Batteries & EVs
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Rivian Starts R2 Production Days After Tornado Rips Through Factory, Stakes Company's Future on Affordable EV
Rivian began building its mass-market R2 SUV on April 22 despite an EF-1 tornado tearing through the Normal, Illinois factory five days earlier.
CATL Unveils Third-Generation Shenxing LFP Battery That Charges to 98 Percent in 6 Minutes 27 Seconds, Leapfrogging BYD's Blade 2.0
At its April 21 Super Technology Day in Beijing, CATL introduced a new ultra-fast charging LFP cell that outpaces BYD's recently unveiled Blade Battery 2.0 and reshapes the fast-charging race.
China's Battery Makers Are Building 900 GWh of Storage Capacity as Export Rebates Fade
Chinese battery makers are racing to add stationary-storage capacity while Beijing phases out export rebates, a shift that could tighten margins abroad and deepen domestic grid-storage demand.
University of Houston Team Proves Lithium Dendrites Are Brittle, Not Soft, Forcing a Rethink of Solid-State Battery Design
A study published in Science shows lithium dendrites snap like glass rather than bending, challenging decades of assumptions that solid electrolytes alone could block them.
US EV Fast-Charging Network Surpasses 71,000 Ports as Deployment Accelerates 33 Percent Year Over Year
The US now operates over 71,000 public DC fast chargers across 15,000 locations, with Tesla holding a narrowing majority and new entrants like Ionna reshaping the competitive landscape.
Toyota Joins Daimler Truck and Volvo as Equal Partner in Cellcentric, Creating the World's Largest Hydrogen Fuel Cell Venture for Heavy-Duty Transport
Toyota will invest in a capital increase to become an equal shareholder in cellcentric, the fuel cell joint venture founded by Daimler Truck and Volvo Group in 2021, as the partners simultaneously begin on-road testing of hydrogen combustion trucks using Cespira's HPDI fuel system.
Korean Researchers Develop Two-Dimensional Catalyst That Pushes Lithium-Air Batteries Past 550 Stable Cycles
A KIST-IAE team engineered a tungsten diselenide catalyst that achieved over 550 stable cycles in lithium-air batteries, outperforming conventional catalysts and advancing a technology with ten times the energy density of lithium-ion.
US New EV Sales Fall 28 Percent in Q1 2026 After Tax Credit Expiration as Used Market Surges to Near Price Parity
Cox Automotive data shows new EV sales dropped to 212,600 units in Q1 2026, while used EV sales climbed 12 percent to 93,500 units with prices approaching parity with gas vehicles.
Sodium-Ion Batteries Reach the US Grid as Peak Energy and RWE Launch First Pilot on the MISO Network
Peak Energy and RWE Americas have deployed the first sodium-ion battery system on the MISO grid in Wisconsin, marking a milestone for the cheaper, cobalt-free chemistry in the US.
BYD Unveils Blade Battery 2.0 and 1,500 kW FLASH Charging That Refills an EV in Nine Minutes
BYD has launched its second-generation Blade Battery and a 1,500 kW FLASH Charging network that can take a compatible EV from 10 to 97 percent in nine minutes, with plans to deploy 20,000 stations across China by year-end and begin overseas rollout.
Sodium-Ion Batteries Hit Commercial Scale as CATL and BYD Race to Break Lithium's Grip on the EV Market
CATL and BYD are mass-producing sodium-ion batteries for EVs and grid storage in 2026, driven by soaring lithium prices and abundant raw materials, while the West struggles to keep pace.
HKUST Researchers Build a Calcium-Ion Battery That Retains 75 Percent Capacity After 1,000 Cycles, Challenging Lithium's Dominance
A novel covalent organic framework electrolyte solves calcium-ion transport problems that have stalled the technology for decades, opening a path to cheaper, more abundant battery chemistry.