Biweekly Digest Archive

Colorado took its EV leadership to the next level last week, enacting seven new bills that encourage clean energy and four that address clean transportation goals.  The new laws require electric utilities to account for the social cost of carbon and take action to reduce emissions in order to accelerate the transition to 100 percent renewable [...]

Three years following the finalization of the settlement agreement, less than 10 percent of the roughly $2.5 billion total in state mitigation funds has been awarded, according to the EV Hub VW Settlement Funding Awards dashboard. The story is mostly positive for transportation electrification with 42 percent of total funds awarded going to EV charging and electric [...]

At the beginning of 2019, Reuters estimated that automakers had invested more than $300 billion in electrification. The EV Hub is now tracking this information, and our new Global Private Investment Dashboard has recorded almost $350 billion in total EV investment across the globe. This data confirms China’s dominance in the market with almost 40 percent of investments recorded from [...]

EV fees have been a focus in state legislatures around the country in 2019 and new legislation in Illinois proposes the highest EV fee yet. The $1,000 annual registration fee for all-electric vehicles would be a significant increase from the state’s current reduced annual registration fee for EVs of $17.50. It would also far exceed [...]

Slowing national EV sales and regulatory uncertainty have dominated the start of 2019. With the Trump administration advancing plans to weaken Obama-era emissions regulations, states like California are charting their own course and maintain tougher standards. As federal policy wavers, utilities continue to invest in expanding the charging network with more than $98 million of [...]

On April 24, Ford announced plans to invest $500 million in Rivian. The investment is a validation of the Michigan-based startup’s approach to EV design and a needed cash infusion as they plan to begin commercial production of their flagship pickup and SUV models by the end of next year. The Ford investment follows a $700 million [...]

Proterra plans to invest over $200 million to expand their battery leasing program. First piloted in Park City, Utah in 2017, the program reduces the upfront cost to bring electric transit bus prices closer to diesel and natural gas alternatives. The American electric bus manufacturer is partnering with Japanese investment firm Mitsui to expand the program and [...]

Progress towards rolling back Obama-era fuel economy standards has generated uncertainty across the auto industry. Issued in 2012, the standards require an increase in overall fuel efficiency for light-duty vehicles to around 50 mpg by model year 2025. A rollback would freeze progress, lowering the requirement to 37 mpg. California has already indicated it intends to stand by the tougher [...]

Growth in the electric vehicle (EV) market has slowed in the first quarter of 2019. While this year’s Q1 sales are 10 percent higher than last year, 2018 Q1 sales were 32 percent higher than in 2017. March marks the second straight month of low growth compared to the same time period last year.   EVs [...]

Charging EVs at off-peak times can generate significant savings for electric utilities and their customers, according to new research from the Illinois Citizens Utility Board (CUB). Published on March 27th, the report finds that smart charging programs could lead to big savings on household electric bills – even for people who don’t drive. Shared savings could reach upwards [...]

Cities working to electrify their fleets are seeing significant savings, according to recent data from New York. Last week, news broke that the maintenance costs on all-electric fleet vehicles operated by the New York City Department of Citywide Administrative Services (DCAS) are as much as 88 percent lower than hybrid and gas-powered fleet vehicles. The results [...]

Before 2019, 20 states had already enacted annual registration fees on electric vehicles. New developments in 2019, outlined in the table above, have the potential to add 11 states to that list. For context, only 2 new states passed fees in 2018. TABLE SHOWS EMERGING LEGISLATION AND TRENDS FOR 2019 ONLY State [...]