It’s a slow news day this first day of August here at CleanTechnica’s GigaHQ. We searched up in the attic and down in the basement behind the closet filled with old VHS tapes for tidbits that might be of interest to our readers and found a few odds and ends worth reporting.
First, Hyundai Motor Group and LG Energy Solutions have signed a memorandum of agreement with the government of Indonesia to build a battery cell factory near the capital city of Jakarta. According to EV Obsession, the new factory is scheduled to begin production of NCMA battery cells in 2024 with an annual capacity of 10 GWh — enough to power up to 150,000 electric vehicles. The agreement calls for Hyundai and LG Energy to invest $1.1 billion in the new battery cell factory.
Indonesia is one of the world’s largest producers of nickel, a key raw material for EV batteries. The Indonesian government has been aggressively fostering an EV industry ecosystem and infrastructure so that the country can play a pivotal role in the global EV race.
The battery cells from the new factory in Indonesia will be used in a range of electric vehicles based on Hyundai’s latest E-GMP EV platform. The company plans on selling more than 1 million EVs a year by 2025.
Chips & Cells Delay Tesla Semi
One of the news items from Tesla’s Q2 shareholder letter and call that we mostly skipped over is that production of the much anticipated Tesla Semi has been pushed back until 2022 since there is not yet an adequate supply of the company’s latest 4680 battery cells. The global shortage of computer chips is also partially to blame for the delay.
On last week’s earnings call, company executives told the press that production of the Semi is slated to begin after the company’s two new factories in Germany and Texas start building cars, something both are expected to do before the end of this year. For more on the Tesla Semi, check out the video below.
Rivian Factory In The UK
Oh, and this just in. According to Sky News, Rivian is in talks with the UK government about building a factory in the UK. The talks center on what incentives the government is willing to offer to lure Rivian to its shores. Presumably, the new factory, if there is one, will be located near the city of Bristol.
The Rivian R1T is a bit smaller than the typically massive American pickup truck, which may make it more attractive to drivers in the UK and Europe where roads are somewhat narrower and cities are heavily congested. The UK auto industry is on shaky ground after Brexit, which means the government has a strong incentive to lure foreign investment to the country. Rivian is already planning to build a second assembly line and battery factory in the US.
That’s the news for today. It’s summertime. Get to the beach!
Sign up for daily news updates from CleanTechnica on email. Or follow us on Google News!
Have a tip for CleanTechnica, want to advertise, or want to suggest a guest for our CleanTech Talk podcast? Contact us here.
Former Tesla Battery Expert Leading Lyten Into New Lithium-Sulfur Battery Era — Podcast:
I don't like paywalls. You don't like paywalls. Who likes paywalls? Here at CleanTechnica, we implemented a limited paywall for a while, but it always felt wrong — and it was always tough to decide what we should put behind there. In theory, your most exclusive and best content goes behind a paywall. But then fewer people read it! We just don't like paywalls, and so we've decided to ditch ours. Unfortunately, the media business is still a tough, cut-throat business with tiny margins. It's a never-ending Olympic challenge to stay above water or even perhaps — gasp — grow. So ...
