Hi there! 

Welcome to this week’s edition of the EVolve Houston's newsletter. We are excited to share a handful of major headlines across the EV industry this week.

IN THIS NEWSLETTER

SUMMARY OF INDUSTRY HIGHLIGHTS

• Car manufacturers continue to scale, releasing new concepts, factories, and model extensions for EVs. There is no shortage of companies that are expanding to accommodate the future of EVs, with growth rapidly accelerating in the industry. From mass market producers like Volkswagen and Ford to the exclusive Lamborghini, OEMs across the board are Car manufacturers continue to scale, releasing new concepts, factories, and model extensions for EVs. looking to earn their keep in the EV world.

• .If you had any doubt the future of transportation is electric, you may be one of the last few. A new study from the World Resources Institute shows that predictions of EV adoption continue to rise among forecasters across the globe. Additionally, new partnerships like the city of Denver and Lyft prove the financial viability of EVs.

THE LATEST ON EVOLVE HOUSTON

• ICYMI: EVolve Houston at the Texas Energy Summit in Austin. Chris George, Executive Director of EVolve Houston, presented on the journey to “30 by 30” and what it means for Houston’s medium- and heavy-duty fleets, as well as the port.  

INDUSTRY HIGHLIGHTS: WEEK OF 11.8.19

Car manufacturers continue to scale, releasing new concepts, factories, and model extensions for EVs.

• Tesla’s plan for world domination. This week, Tesla announced the decision to build its first European Factory in Germany. Meanwhile in Shanghai, Tesla obtained a manufacturing license for the Gigafactory 3, where “production is imminent.” According to Morgan Stanley, Tesla may get “Porsche-Like Margins in China. Read more at Bloomberg. To top off the week for Tesla, Consumer Reports put Tesla back on recommended list as reliability improves, although it still ranks in the bottom third of the 30 auto brands listed. Read more at the Motley Fool. 

• Volkswagen breaks ground on assembly extension. Volkswagen has broken ground on an expansion of their Tennessee assembly line, which will accommodate for electric vehicles in a move to make EVs “available for millions not millionaires” said CEO Scott Keogh. A 200,000 square foot additional expansion is expected to accompany the assembly line for battery packs. Read more at Green Car Reports.

• Ford v. Ferrari (v. Tesla?) Ford’s all-electric SUV, launching on Nov.17, is officially the ‘Mustang Mach-E.’ You can reserve one starting Sunday, perhaps on your way to see Ford take on the Ferrari Enzo in theaters this weekend. (Will Tesla be Ford’s next challenge in the all-electric sequel?) Read more at TechCrunch.

• On the subject of “super clean” supercars, Lamborghini, working with MIT engineers, deployed cutting edge EV technology in its latest concept car, the Terzo Millenio. Using supercapacitors that lower the weight of the battery by 3 times, creating a lightweight, fuel-efficient car that lives up to the luxury of a Lamborghini. Read more at CNN Business.

• One indicator consistently shows that EVs are the future. While there are many challenges ahead for EVs a new study from the World Resources Institute points to one indicator -- the predictions of the penetration of EVs are going up. For instance, OPEC, perhaps one of the least excited organizations for mass electrification, predicted under 50 million cars by 2040, but are now predicting about 300 million cars on the road by that year.  Read more at Forbes.

• In Denver, Lyft has added 200 vehicles to its driver fleet. Starting in December of this year, Lyft will provide drivers with EVs for rent at a discounted price. Each vehicle could save drivers up to 100 dollars in fuel per week and can be a good publicity stunt for EVs in the Colorado area. Read more at CPR.

Thanks for reading, and see you next week!