Group14 Technologies enters into battery material supply deal with Europe’s InoBat

In a statement Group14 Technologies said, it has entered into a battery materials supply agreement with Europe’s InoBat under a partnership to manufacture high-energy density cells for electric vehicles. Demand for high-capacity, lithium-silicon batteries has increased as manufacturers shift to electric vehicles to tap a rapid transition to cleaner sources of energy. InoBat, established in…

Ford Motor Co shutters Kansas City assembly plant citing chip shortage

In a statement Ford Motor Co said, it will temporarily close its Kansas City assembly plant which builds its best-selling F-150 pickup truck because of a shortage of semiconductor-related parts. The shortage is caused by the COVID-19 pandemic in Malaysia. Production is slated to resume in August 23, said the U.S. automaker while adding, it…

Oshkosh Defense wins 10-year contract agreement to build next-gen U.S. Postal delivery vehicle

In a significant development, the U.S. Postal Service (USPS) stated, it will award a multibillion-dollar, ten-year contract agreement to Oshkosh Defense to manufacture a new generation of postal delivery vehicles. Under the initial $482 million investment, Oshkosh Defense, a unit of Oshkosh Corp, will finalize the production design, testing and vehicle tooling required prior to…

SpaceX bags SDA contract to track ICBM launches

In a defining moment for SpaceX, Elon Musk’s space venture has won a $149 million contract to build missile-tracking satellites for the Pentagon, said the U.S. Space Development Agency (SDA) in a statement on Monday. The development marks SpaceX’s first government contract to build satellites. Known for its reusable rockets and astronaut capsules, SpaceX is…

Toyota Motor Corp-Panasonic Corp joint venture builds lithium-ion battery production line in Japan

On Tuesday, in a statement Toyota Motor Corp said, it will collaborate with Panasonic Corp to create a joint venture for producing batteries in Japan. To this end, the duo will establish a production line in Western Japan which will manufacture lithium-ion batteries for hybrid vehicles starting from 2022. The production line will have a…

Tesla aims to ramp up battery production to 3,000 gigawatt-hours

Following Tesla’s unveiling of its plans to produce its own batteries in order to trim costs, shares of its two battery suppliers fell on Wednesday. Shares of South Korea’s LG Chem and Japan’s Panasonic have fallen with the news reaching the market. After initially opening higher, LG Chem’s shares was trading down by 3.1% while…

Foxconn partners with Medtronic Plc to manufacture ventilators

On Wednesday, Taiwanese electronics manufacturing giant Foxconn stated, it will partner with U.S. firm Medtronic Plc to manufacture ventilators to help patients afflicted by the Wuhan coronavirus outbreak. Formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co Ltd, Foxconn is best known for assembling Apple’s iPhones at factories in China. Foxconn’s statement, released through the company’s…