Proterra Inc.

Nikola signs multiyear deal for Proterra battery technology

Nikola Corp. has signed a multiyear deal with battery maker Proterra Inc. to use Proterra battery packs in its electric trucks. It is the first Class 8 truck maker to align with Proterra Powered, a newer business unit of the company best known for electric transit buses.

The deal creates supply certainty for Nikiola, which has signed several letters of intent with major carriers that will try and potentially buy hundreds of Nikola Tre battery-electric and fuel cell trucks in the next few years. 

N...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/nikola-signs-multiyear-deal-for-proterra-battery-technology

Electric truck charging: Can infrastructure keep pace with demand?

Boosted by billions of dollars for electrification, the rapidly advancing market for battery-powered commercial trucks will soon learn whether there is enough juice to begin scaling a transformation from diesel to zero tailpipe emission electric transport.

It doesn’t look good.

“We’ve got to worry about supply and demand, and we’ve got to make sure that all these things come together, and that means like now. The race is on right now,” Britta Gross, managing director of the Carbon Free Mobility...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/electric-truck-charging-can-infrastructure-keep-pace-with-demand

Truck Tech: Hydrogen safety whistle edition

The Compressed Gas Association is calling out hydrogen safety as newcomers plan to make and distribute it as a transportation fuel; TuSimple is still rolling on its driverless pilot, it just won’t say exactly when.

Dropping the safety flag on hydrogen

Maybe you’ve heard of the Compressed Gas Association. Before a Dec. 6 press release announced the launch of the “Safety is Step One” hydrogen education campaign, I had not.  Hydrogen advocacy groups like the Fuel Cell & Hydrogen Energy Association,...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/truck-tech-hydrogen-safety-whistle-edition

Truck Tech: Rare earth alternative edition

This week, Tula Technology Inc. thinks it has a better idea for electric motors that could ease worries about the availability of rare earth materials; a pilot project using B100 biodiesel exceeds 600,000 miles; and Aurora Innovation and Proterra Inc. get new leadership in the C-suite.

Is this the next semiconductor shortage?

The energy density of batteries gets a lot of attention in the electric vehicle space. The more energy a battery can hold, the longer the driving range and the less...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/truck-tech-rare-earth-alternative-edition

Truck Talk: Rebranding and reorganization edition

This week, Daimler Truck laid out forward plans ahead of trading in December as a stand-alone truck maker; the only publicly traded trailer maker renamed, rebranded and reorganized; Proterra pushed further into the battery supply business; and Kodiak Robotics maintains it will go it alone in trucking autonomy after a handsome capital raise.

Looking for big numbers

Daimler Truck will begin trading as a stand-alone business on the Frankfurt Stock Exchange on Dec. 10 and expects to join Germany’s...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/truck-talk-rebranding-and-reorganization-edition

Xos Trucks shares drop 14.5% on 1st day of public trading

Shares of Xos Trucks finished 14.5% lower in their first day of public trading Friday as the electrification startup met the disdain that other emissions-free truck makers and infrastructure companies have endured.

The shares opened at $8.64 on the Nasdaq, rose to $9, and then fell as low as $7.27 before closing at $7.55. At that price, shareholders who purchased stock of NextGen Acquisition Corp. — the special purpose acquisition company sponsor of Xos — are in a loss position from the...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/xos-trucks-shares-drop-145-on-1st-day-of-public-trading

Slumping battery startup Romeo Power pays big to secure cell supply

Newly public Romeo Power Inc. is betting a large part of its future on a long-term cell supply agreement with LG Electronics that would allow the startup to compete for new business and fill its current backlog.

Los Angeles-based Romeo (NYSE: RMO), which went public in late December following a business combination with special purpose acquisition company RMG Acquisition Corp., has a joint venture with BorgWarner Inc. and investment from Republic Services Group.

But under the glare of Wall...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/slumping-battery-startup-romeo-power-pays-big-to-secure-cell-supply

Truck Talk: Risky business edition

Welcome back to Truck Talk. This week, we look behind the numbers at recent SPAC financial reports, including a potentially long wait for some Nikola fuel cell truck customers. Also, who reigns supreme in engine-making, Xos mobile energy refueling and more.

Behind the numbers

As young companies begin public trading once their sponsors recede to the background, investors begin to see how aligned their projections of success are with reality. Losses, sometimes really big red numbers in net and...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/truck-talk-risky-business-edition

Semiconductor shortages not over yet, Daimler warns in Q2 earnings report

Daimler Truck grew second-quarter sales by 92% over the pandemic-impacted year-ago quarter but warned that a shortage of semiconductors could persist for the rest of the year, limiting growth as the Daimler AG unit prepares to become a stand-alone company.

But Daimler Truck CEO Martin Daum was upbeat about both the quarter and the outlook for the rest of the year.

“In the second quarter, truck sales increased compared to the first quarter and sales grew significantly compared to the previous...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/semiconductor-shortages-not-over-yet-daimler-warns-in-q2-earnings-report

AEV Summit: Proterra rarity among electrification startups — it makes money

This fireside chat recap is from FreightWaves’ Autonomous & Electric Vehicles Summit on Wednesday.

KEYNOTE CHAT TOPIC: Breaking the chicken-and-egg challenge in electrification

DETAILS: Proterra got its start making electric transit buses but in recent years has expanded its scope to include making batteries and providing charging infrastructure. Buses are still the main business but the future lies in enabling electric vehicles to stay on the road.

SPEAKER:

Jack Allen, CEO and chairman, Proterra...

https://www.freightwaves.com/news/aev-summit-proterra-rarity-among-electrification-startups-it-makes-money

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