Bolts were erupting in flames in people’s driveways, in their garages and on the street for no apparent reason. Ultimately, about a dozen of the vehicles... Three years ago, General Motors began receiving worrying reports about the Chevy Bolt, its...
Lithium miner Albemarle received a $149 million federal grant for a lithium processing plant. Pictured above, the company's brine operation in Silver Peak, Nev. Photo: The Electric
The Electric: U.S. Battery Subsidies Go Far but Perhaps Not Far Enough
By Steve LeVine · Feb 23, 2023 4:30am PST
Lithium miner Albemarle received a $149 million federal grant for a lithium processing plant. Pictured above, the company's brine operation in Silver Peak, Nev. Photo: The Electric
The Electric

The Electric: U.S. Battery Subsidies Go Far but Perhaps Not Far Enough

By Steve LeVine · Feb 23, 2023 4:30am PST
New U.S. subsidies have begun to attract investments in electric vehicle batteries, including a decision announced Wednesday by Tesla to relocate some of its battery cell manufacturing from Germany to the U.S. But a public-private group linked to the U.S. Department of Energy says the $250 billion U.S. effort still falls substantially short, and... New U.S. subsidies have begun to attract investments in electric vehicle batteries, including a...
On the cusp of the EV age, public charging remains unreliable. Photo: George Rose/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: With the Future of EV Sales on the Line, Vehicle Charging Is Getting Worse

By Steve LeVine · Feb 19, 2023 2:00pm PST
For a frigid few late-night hours just before Christmas, Kyle Conner shuttled among electric vehicle fast-charge stations in a 50-mile corridor north of Denver to check their performance in a cold snap. It was 6 below zero and he had heard that fast-charge units newly installed by Volkswagen’s Electrify America network were malfunctioning.... For a frigid few late-night hours just before Christmas, Kyle Conner shuttled among electric...
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
Some Ford F-150 Lightning pickups will be equipped with batteries made by China's Contemporary Amperex Technology Ltd. Photo: Jeff Kowalsky/AFP/Getty.
The Electric

The Electric: Ford Risks Political Heat With a Deal to Make Chinese Batteries on U.S. Soil

By · Feb 13, 2023 4:30am PST
In a risky move that’s already creating political waves, Ford on Monday plans to announce a deal with China’s Contemporary Amperex Technologies Ltd. to build electric vehicle batteries in Michigan. In a display of the thorny politics, President Joe Biden declined an invitation to join Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and Ford CEO Jim Farley at the... In a risky move that’s already creating political waves, Ford on Monday plans to announce a deal...
Byd displays its electric Tang SUV at the Brussels Expo in Belgium in January. Photo: Sjoerd van der Wal/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: Is the EV Race Already Over?

By · Feb 12, 2023 2:00pm PST
As the world’s automakers intensify their scramble to go electric, Tesla and China’s Byd have run away from the pack with sales of millions of electric vehicles, and seem likely to maintain the lead through the end of the decade. The game isn’t over. But other auto manufacturers could be relegated to fighting over relative crumbs of EV sales... As the world’s automakers intensify their scramble to go electric, Tesla and China’s Byd have run...
In the Enovix lab in Fremont, Calif. Photo: Courtesy Enovix
The Electric: Two More Senior Executives Leave Silicon Battery Maker Enovix
By Steve LeVine · Feb 8, 2023 4:30am PST
In the Enovix lab in Fremont, Calif. Photo: Courtesy Enovix
The Electric

The Electric: Two More Senior Executives Leave Silicon Battery Maker Enovix

By Steve LeVine · Feb 8, 2023 4:30am PST
Two more senior executives have stepped down from silicon anode developer Enovix in recent weeks, including co-founder and Chief Technology Officer Ashok Lahiri, part of a widening shakeup after the company missed key milestones in scaling up. Two more senior executives have stepped down from silicon anode developer Enovix in recent weeks,...
The U.S. shot down this alleged Chinese spy balloon on Saturday. Photo: Peter Zay/Anadolu/Getty
The Electric

The Electric: Would China Retaliate by Squeezing the U.S. Battery Supply?

By Steve LeVine · Feb 7, 2023 4:00am PST
China has so far refrained from retaliating for U.S. attacks on its tech sector, such as the clampdown on Chinese access to advanced semiconductors. But should Beijing decide to strike back, a primary source of leverage is its near-chokehold on the global supply of electric vehicle battery chemicals and components, according to an expert on... China has so far refrained from retaliating for U.S. attacks on its tech sector, such as the...
In September 2020, Musk and technology protege Drew Baglino, introducing the concept of dry cathode processing. Photo: Courtesy Tesla
The Electric

The Electric: The Challenge for a Cheaper Battery—Dry Electrodes

By · Feb 5, 2023 2:00pm PST
Last month, Tesla CEO Elon Musk teased investors with an artist’s rendering of a planned $3.6 billion expansion of the company’s flagship Nevada battery gigafactory. Using a fraction of the floor space devoted to the plant’s existing equipment, Musk said, Tesla would triple production, making enough batteries to equip 1.5 million electric... Last month, Tesla CEO Elon Musk teased investors with an artist’s rendering of a planned $3.6...
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
Thacker Pass, Nev. Photo: Courtesy Lithium Americas
The Electric

The Electric: The New ‘Elephants’—GM Grabs the Biggest Lithium Deposit in the U.S.

By · Feb 1, 2023 4:30am PST
For a century, the world’s oil drillers fought for rights to what they called “elephants,” supergiant oil fields in the Middle East, Central Asia and the U.S., because just one of them could make a company fabulously wealthy. Now global auto companies are scrambling for the new elephants—giant lithium deposits, which are emerging as a key to... For a century, the world’s oil drillers fought for rights to what they called “elephants,”...
In Palo Alto, CA. in November 2010, Musk and Toyoda announce what would become a star-crossed partnership. Photo: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg
The Electric: Modern EVs Were Born in Japan. So Why Have the Japanese Lost Their Way?
By Steve LeVine · Jan 29, 2023 2:00pm PST
In Palo Alto, CA. in November 2010, Musk and Toyoda announce what would become a star-crossed partnership. Photo: Kiyoshi Ota/Bloomberg
The Electric

The Electric: Modern EVs Were Born in Japan. So Why Have the Japanese Lost Their Way?

By Steve LeVine · Jan 29, 2023 2:00pm PST
In 2010, Akio Toyoda, chief executive of Toyota, the Japanese automaker his grandfather founded decades earlier, sipped red wine in Palo Alto, Calif., with Elon Musk, CEO of electric vehicle upstart Tesla, and drove the entrepreneur’s flashy Roadster. Toyoda, only recently installed as CEO, was taken by Musk’s spirit and determination on the... In 2010, Akio Toyoda, chief executive of Toyota, the Japanese automaker his grandfather founded...
Manchin. Photo: Eric Lee/Bloomberg
The Electric

The Electric: Manchin Uses a Threat to EV Tax Credits to Fight the Battery War His Way

By Steve LeVine · Jan 26, 2023 4:30am PST
For the last three weeks, U.S. buyers of electric cars have been eligible for a $7,500 tax credit, courtesy of the climate law passed by Congress last year. Now the senator most responsible for the credits, angry over how the Biden administration is implementing the law, is threatening to take them away and possibly force consumers who have... For the last three weeks, U.S. buyers of electric cars have been eligible for a $7,500 tax...
Left to right, battery-grade nickel sulphate and cobalt sulphate, both produced in Finland. Photo: Courtesy Finnish Minerals Group.
The Electric

The Electric: Europe’s Battery Supply Chain Is Likely to Be Far-Flung—and Mostly Not in Europe

By · Jan 22, 2023 2:00pm PST
In the early years of this century, Finnish phone manufacturer Nokia controlled nearly 40% of global handset sales, creating a windfall for the country’s economy. Nokia accounted for a quarter of the country’s economic growth and corporate tax revenue, a fifth of its exports, and almost two-thirds of the value of the Helsinki stock market. But... In the early years of this century, Finnish phone manufacturer Nokia controlled nearly 40% of...
Site of the proposed Rhyolite Ridge lithium mine. Photo: Courtesy Ioneer
The Electric

The Electric: Biden Administration Attempts to Woo Wary Investors in Battery Metals Mining

By · Jan 18, 2023 5:00am PST
The Biden administration, hoping to win over private investors who have been slow to back U.S. projects to mine metals for electric vehicle batteries, is framing its support for a proposed Nevada lithium mine as evidence that the U.S. is serious about reversing a decadeslong decline in heavy industry.The conditional $700 million Department of... The Biden administration, hoping to win over private investors who have been slow to back U.S....
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
In 2019, Volkswagen became a joint investor with Ford in Argo AI. Left to right: Ford CEO Jim Hackett, Argo CEO Bryan Salesky, VW CEO Herbert Diess. Photo: Courtesy VW
The Electric: Will Assisted Driving Tech Give Detroit a Stock Boost? Don’t Bet on It
By Steve LeVine · Jan 15, 2023 2:00pm PST
In 2019, Volkswagen became a joint investor with Ford in Argo AI. Left to right: Ford CEO Jim Hackett, Argo CEO Bryan Salesky, VW CEO Herbert Diess. Photo: Courtesy VW
The Electric

The Electric: Will Assisted Driving Tech Give Detroit a Stock Boost? Don’t Bet on It

By Steve LeVine · Jan 15, 2023 2:00pm PST
In March 2017, Mark Fields, then CEO of Ford, announced one of the most surprising gambles in company history—a $1 billion investment in Argo AI, a little-known Pittsburgh startup that promised to help Ford produce a driverless car by 2021. Though Ford wasn’t prone to betting on unproven startups, Fields suggested he had little choice: By the... In March 2017, Mark Fields, then CEO of Ford, announced one of the most surprising gambles in...
A lithium pile at Pilbara Minerals' Pilgangoora mine in Port Hedland, Australia. Photo: Carla Gottgens/Bloomberg
The Electric

The Electric: Biden Administration Favors Making More Nations Eligible for U.S. Battery Subsidies

By Steve LeVine · Jan 11, 2023 5:00am PST
The landmark climate bill signed into law in August offered tens of billions of dollars in subsidies for electric vehicles whose batteries contain materials from the U.S. or countries with which the U.S. has a free trade agreement. That excluded many of the most ore-rich countries of the world, and the Biden administration has been seeking a way... The landmark climate bill signed into law in August offered tens of billions of dollars in...
Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares, with the concept electric Ram Revolution. Photo: Bridget Bennett/Bloomberg
The Electric

The Electric: EV Makers Brag About Next-Gen Batteries, but They Won’t Be Ready Soon

By · Jan 8, 2023 2:00pm PST
Late to the electric vehicle race, Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares bounded onstage Thursday at the Consumer Electronics Show, the biggest tech event of the year, and boasted: In 2026, he said, Stellantis would produce a sleek new electric version of the popular Ram pickup truck. Among other bells and whistles, a breakthrough solid-state... Late to the electric vehicle race, Stellantis CEO Carlos Tavares bounded onstage Thursday at the...
T.J. Rodgers, executive chair of Enovix, at the company's Fremont, CA. headquarters. Photo: Courtesy Enovix
The Electric

The Electric: Enovix Chair Tries to Calm Investors, But Company’s Stock Tanks

By · Jan 4, 2023 1:09pm PST
T.J. Rodgers, executive chair of silicon battery developer Enovix, on Tuesday set out to reassure investors that the company had a path to scale up its promising technology. It didn’t work. On Wednesday, Enovix shares fell roughly 45% to an all-time low of $6.50 before recovering slightly later in the day. In all, shares have declined about 80%... T.J. Rodgers, executive chair of silicon battery developer Enovix, on Tuesday set out to reassure...
The Electric Quarterly: In 2022, the U.S. Raced Into the Battery Game, but Dark Clouds Loom Ahead
The Electric Quarterly: In 2022, the U.S. Raced Into the Battery Game, but Dark Clouds Loom Ahead
By Steve LeVine · Jan 1, 2023 2:00pm PST
The Electric Quarterly: In 2022, the U.S. Raced Into the Battery Game, but Dark Clouds Loom Ahead
The Electric

The Electric Quarterly: In 2022, the U.S. Raced Into the Battery Game, but Dark Clouds Loom Ahead

By Steve LeVine · Jan 1, 2023 2:00pm PST
At the start of 2022, China was the clear global leader in producing electric vehicles and batteries and processing the minerals that make them work. The U.S., by contrast, had plans for few battery factories and virtually no factories to process the necessary raw materials. A year later, the rest of the world is scrambling to respond to an... At the start of 2022, China was the clear global leader in producing electric vehicles and...