NEWSNOTES | November 3, 2021
News Notes

NEWSNOTES | November 3, 2021

NEWSNOTES | November 3, 2021

Wednesday, November 3, 2021 / Kimberly Taylor

The UK is hosting the 26th UN Climate Change Conference in Glasgow (COP26) where there’s a focus on the shift to zero emission vehicles. Consensus building on the necessary pace of the transition to zero emission takes center stage on November 10 which is Transport Day. A major CALSTART Global Drive to Zero Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) about zero emission and heavy-duty vehicles will be announced that day.

Vice President Kamala Harris and U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm were in New York yesterday to announce Department of Energy (DOE) awards of $199 million to accelerate the growth of  battery and fuel cell trucks as well as charging infrastructure. Five CALSTART members were awarded $127 million in SuperTruck 3 funding including PACCAR, Volvo Group North America, Daimler Trucks North America, Ford Motor Company and General Motors.

In case you missed it, rental car company Hertz announced it will purchase 100,000 Tesla Model 3 sedans by the end of next year. Hertz is expected to spend $4.2 billion on the deal. Uber has gotten into the deal too by offering drivers a discount to rent a Tesla from Hertz. Will the drivers sign up? More to come. The Hertz deal is just one example of the red hot charging station market and new CALSTART member Stable Auto is ready to help charge point operators (CPOs) figure out the most optimum location to place their chargers. MIT Startup Exchange takes a look at the new platform that promises to go a long way for CPOs making siting decisions.

Resilient Power is also looking at EV charging infrastructure and Amazon is in turn looking at them. Amazon is investing in the company which will help them electrify their fleet with EV charging stations that are one-tenth the size and can be built in one-tenth the time.  Amazon backed Rivian is out with their R1T Production and delivery numbers for October. The company is seeing a surge in orders and expect to deliver 1,000 EVs by the end of the year. 

With so many EVs entering the marketplace, do manufacturers have trained technicians to work on the vehicles? Both Kenworth and New Flyer address that news today. Kenworth has launched an EV technician training and certification program with an eye toward helping dealerships to service EVs.  New Flyer’s program includes classroom and on-the-job training with a focus on entry level new employees. The program covers electrical theory and components, zero-emission propulsion and hands-on practical skills development among other things.

Black & Veatch, a leading provider of EV charging infrastructure, has gotten a nod from the town of Vail, Colorado to help them prepare for 100% electrification of its public bus fleet. ChargePoint was chosen as the charging station provider. They expect full fleet electrification by 2032.

Transit agencies around the country are looking at how to make the transition to zero-emissions. On November 16 CALSTART and AlphaStruxure host a webinar looking at how transit agencies on both coasts have made the transition, what innovative funding mechanisms are available, and how to build resilience into the planning. It’s free and you can sign up here.

 

RESOURCES

Transport Day at COP26, UN Climate Change Conference | https://bit.ly/2ZIrYZH

DOE Announces $199 Million to Reduce Car and Truck Emissions, CleanTechnica | https://bit.ly/3GXt3y2

Why Hertz’s Tesla Deal is Such a Blockbuster, Vox | https://bit.ly/3GJmBut

New Tool for EV Charge Point Operators, Startup Exchange MIT | https://bit.ly/3mNP0Yp

Amazon Invests in Resilient Power, LinkedIn - https://bit.ly/3q3ZDs0

Rivian Reports Numbers for October, INSIDEEVs | https://bit.ly/3q8HIk1

Kenworth Launches EV Training, Certification for Technicians, HDT | https://bit.ly/3bENgKA

NFI Launches Electrical Tech Training Program, Metro Magazine | https://bit.ly/2YbexRy

Black & Veatch Helps Vail Electrify Transit, Bakersfield.com | https://bit.ly/3bAEzRd

Transitioning Transit to Zero-Emissions, CALSTART & AlphaStruxure Webinar | https://bit.ly/3mGcVbZ