New Poll: American Voters Support Federal Investments in Electric Vehicles Broad, Bipartisan Support for EV Investments and Incentives that Lower Costs, Expand Access, and Help the U.S. Beat China in the Race for Auto Manufacturing WASHINGTON, D.C. – A new bipartisan national poll conducted by Meeting Street Insights and Hart Research finds broad public support …
China is proposing to build a huge solar power station in space.
The efficient solar panel setup would measure 0.6 miles across.
Energy is converted to microwave radiation and beamed to Earth.
Modern solar panels are vastly more efficient than those 20 or 30 years ago, but they’re still prevented from operating at peak performance 24/7 by bad weather and nighttime darkness. Just imagine if you could collect all that solar energy uninterrupted from space. Well, China thinks it can.
Chinese scientists plan to build a huge solar power station that will sit more than 20,000 miles (32,000 km) above the surface of the Earth, measuring around 0.6 miles (1 km) across when fully built. In addition to getting access to constant sunlight, space-based solar stations enjoy energy density that’s 10 times greater than what you might get from the roof-mounted solar panels on your house because the sunlight in space is that much more intense.
Wondering how all those lovely clean Watts are pumped back to Earth? It’s done by converting the electricity into microwave radiation, which is then beamed to a fixed antenna on terra firma, Popular Mechanics explains. And the man behind the technology says it’s no, er, flight of fancy.
“We are working on this project now,” Long Lehao, a rocket scientist and member of the Chinese Academy of Engineering (CAE), told SMCP. “It is as significant as moving the Three Gorges Dam to a geostationary orbit 36,000km (22,370 miles) above the Earth.”
China’s Three Gorges Dam (pictured above) is a hydroelectric power station that opened in 2012 and whose 100 billion kWh annual power generation capacity makes the Hoover Dam look like a dripping tap. Long claims the energy collected in one year from the space station would be “equivalent to the total amount of oil that can be extracted from the Earth.”
The Three Gorges was such a mammoth project that it took 18 years to complete, and there would be no quick turnaround on the solar space station project, either. The massively complex build process required to get all of the solar station’s parts into orbit – including developing a heavy-lift rocket for the job – means it’ll be years before it’s powering our lights and electric cars.
But if it works? It could light up cities, power EVs, and quietly reshape how we think about renewable energy—without ever casting a shadow.
GM-Pilot stations with EVgo now cover more than 130 locations The automaker also has GM Energy projects with ChargePoint and EVgo GM is also part of Ionna, seeking 30,000 fast-chargers by 2030 Automakers beyond just Tesla have been committing to the EV infrastructure buildout; and among them, General Motors remains one of the most diversified in...
California has 48% more public and shared charging stations than gas nozzles.
A vast majority of them are Level 2 chargers, but the state is home to 16,971 fast chargers.
The state invests heavily in supporting EVs and roughly 25% of new purchases are ZEVs.
California is one of the largest markets for electric vehicles and that means there’s a lot of demand for charging infrastructure. However, they’re up to the challenge as the California Energy Commission recently announced 178,549 public and shared private chargers have been installed statewide.
That’s an impressive number, especially when you consider there are only an estimated 120,000 gas nozzles in the state. That means there are 48% more EV chargers than gas dispensers.
However, things aren’t that simple as a vast majority of chargers (162,178) are Level 2 units that can take hours to deliver a notable charge. This makes them ideal for home use and the California Energy Commission estimates there are more than 700,000 Level 2 chargers in single-family homes.
The remaining 16,971 or 9.5% are DC fast chargers. While their speed can vary, some fast chargers can deliver over 100 miles (161 km) of range in 15 minutes or less.
California credits their impressive charging infrastructure to “dedicating billions to support clean transportation goals” including approving a $1.4 billion investment plan to create the most extensive charging and hydrogen network in the country. There are also other efforts such as a $55 million project to install fast charging stations at businesses and other publicly accessible locations across the state.
California Energy Commission Chair David Hochschild said, “The California EV driver experience is getting better by the day. The state will continue to heavily invest in EV infrastructure, with particular emphasis in hard-to-reach areas, making these vehicles an easy choice for new car buyers.”
That’s good news for residents of the Golden State, where approximately 25% of new car purchases are zero-emission vehicles. Of course, any change to federal incentives could put a damper on sales.
In 2024, public charging in California expanded at record levels The state has double the publicly accessible chargers versus 2022 Nearly 30% of U.S. EV sales go to California customers In California, drivers are now much more likely to encounter an electric vehicle charging connector than a gas pump nozzle. The state reached 178,549 public...
Owners report more than ten times the issues with Shell Recharge, EVgo, or Blink than with Tesla Rivian's own charging network was second only to Tesla Hardware-related issues have become more prevalent than payment problems Charging networks operated by Tesla and Rivian tended to have fewer problems than non-automaker efforts, according to a...
Chinese automaker BYD on Monday unveiled a new high-power charging system which it plans to deploy at thousands of locations in its home country. As reported by Reuters, the BYD "Super E-Platform" enables megawatt charging—1,000 kw of power—and can add 400 kilometers of range, or nearly 250 miles, in five minutes of charging at that...
BYD has launched a new 1,000-volt Super E-platform for EVs in China.
Super-E architecture can add almost a mile for every second on charge.
Chairman say BYD will roll out more than 4,000 chargers across China.
The latest crop of EVs have almost combustion-like driving ranges, and now BYD is attempting to remove one of the other major barriers preventing some ICE car drivers from making the switch. Electric vehicles built around its new Super E-Platform are able to ‘fill up’ as quickly as you can tank-up your petrol vehicle.
Launched this week in China the new architecture and matching chargers use their 1,000-volt technology to pump out/accept a peak of 1,000 kW. That enables EV drivers to add 249 miles (400 km) of additional driving miles in only 5 minutes.
Even those with only as passing interest in EVs will know that is insanely rapid. In the West most EVs still rely on 400-volt tech and can’t handle more than 200 kW of juice. The few that can, like cars using Hyundai-Kia’s E-GMP platform, have 800-volt electrics, and are able to make sense of of 350 kW chargers, though they never actually draw that many watts.
The announcement came during a livestream event held at BYD’s Shenzen HQ when founder Wang Chuanfu committed to the rollout of more than 4,000 megawatt charging units across China, without giving any kind of timeframe.
Drivers of 350 kW cars in the West will be aware that you can’t always make use of your 800-volt EV’s maximum charging capabilities so BYD will need to get those chargers out quickly, which is easier said than done. Dropping in 1 MW chargers is a lot more complicated than adding a 50 kW unit, and costs a ton more money due to the infrastructure upgrades needed.
BYD also debuted the Han L and Tang L EVs, which make use of the Super E-Platform. The Han sedan and Tang SUV lineups both start with a single rear motor making 500 kW (670 hp / 680 PS) for less than $40k, while dual-motor AWD versions generate 810 kW (1,086 hp / 1,101 PS), Car News China reports.
Toyota and EVgo on Tuesday announced the opening of new DC fast-charging stations for underserved communities. Located in Baldwin Park and Sacramento, California, the fast chargers are part of Toyota's Empact plan for making electric vehicles more accessible to communities not reached by previous infrastructure projects, such as those in urban...
All 2025 GM EVs eligible soon; a mix of 2024 and 2025 models eligible now Additional incentives if owners opt to suspend charging during high-load times Could help lay groundwork for future V2G program General Motors electric vehicle owners in certain parts of California could receive a $4,500 discount on home-backup power hardware as part of a...
Now that it's rolling out adapters that allow its electric vehicles to charge at Tesla Supercharger stations, Ford is streamlining things for Apple iPhone users that want to navigate to them. The automaker on Monday announced that Mustang Mach-E and F-150 Lightning drivers using Apple Maps EV route planning, via Apple CarPlay, can now specify a...
Earlier Ford F-150 Lightning electric pickup trucks may charge at a faster rate at DC fast chargers thanks to an over-the-air (OTA) update. News of the update, available for 2022 and 2023 models, was first reported by InsideEVs Thursday and confirmed to Green Car Reports by Ford spokesperson Sam Schembari, who explained that the update raises the...
Massachusetts will give residents free bidirectional electric vehicle chargers if they participate in a statewide bidirectional charging demonstration program. Run by the Massachusetts Clean Energy Center (CEC), the program aims to place bidirectional chargers at residences and with fleet operators to show the possibilities of using EVs to...
Trump administration orders shutdown of 8,000 EV charging ports managed by GSA.
The agency also oversees roughly two-thirds of the government’s 650,000-vehicle fleet.
If the GSA offloads its fleet of new EVs, it’ll have to replace them with gas-powered cars.
President Donald Trump is putting the brakes on electric vehicles in government fleets, ordering thousands to be sold and shutting down their charging stations at federal buildings. Framed as a cost-cutting measure, the decision could ironically end up costing the administration $1 billion.
The General Services Administration (GSA), which oversees about two-thirds of the federal government’s 650,000 vehicles, currently manages around 8,000 EV chargers across government buildings. These stations serve both federally owned and personal EVs driven by government employees. But according to recently leaked emails, those charging contracts are being canceled, and the stations will be “turned off at the breaker.”
Unplugging the Investment
Under the Biden administration, the GSA received $975 million to upgrade federal buildings with new and sustainable technologies, including charging points for EVs, The Verge reports. The federal government signed an executive order to only buy electric light-duty vehicles by 2027.
The GSA will also begin to offload as many as 25,000 EVs purchased during the Biden administration. Speaking with Politico, a former GSA official said these EVs may only sell for 25% of their original value, potentially resulting in a loss of as much as $225 million. And since those EVs will need to be replaced with gas-powered cars, the federal government could end up spending an additional $700 million.
Cutting Costs, And Then Spending
According to the same ex-GSA official, the federal government has spent approximately $300 million to install and activate charging points. Taking these chargers offline could cost between $50 million and $100 million.
In an internal email explaining the decision, the GSA stated it “has worked to align with the current administration [and] received direction that all GSA-owned charging stations are not mission critical. Neither Government Owned Vehicles nor Privately Owned Vehicles will be able to charge at these charging stations once they’re out of service.”
That leaves an obvious question: if the goal is to cut government spending, why take a billion-dollar loss in the process? Selling EVs at a fraction of their cost, spending hundreds of millions to replace them with gas-powered cars, and shutting down infrastructure that was already paid for doesn’t exactly scream fiscal responsibility.
Report suggested GSA may pull the plug on thousands of EVs and chargers GSA provides vehicles to federal agencies; 20% of 2024 light-vehicle orders were EVs Could affect chargers at national parks, VA hospitals, other venues The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA), which manages all federal government buildings and has been nicknamed by...
California sees EV fast-charger creation continuing in 2025 and beyond Program offers funding now for “ready-to-build” charging projects at retailers Current $1.4B program is part of $10B EV-and-infrastructure plan While the Trump DOT has frozen funds related to the federal EV charging buildout, that hasn’t stopped the creation...
Among those considering the purchase of a new or used battery-electric or plug-in hybrid vehicle, or just curious about EVs, charging can still be the EV dealbreaker. Unless you don’t have a way to easily install or access home charging, your excuses are quickly disappearing, though. In 2024 public charging kept pace—or...
Ford is looking at charging EV battery packs from multiple charge ports simultaneously in order to shorten charging times. The concept is outlined in a recent patent filing published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Nov. 12, 2024, but originally filed by Ford back on Dec. 8, 2021. It shows a setup with dual charging ports...
Last week's U.S. Department of Transportation (DOT) announcement placing a freeze on the federal government's EV charging infrastructure program has already prompted responses from a range of industry interests—including at least one that counts automakers among its membership. In a statement first reported by Reuters, the Electric Drive...
General Motors is looking at different ways to utilize electric-vehicle bidirectional charging capability and multiple charge ports, a newly surfaced patent filing shows. Published by the United States Patent and Trademark Office (USPTO) Dec. 26, 2024, after being filing by GM Jun. 22, 2023, the document deals less with specific hardware and more...
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