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Renewable energy technology company Heliogen has raised $108 million in funding across two rounds — a first round that raised $25 million, followed by $83 million in what was described as an oversubscribed round. The new tranche of investors included steel and mining company ArcelorMittal, venture capital firm Prime Movers Lab, Canadian venture capital fund Ocgrow Ventures, Edison International, A.T. Gekko and more.

Heliogen has made headlines in the past for two main reasons. The first reason is that the company has Bill Gates as an early and vocal investor. The second, and arguably much more important reason, is that Heliogen has developed an innovative new method for capturing and converting sunlight into an ultra-high temperature heat that can exceed 1,000° Celsius. Named the Sunlight Refinery, it consists of an array of mirrors, controlled using advanced computer vision software, that are used to reflect sunlight to a single target with extreme accuracy. We gave a detailed rundown of Heliogen’s technology back in 2019, including highlighting its drawbacks.

The extremely high temperatures generated by the Sunlight Refinery system were previously only possible by using fossil fuel-powered tech. This means that industrial processes that require these high temperatures, such as mining and cement and steel production, can now effectively be carried out in a carbon neutral way. Given how large the carbon footprint currently is for cement production and for the mining industry, any technology that can help it to operate in a carbon neutral manner is a boon.

In a sign that the mining industry is keen to adopt the tech, mining giant Rio Tinto announced in March 2021 that it has established a Memorandum of Understanding with Heliogen. The memorandum details the terms under which Heliogen will deploy its technology at Rio Tinto’s borates mine in Boron, California. This pilot scheme will see Rio Tinto use Heliogen’s tech to power the mine’s industrial processes and greatly reduce the carbon emissions at the site.

The financing raised by the round will be used to accelerate the global deployment of the Sunlight Arrays and to keep making improvements to the systems efficiency. It will also be used for other pilot schemes like the one being conducted with Rio Tinto.

In a statement, Heliogen CEO and founder Bill Gross said: “This infusion of new support for Heliogen comes at a time when the paradigm shift toward clean energy is even further accelerated by the new realities the world is facing. We’re being granted the resources to do more projects that address the most carbon-intensive human activities and work toward our goals of lowering the price and emissions of energy for everyone on the planet. We thank all of our investors for enabling us to pursue our mission and offer the world technology that will allow it to achieve a post-carbon economy.”


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Toyota is developing a small bZ electric crossover with… Suzuki?

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Toyota is developing a small bZ electric crossover with... Suzuki?

The smallest electric vehicle under Toyota’s “Beyond Zero,” or bZ lineup, is under development. The small bZ electric crossover is reportedly being prepped in collaboration with Suzuki.

Toyota is finally waking up as the auto industry’s shift to electric vehicles heats up. Over the past several months, Toyota has revealed a series of innovations to help it catch up to EV leaders Tesla and BYD.

At a tech workshop in June, Toyota highlighted its next-gen EV batteries, enhanced design methods, and manufacturing upgrades as it aims to boost efficiency.

Toyota plans to launch new electric models with nearly 500 miles (800km) of range using advanced batteries in 2026. Last month, Toyota showed off its future EV production line, including Giga casting tech, self-propelled assembly lines, and robots transporting finished vehicles.

After accelerating its plans, Toyota aims to produce 600,000 EVs in 2025, tripling the 190,000 output expected in 2024.

By 2026, Toyota looks to sell 1.5 million EVs with ten new electric models, including small cars, SUVs, crossovers, luxury, and commercial. With just 0.26% of Toyota and Lexus sales being fully electric last year, the automaker has a big transition ahead.

Toyota-small-electric-crossover
Toyota bZ compact SUV concept (Source: Toyota)

We got our first look at Toyota’s new compact electric SUV last month in a video teaser posted on social media. Now, we are learning more about an even smaller separate model.

Toyota developing a small electric crossover with Suzuki

According to the Japanese news website Best Car, the small Toyota electric crossover will be jointly developed with Suzuki.

Toyota-small-electric-crossover
Toyota small bZ electric crossover (Source: Toyota)

Although Suzuki isn’t known by any means as an EV leader, the company has a knack for building small cars.

Earlier this year, Suzuki revealed its first global electric vehicle concept, the eVX. It will show the concept off at the Japan Mobility show alongside a mini eWX wagon EV later this month.

Last year, Toyota and Suzuki deepened their partnership to develop compact electrified vehicles.

Toyota-Suzuki-electric-van
Toyota, Suzuki, and Daihatsu electric vans (Source: Toyota)

In May, we got our first look at a new mini-commercial electric van co-developed by Suzuki and Toyota. The companies teamed up to develop a new EV platform for a series of mini electric vans that will be on display at the Japan Auto Show starting October 26.

According to the new report, the small Toyota electric crossover will ride on the e-TNGA platform, the same one used for the bZ4X electric SUV. It’s expected to launch in 2025.

Toyota-EV-plans
Toyota and Lexus electric concepts (Source: Toyota)

The bZ small crossover was first showcased during a briefing session in December 2021 alongside 15 other EV models, including a pickup, sedan, sports EV, compact cruiser, large SUV, and several other Lexus and Toyota concepts.

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Genesis shares 2024 GV60 pricing, including cheaper RWD trim with ~50 miles more range

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Genesis shares 2024 GV60 pricing, including cheaper RWD trim with ~50 miles more range

Genesis USA has just shared pricing and packaging for the 2024 model year of its GV60 SUV. In addition to new standard features, the luxury sub-brand of Hyundai Motor Group has introduced a new rear wheel drive (RWD) that offers nearly 50 miles more range than the 2023 EV models at a significantly lower MSRP.

The GV60 is an all-electric crossover first introduced by Genesis in the summer of 2021 and was really a kicking off point for the luxury automaker on its journey to end all new combustion models by 2025 and be entirely electric by 2030.

In May of 2022, Genesis delivered its very first GV60 to a customer in California, the first state it sold the BEV in. Throughout 2022, we saw Genesis expand the availability of the crossover to new markets in the US, and Electrek’s Seth Weintraub even got a chance to test it out for himself.

This past May, Genesis introduced biometric technology to the GV60 called Face Connect, allowing owners to access and start their BEVs using their face alone without the need for a smartphone or key fob. Today, we learned that Face Connect is one of several features that come standard on some of the new trims of the 2024 GV60 models, in addition to an enticing new RWD variant.

2024 GV60
The 2024 GV60 / Credit: Genesis

Genesis shares 2024 GV60 with better pricing, features

According to details from Genesis USA today, the star of the show for the 2024 GV60 model year appears to be the new RWD variant. Starting at an MSRP of $52,000, this trim features a 168 kW rear motor that offers 294 miles of range (non-EPA).

For comparison, the higher range Advanced AWD trim of the 2023 GV60 offered 248 miles of EPA estimated range. For 2024, the RWD GV60 garners 46 extra miles, or a 19% increase. In addition to the new, more affordable RWD trim, Genesis is introducing a slew of new features that will now come standard on the 2024 GV60 models, including WiFi hotspot capability, Genesis Digital Key 2, Highway Driving Assist II, and Advanced Forward Collision Avoidance-Assist.

The aforementioned Face Connect biometrics also come standard on all 2024 trims. Here’s how the pricing breaks down and how it compares to last year’s GV60 models:

2024 GV60 Trim MSRP* 2023 GV60 Trim MSRP* Price Difference
Standard RWD $52,000 N/A N/A N/A
Advanced AWD $60,550 Advanced AWD $59,290 +$1,260
Performance AWD $69,550 Performance AWD $68,290 +$1,260
* – excludes $1,195 in freight fees

Genesis shared that that the 2024 RWD and Advanced AWD versions of the GV60 are available at select retailers around the US, in the 23 states the automaker currently sells the BEV. The availability of the Performance AWD version will be announced at a later date.

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Virginia is about to get a big 772 MW solar boost

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Virginia is about to get a big 772 MW solar boost

Dominion Energy Virginia today proposed more than a dozen new solar projects that will power nearly 200,000 Virginia homes at peak output.

A lot of new solar for Virginia

If the Virginia State Corporation Commission (SCC) approves the proposed solar projects, they’ll generate 772 megawatts (MW) of clean energy for Dominion Energy Virginia’s customers.

Dominion Energy Virginia is the state’s largest utility company, and it serves the most densely populated metropolitan areas such as Richmond, Charlottesville, and northern Virginia. It wants to build six solar projects totaling 337 MW that it will own or acquire:

Project Size Location
Alberta Solar 3 MW Brunswick County
Beldale Solar 57 MW Powhatan County
Blue Ridge Solar 95 MW Pittsylvania County
Bookers Mill Solar 127 MW Richmond County
Michaux Solar 50 MW Henry & Pittsylvania Counties
Peppertown Solar 5 MW Hanover County

Dominion’s proposal also includes 13 power purchase agreements (PPAs) totaling 435 MW with independently owned solar projects. It selected the PPAs through a competitive solicitation process.

Construction of the projects will support more than 1,600 jobs and generate more than $570 million in economic benefits across the state.

In addition to SCC approval, the utility-owned projects require local and state permits before construction can begin. If approved, construction is expected to be complete between 2024 and 2026.

Dominion Energy’s solar fleet is currently the second-largest in the US. If the new projects proposed today are taken into account, Dominion’s solar capacity in Virginia will surpass 4.6 GW – enough to power more than 1.1 million homes at peak output. (For context, Virginia’s population is 8.64 million, and Dominion Energy Virginia supplies more than 2.5 million homes and businesses with power.) Dominion Energy says it’s committed to net zero by 2050 (wish that target was sooner). 

Electrek’s Take

This is welcome news for a state that’s heavily dependent on natural gas, which makes up 57% of Virginia’s total electricity net generation.

Virginia currently has enough solar to power 519,386 homes, or 4,393 MW, according to the Solar Energy Industries Association (SEIA). So it’s not doing too shabbily, as it’s currently ranked 10th in the US by the SEIA for the amount of solar installed.

But there’s a whole lot of room for improvement, as it needs to ditch the natural gas. So this 772 MW of new solar is a welcome boost for the state’s clean energy. Seeing how Virginia is expected to add 6.72 GW of new solar in the next five years, it looks like it’s headed in the right direction. 

Read more: A huge solar + storage + EV project just launched at Dulles Airport

Photo: Dominion Energy Virginia


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