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WattEV has opened a 26-port charging depot directly at the Port of Long Beach to charge electric trucks at the United States’ busiest container port. It’s the nation’s largest heavy-duty public access charging station to date.

The Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles are situated directly next to each other and are the busiest container ports in the Western Hemisphere. The ports see thousands of trucks loaded, unloaded, and dispatched daily and are responsible for 40% of the nation’s containerized imports.

But the area around the Ports has particularly poor air quality, largely due to port activity. Those thousands of trucks run on diesel, contributing to smog, which gets blown into the LA Metro area by onshore winds and trapped by the mountains over the homes – and in the lungs – of 13 million people.

This was a major reason for California’s huge new truck emissions rules. Among other things, the regulations will require all new drayage trucks (those that move cargo around within a port or from ports to railyards or distribution centers) to be electric starting January 1, 2024 – less than six months from now.

But to service these trucks, they will need a lot of chargers. There are a total of some 20,000 trucks registered at the Port of Long Beach, and California will need 160,000 truck chargers to fuel the 180,000 trucks in the state by 2045, when it expects all trucking to be zero emissions.

WattEV and other companies have several charging depots planned to open in the near future to service Southern California distribution routes, but WattEV is the first to open on the actual property of the Port of Long Beach. It’s the first of four planned WattEV projects to open in Southern California.

The new charging depot has 13 dual-cord 360 kW CCS chargers, with a total capacity of 5 MW for the depot. WattEV plans to add another 8 MW of capacity once the upcoming “Megawatt Charge System” (MCS) gets implemented and trucks that use it become available, which the company expects around 2026. Currently, it takes about 2-3 hours to charge, compared to a standard 30-45 minute diesel truck stop break.

A demonstration unit for WattEV’s future Megawatt Charging Standard charger

WattEV is using these chargers to fuel its “truck-as-a-service” concept, wherein the company offers electric trucking at a set price with lower startup costs. Currently, electric trucks are significantly more expensive to purchase than traditional diesel trucks, despite lower long-term running costs and lower total costs of ownership (and, of course, lower environmental costs for all of our lungs). However, startup costs can be prohibitive, especially for small owner-operators who make up such a large part of the industry. WattEV wants to solve that problem by offering a set-price operation at a comparable cost to running a diesel truck.

There are larger electric truck charging stations, like this recent 32-port station opened by Schneider, but those are “behind-the-fence” and used by private fleets. WattEV’s chargers are also public access and can be used (via credit card) for opportunity charging by other electric trucks operating at the port.

Electrek’s Take

Driving down to today’s opening, our only company on the 710 freeway consisted of semi trucks, in both directions. And as we got closer to the port, it got noisier, stinkier, and the air got less clear. It also happens to be a summer where heat records are being set all around the globe, seemingly every day. And during the event, the droning noise and smell of idling diesel trucks directly behind us made everything just a little bit harder.

If only there were one solution that could solve literally all of these problems at the same time. Can anyone think of it? Hmm…

But it’s going to take a lot of work to get us there. This property today is the largest public access charger in the US, but we’ll need hundreds of depots like this in California alone, and with future faster charging through MCS, in order to service the traffic coming in and out of the port and running through the state.

So we hope we’ll see many more openings like this and soon – to the point where it’s no longer interesting to write about them.

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Controversial electric moto influencer ‘Surronster’ appears to have been arrested

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Controversial electric moto influencer 'Surronster' appears to have been arrested

It looks like electric motorcycle influencer Surronster has landed himself in trouble south of the border, based on an arrest video posted to his social media channels.

A heavily edited video posted on his Instagram page shows the controversial rider in handcuffs being led into a police vehicle by officers in Tijuana, Mexico. The reel appears to have been filmed by a companion in the influencer’s entourage. No additional context was provided in the post, and at the time of writing, details surrounding the arrest remain unclear.

The incident comes just two days after the influencer posted another update to his social media showing that he was being denied entry into Mexico with his Sur Ron electric off-road motorcycle loaded in the bed of his truck.

In the more recent clip, the Tijuana Municipal Police appear to be questioning him and an associate before handcuffing them both. An officer is seen starting to remove the influencer’s helmet, then the clip jumps to a shot of the influencer entering the back of the police truck, edited to avoid showing his unhelmeted face. Surronster has long concealed his identity, always being filmed while wearing a full-face dirt bike helmet.

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Surronster has gained a large following online by pushing the limits of electric motorcycles – especially the Sur Ron Light Bee and similar lightweight electric dirt bikes. His content often shows him performing stunts, riding in traffic without a license plate, and usually on electric dirt bikes that are not street legal for use on public roads. His 1M+ following is comprised mainly of young male viewers in their teens and twenties, with many attempting to imitate the riders’ style and stunts. He has risen to become one of the leading influencers in the electric motorbike industry, all while promoting a rebellious image and racking up millions of views on social media.

That notoriety has earned him plenty of fans, but also a long line of critics. Many in the e-bike and e-moto community have called out the influencer for encouraging illegal and unsafe behavior that risks drawing increased regulation and public backlash against electric two-wheelers, not to mention the danger to young riders who may attempt to recreate his stunts. Others defend him as a thrill-seeking entertainer similar to traditional motorsport stunt riders.

A large proportion of his videos feature illegal riding activities, but his strict control over his anonymity has meant that he has effectively operated with impunity. But getting arrested in a foreign country is a serious matter, and it remains to be seen what charges – if any – he’ll face. At the time of publishing, the Tijuana Minicipal Police have not responded to a request for comment.

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US clean energy jobs hit 3.56M in 2024 but the feds may kill the boom

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US clean energy jobs hit 3.56M in 2024 but the feds may kill the boom

Clean energy jobs surged in 2024, growing more than three times faster than the rest of the US economy and adding nearly 100,000 new positions. That brought the total clean energy workforce to 3.56 million people, according to the 10th annual Clean Jobs America report from E2.

But growth slowed compared to 2023. Amid policy uncertainty and an overall cooling economy, clean energy jobs expanded at their slowest pace since 2020, with about 50,000 fewer new jobs than the year before.

Even so, the sector still outpaced the broader economy. Solar, wind, batteries, energy efficiency, storage, and grid jobs made up more than 7% of all new US jobs last year and 82% of new energy jobs. Clean energy also takes a bigger share of the overall workforce: it now accounts for 42% of all US energy jobs and 2.3% of the total workforce. More people work in clean energy today than as nurses, cashiers, restaurant servers, or preschool through middle school teachers.

The report lands as the clean energy industry faces major headwinds. Federal policy moves have canceled projects, revoked tax credits, and added new regulatory hurdles targeting solar, wind, EVs, and more. While not yet reflected in 2024’s numbers, those actions are already hitting jobs hard. E2 found that since January 2025, companies have canceled more than $22 billion worth of clean energy factories and projects that would have created 16,500 jobs. Other analyses warn that more than 830,000 jobs could vanish under Trump’s big bill, signed on July 4.

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“This was one of the hottest and most promising job sectors in the country at the end of 2024,” said E2’s executive director Bob Keefe. “Now, clean energy job growth is at serious risk – and with it, our overall economy.”

Clean energy and EV jobs have added more than 520,000 positions over the last five years, a 17% increase. That’s far more growth than fossil fuels, ICE vehicle manufacturing, or the economy overall. In fact, over the past five years, clean energy companies have added jobs 60% faster than the rest of the US economy.

Energy efficiency remains the largest employer in the sector, with nearly 2.4 million workers after adding 91,000 jobs last year. Renewable generation jobs reached 569,000 (+9,000 in 2024), while clean vehicle jobs totaled 398,000. The clean vehicle sector shrank by 12,000 jobs in 2024 due to an industry-wide decline across all vehicle sectors, but employment is still up 52% since 2020.

Regionally, the South is leading the way. More than 1 million clean energy workers are based there, and the South added 41,000 jobs in 2024. The West and Northeast each added over 20,000 jobs, and the Midwest added 13,000. At the state level, 23 states now have at least 50,000 clean energy jobs, and in all but eight states, clean energy employment outnumbers fossil fuel jobs.

“Every year, clean energy jobs become more intertwined and critical to our overall economy,” said Michael Timberlake, E2’s director of research and publications. “These jobs are now a vital anchor of America’s energy workforce. The strength of the US job market and the future of our energy economy are now inseparable from the growth of clean energy.”

Read more: $15.5B in EV, renewable projects vanish as Senate eyes rollbacks


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Genesis is about to launch a slew of new luxury EVs and hybrids: Here’s what’s coming

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Genesis is about to launch a slew of new luxury EVs and hybrids: Here's what's coming

Genesis is turning 10, and it’s celebrating with a few big surprises. The rising luxury brand is rolling out a slate of new hybrids and EVs, including an ultra-luxe flagship SUV and off-roader.

Genesis gears up for new EVs, hybrids, and EREVs

Hyundai’s luxury brand has quickly emerged as a dark horse in the luxury market. Genesis is celebrating its 10th anniversary with a bang.

By 2030, the brand aims to sell 350,000 vehicles annually. Genesis is launching a new lineup, including its first hybrid, a new flagship SUV, an off-roader, and several performance vehicles.

Hyundai confirmed during its CEO Investor Day on Thursday that Genesis will launch several new models soon, including new EVs, hybrids, and extended-range vehicles (EREVs).

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Genesis will launch its first hybrid in 2026, followed by EREVs shortly after. At least two new SUVs are set to join the lineup, a full-size flagship model and an off-roader.

Hyundai said the new luxury SUVs will be based on the Neolun and X Gran Equator concepts. Although we have yet to learn all the details, the Neolun is expected to arrive as the GV90, an “ultra-luxe,” full-size flagship electric SUV. The X Gran Equator concept is a more rugged, luxury off-road SUV.

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Genesis Neolun ultra-luxury electric SUV concept (Source: Genesis)

Genesis plans to expand the brand into up to 20 European markets while strengthening its presence in the US. Those in the US will see the first hybrid Genesis vehicles roll out, starting in 2026.

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Genesis X Gran Equator Concept (Source: Genesis)

The luxury brand will also launch its first EREV, which Hyundai promises will deliver over 600 miles of range by using a battery and a gas engine that acts as a backup generator.

Genesis is entering “the realm of high-performance vehicles” with its new Magma brand. The first performance model, the GV60 Magma, will arrive later this year.

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Genesis GV60 Magma testing with other Magma vehicles (Source: Genesis)

In under eight years, the Genesis brand sold a total of over 1 million vehicles. Over the next few years, it’s betting on new EVs, hybrids, advanced tech, sleek designs, and more to solidify its position in the luxury space.

Hyundai is also launching new vehicles across nearly all powertrains and segments. Check out our recap of Hyundai’s CEO Investor Day to see what’s coming.

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