Michigan Wins Ford + CATL Plant (2/13/23)

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In this week's issue: 🚨 Making News: Ford and CATL pick Michigan, Redwood's DOE loan, VW pickup EV? 🇪🇺 Europe Electrified: BYD wants its own plant, VW to speed up electrification 🧧 China Report: Zeekr raises Series A, Berkshire sells more BYD, Tesla vs. Mercedes

🚨 Making News 🚨

Ford plans to build EV battery plant in Michigan with partner CATL. The official announcement is expected today. The plant was originally planned for Virginia, but the state withdrew its bid over U.S.-China tensions. The new, multi-billion factory will be located 100 miles west of Detroit and is expected to create about 2,500 jobs. The two have been weighing a novel ownership structure under which Ford would own 100% of the facility, potentially enabling it to qualify for lucrative tax credits under the IRA.

Redwood Materials receives $2 billion DOE loan for battery materials campus. Redwood Materials plans to establish a recycling production facility on the McCarran site, located approximately 24 miles east of Sparks, Nevada. The recycling production facility will reprocess lithium-ion battery materials and scrap copper wire into metal commodities.

VW considering an electric pickup for the U.S. market. In a conversation with Autoblog at the Chicago Auto Show, a VW official said the next thing the company has in its sight is a pickup truck. The statement was made by Hein Scafer, Senior Vice President of Product Marketing and Strategy at Volkswagen.

Tesla Cybertruck spotted in the wild with new and monstrous front wiper:

Other news:

• To tap billions in U.S. subsidies, Tesla must unlock EV chargers

• Lucid discounts Air models, joining the Tesla-led EV price war 

• GM looks to deepen EV raw materials access with a stake in Brazil’s Vale

• Nissan, Renault and Mitsubishi land on new alliance

• Tesla at last hires a new general counsel

• Volvo says it won’t follow Tesla by lowering its EV prices

• Tesla Semi skepticism lingers months after first delivery

• California plug-in car sales surged to 24% market share in Q4 2022

• Hyundai launches monthlong subscription service for its EVs

• BorgWarner profit soars as auto supplier eyes EV break-even point

• Magna Q4 earnings plummet due to higher costs related to electrification

• Ford cuts its stake in Rivian to about 1%

• Ram 1500 REV name confirmed with production set to begin in 2024

🇪🇺 Europe Electrified 🇪🇺

BYD more likely to build own Europe factory than take one over. BYD is reportedly in talks with Ford about its Germany facility. But BYD Executive Vice President Stella Li said in an interview: “We aren’t focusing on certain companies’ facilities,” and that the company is more interested in building its own plants rather than acquiring other companies’ factories.

Volkswagen to speed up its shift to electric cars and revamp software strategy. The five-year investment plan was presented by management to the supervisory board on Friday. Full details of what was discussed will be presented at the company's annual media conference on March 14.

Other news:

• Volvo may move investments to U.S. if Europe’s green-tech push falls short

• Tesla dominates 2022 West European top electric car model list

• Renault is in talks with Volvo Trucks about electric van partnership

• VW supplier Gotion to produce EV batteries in Europe with Slovakia's InoBat

• Britishvolt battery startup set to be bought by Australia's Recharge

🧧 China Report 🧧

Zeekr secures $750 million in Series A funding, bringing valuation to $13 billion. The funding comes just two months after the company filed for an initial public offering in the U.S. on a confidential basis. Zeekr aims to reach annual sales of 650,000 units by 2025 and be among the top three in the world in terms of market share in premium electric vehicles, the release said.

Berkshire Hathaway sells $138.9 million of shares in China's BYD. Berkshire Hathaway has sold 4.235 million Hong Kong-listed shares of electric vehicle maker BYD for HK$1.09 billion ($139 million), a stock exchange filing showed. The sale on February 3 lowered Berkshire's holdings in BYD's issued H-shares to 11.87% from 12.26%.

Tesla Model Y loses top-selling premium SUV spot to Mercedes-Benz GLC in China in Jan. Tesla Model Y retail sales in China were 14,184 units in January, while Model 3 sales were 12,659 units:

Other news:

• China’s auto export jumps 30% YoY in Jan. despite overall sales downturn

• BYD sales champion of pure EVs in China, Israel, and New Zealand

• China’s EV market downshifts on scaled-back incentives

• Li Auto L7 launches in China with $47,000 price

• NIO ET5 ranks No. 6 on list of best-selling premium sedans in China in Jan

• BYD Denza D9 EV delivery will start in second half of February in China