Connect with us

Published

on

Volvo Construction Equipment is kicking off a series of testing programs in North America with its mid-size EC230 Electric excavator and partner WM (formerly known as Waste Management). The 23-ton machine is designed to run the same operations as a diesel equivalent and represents a major shift in zero-emissions construction equipment.

The Volvo EC230 Electric is a zero-emissions excavator that made its public debut at the CONEXPO-CON/AGG this past March. The general-purpose construction machine was designed for extraction, earthmoving, and grading in the building segment, but it’s also a good fit for trash and scrap handling in the recycling and waste segments.

Volvo CE states that the EC230 Electric can deliver the same digging forces and lifting capacities as its diesel equivalent in the company’s lineup while supporting the same attachments and services. The obvious difference is that it is powered entirely by batteries, enabling zero direct emissions, quieter operation, reduced maintenance, and a lower total cost of ownership for customers.

This afternoon, Volvo CE has the new electric excavator on public display at two separate trade shows – the Waste Expo in Louisiana and the ACT Expo in Southern California. During these events, Volvo CE announced a new pilot program to test the excavators in real-world situations throughout North America.

electric excavator
Martin Mattsson, Key Accounts Director at Volvo CE (left), hands over the EC230 Electric keys to Harold Romberg, Director of Heavy Equipment for WM, at Waste Expo / Credit: Volvo CE

Volvo’s electric excavator being piloted by a Fortune 500 Co.

Volvo Construction Equipment shared that it has found a partner in WM, which will be the first to test out its electric excavator in North America through a pilot program at its facility on the East Coast. WM says it will put the EC230 Electric through the same waste management applications as its diesel counterparts, then track that data and share feedback with Volvo CE.

Volvo states this initial pilot program with WM kicks off a series of customer testing projects to follow on the North American power grid. Volvo North America president Stephen Roy elaborated:

This is the first pilot in North America, but the EC230 Electric excavator has been thoroughly tested by customers overseas, and in each case, it has offered the same performance as its diesel equivalent with the added benefit of no direct emissions. We’re excited to work with WM on a project that aligns with both of our organizations’ values of being good environmental stewards.

Following the newly announced pilot programs, Volvo CE is aiming to make the mid-size electric excavator commercially available by 2024. When that does happen, the EC230 Electric will join an all-electric Volvo lineup that already consists of six different machines. Roy again spoke:

Electric construction equipment thus far has mostly been compact models, but to make the kind of progress we want toward a more sustainable future, larger machines need to be part of the equation. Volvo CE is proud to be leading the industry into that future along with sustainability driven companies like WM.

The EC230 Electric excavator is on display at both the Waste and ACT Expos this week. You can also watch it in action from Sweden in the video below:

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

Continue Reading

Environment

U.S. Steel shares rally as Trump approves Nippon takeover with unique government ‘golden share’

Published

on

By

U.S. Steel shares rally as Trump approves Nippon takeover with unique government 'golden share'

U.S. President Donald Trump walks as workers react at U.S. Steel Corporation–Irvin Works in West Mifflin, Pennsylvania, U.S., May 30, 2025.

Leah Millis | Reuters

U.S. Steel shares jumped on Monday after President Donald Trump approved its controversial merger with Japan’s Nippon Steel.

U.S. Steel shares were last up about 5% in premarket trading.

Trump issued an executive order on Friday that allowed U.S. Steel and Nippon to finalize their merger so long as they signed a national security agreement with the U.S. government. The companies said they signed the agreement with the government, completing the final hurdle for the deal.

U.S. Steel said the national security agreement includes a golden share for the U.S .government, without specifying what powers the government would wield with its share. Trump said on Thursday that the golden share gives the U.S. president “total control.”

Typically, golden shares allow the holder veto power over important decisions the company makes. Pennsylvania Sen. Dave McCormick told CNBC in May that the golden share will give the U.S. government control of several board seats and ensure production levels aren’t cut.

Trump has avoided calling the transaction a merger, describing the deal instead as a “partnership.” U.S. Steel confirmed in a regulatory filing Monday that the company will become a wholly owned subsidiary of Nippon Steel North America.

“All regulatory approvals required for the completion of the Transaction have been received,” U.S. Steel said in a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday. “The Transaction remains subject to the satisfaction of customary closing conditions, and is expected to be completed promptly.”

Continue Reading

Environment

Israel vows Iran will ‘pay the price’ as attacks continue for a fourth day

Published

on

By

Israel vows Iran will 'pay the price' as attacks continue for a fourth day

Trails of Iranian ballistic missiles light up the night sky as seen from Gaza City during renewed missile strikes launched by Iran in retaliation against Israel on June 15, 2025.

Anadolu | Anadolu | Getty Images

Tehran will “pay the price” for its fresh missile onslaught against Israel, the Jewish state’s defense minister warned Monday, as markets braced for a fourth day of ramped-up conflict between the regional powers.

Fire exchanges have continued since Israel’s Friday attack against Iran, with Iranian media reporting Tehran’s latest strikes hit Tel Aviv, Jerusalem and Haifa, home to a major refinery. CNBC has reached out to operator Bazan for comment on the state of operations at the Haifa plant, amid reports of damage to Israel’s energy infrastructure.

Iran’s Revolutionary Guard said overnight it deployed “innovative methods” that “disrupted the enemy’s multi-layered defense systems, to the point that the Zionist air defense systems engaged in targeting each other,” according to a statement obtained by NBC News.

Israel has widely depended on its highly efficient Iron Dome missile defense system to fend off attacks throughout regional conflicts — but even it can be overwhelmed if a large number of projectiles are fired.

Tankers depicted in the Strait of Hormuz — a strategically important waterway which separates Iran, Oman and the United Arab Emirates.

Why Iran won’t block the Hormuz Strait oil artery even as war with Israel looms

The fresh hostilities are front-of-mind for investors, who have been weighing the odds of further escalation in the conflict and spillover into the broader oil-rich Middle East, amid concerns over crude supplies and the key shipping lane through the Strait of Hormuz connecting the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.

Oil prices retained the gains of recent days and at 09:19 a.m. London time, Ice Brent futures with August delivery were trading at $73.81 per barrel, down 0.57% from the previous trading session. The Nymex WTI contract with July expiry was at $72.7 per barrel, 0.38% lower.

Elsewhere, however, markets showed initial signs of shrugging off the latest hostilities early on Monday.

Spot prices for key safe-haven asset gold retreated early morning, down 0.42% to $3,417.83 per ounce after nearly notching a two-year-high earlier in the session, with U.S. gold futures also down 0.65% to $ 3,430.5

Tel Aviv share indices pointed higher, with the blue-chip TA-35 up 0.99% and the wider TA-125 up 1.33%.

European stock markets opened higher Monday, meanwhile, and U.S. stock futures were also in the green.

Luis Costa, global head of EM sovereign credit at Citigroup Global Markets, signaled the muted reaction could be, in part, attributed to hopes of a brisk resolution to the conflict.

“So markets are obviously, you know, bearing in mind all potential scenarios. There are obviously potentially very bad scenarios in this story,” he told CNBC’s “Europe Early Edition” on Monday. “But there is still a way out in terms of, you know, a faster resolution and bringing Iran to the table, or a short continuation here, of a very surgical and intense strike by the Israeli army.”

U.S. response in focus

As of Monday morning, Israel’s national emergency service Magen David Adom reported four dead and 87 injured following rocket strikes at four sites in “central Israel,” reporting collapsed buildings, fire and people trapped under debris.

Accusing Tehran of targeting civilians in Israel to prevent the Israel Defense Forces from “continuing the attack that is collapsing its capabilities,” Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz, a close longtime ally of Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, said in a Google-translated social media update that “the residents of Tehran will pay the price, and soon.”

The IDF on Sunday said it had in turn “completed a wide-scale wave of strikes on numerous weapon production sites belonging to the Quds Force, the IRGC and the Iranian military, in Tehran.”

CNBC could not independently verify developments on the ground.

The U.S.’ response is now in focus, given its close support and arms provision to Israel, the unexpected cancellation of Washington’s latest nuclear deal talks with Iran, and President Donald Trump’s historically hard-hitting stance against Tehran during his first term.

Trump, who has been pushing Iran for a deal over its nuclear program, has weighed in on the conflict, opposing an Israeli proposal to kill Iran’s supreme leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, according to NBC News.

Discussions about the conflict are expected to take place during the ongoing meeting of the G7, encapsulating Canada, France, Germany, Italy, Japan, the U.K. and the U.S., along with the European Union.

CNBC’s Katrina Bishop contributed to this report.

Continue Reading

Environment

Tesla on ‘self-driving’ gets stuck on train track and hit by train

Published

on

By

Tesla on 'self-driving' gets stuck on train track and hit by train

A Tesla Model 3 got stuck on a train track and was hit, albeit slightly, by a train in Sinking Spring, PA. The driver claimed it was in “self-driving mode.”

According to the fire alerts in Berks County, a Tesla Model 3 drove around a train track barrier near South Hull Street and Columbia Avenue and got stuck in the tracks.

The driver was able to exit the vehicle, but a train hit the car, reportedly snapping off the side mirror.

The fire commissioner ordered to stop all train traffic as the emergency services worked to get the Model 3 off the tracks using a crane.

Advertisement – scroll for more content

Spitlers Garage & Towing, performed the recovery and shared a few pictures on Facebook:

The Tesla driver reportedly claimed that the vehicle was in “self-driving mode” leading up to getting stuck on the train tracks.

Tesla claims that all its vehicles built since 2016 will be capable of unsupervised self-driving with software updates; however, this has yet to occur.

Instead, Tesla has been selling a “Full Self-Driving” (FSD) package for up to $15,000 that requires the driver to constantly supervise the vehicle, with the driver remaining responsible for the car at all times.

Electrek’s Take

There have been instances of Tesla drivers engaging in reckless behavior and then attributing it to the Full Self-Driving (FSD) features.

I’m not saying it’s the case here, but it’s a possibility.

On the other side, I’ve seen FSD try to navigate around construction barriers. It’s possible that it tried to do that in this case, here and then got caught on the tracks.

We would need more data.

FTC: We use income earning auto affiliate links. More.

Continue Reading

Trending