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Tesla is preparing to bring its electric cars to South America, according to a new job posting in Chile.

It has been just over a decade since Tesla launched the Model S and significantly accelerated the deployment of electric vehicles around the world.

The automaker has expanded its efforts across North America, and most countries in Europe, and it is still gradually expanding in Asia.

But there’s one continent that Tesla hasn’t touched yet: South America.

It sounds like it is about to change.

Tesla has started to promote a job posting on LinkedIn for a country manager in Chile.

The automaker wrote in the job description:

Tesla Motors seeks a Country General Manager, Chile to help launch the market. You’ll be the ambassador of our brand in the market and will play a pivotal role in shaping our corporate image while accelerating the transition to sustainable energy.

The country manager is generally the first person hired when Tesla expands in a new market.

The job is going to be based in Santiago, the capital of Chile, where the company is also looking for some Tesla advisors and service technicians.

Chile is an interesting choice for a first entry into the South American market. The Chilean auto market consists of only about 234,000 vehicles sold year-to-date and that’s down 29% versus the previous year.

That’s roughly the number of vehicles sold in Brazil every month.

While the size of the auto market in the country is small, there’s a strong interest for electric vehicles there, which might explain Tesla’s foray.

The country is rich in lithium, a critical material for EV batteries, which has helped create interest for electric vehicles in the country. The government also announced an initiative to allow for only new sales of electric vehicles in the country starting in 2035.

Tesla’s Chinese competitor BYD has set its sight on the South American market by bringing its cheaper China-made EVs to the market, but now it looks like Tesla is willing to test the market on the higher-end.

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TSLA gets hammered, Mercedes set to ditch EQ, and big van news

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TSLA gets hammered, Mercedes set to ditch EQ, and big van news

With revenue tumbling almost as fast as market share, Tesla stock is taking a pounding – exactly like CEO Elon Musk predicted! We’ve also got FSD rolling out in China, a German automation acquisition, and more on today’s red candlestick edition of Quick Charge!

We’ve also got some clarifying news at Mercedes-Benz, which is set to ditch its confusing EQ-based model alphanumerics and (God willing) their suppository-based styling language, too. Plus, Rivian launches a new upfit service to make it easier for fleet managers to order ready-to-work EVs, Ram ProMaster EV lives up to its promises with more options and a lower price tag, and a big solar deal goes down.

Prefer listening to your podcasts? Audio-only versions of Quick Charge are now available on Apple PodcastsSpotifyTuneIn, and our RSS feed for Overcast and other podcast players.

New episodes of Quick Charge are recorded, usually, Monday through Thursday (and sometimes Sunday). We’ll be posting bonus audio content from time to time as well, so be sure to follow and subscribe so you don’t miss a minute of Electrek’s high-voltage daily news.

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Drop us a line at tips@electrek.co. You can also rate us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show.

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Lennox’s new extreme cold heat pump operates at as low as -20F

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Lennox's new extreme cold heat pump operates at as low as -20F

Lennox Residential HVAC has launched an extreme cold climate heat pump that warms a house with low global warming potential (GWP) refrigerant in temperatures as low as -20F.

It’s called the Dave Lennox Signature® Collection SL22KLV Cold Climate Heat Pump, and Lennox claims its efficiency levels are 150% higher at colder temperatures than standard heat pumps.

In 2022, Lennox was the first company to complete the first phase of the US Department of Energy’s (DOE) Residential Cold Climate Heat Pump (CCHP) Technology Challenge, and the SL22KLV is a souped up version of the unit developed for that challenge.

The heat pump, which pairs with a smart thermostat, uses a variable-speed compressor with Electronic Refrigerant Injection (ERI) to adjust the energy usage based on the outside temperature, which helps to lower energy costs. When the temperature drops, the ERI increases heating output efficiently.

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The SL22KLV has efficiency ratings of up to 21.10 for Seasonal Energy Efficiency Ratio 2 (SEER2), 13.2 for Energy Efficiency Ratio 2 (EER2), and 10.50 for Heating Seasonal Performance Factor 2 (HSPF2). It also features a precision-balanced, direct-drive fan and sound-dampening system for ultra-quiet operation as low as 58 decibels.

The heating capacity is between 21,600 Btuh and 60,000 Btuh, and the cooling capacity is between 22,000 Btuh and 56,000 Btuh.

Lennox’s new extreme cold heat pump uses the low global warming potential R-454B refrigerant, reducing environmental impact without compromising performance. It’s also eligible for the Energy Efficient Home Improvement Credit, a federal IRA tax credit for homeowners (and it’s still in place). There may also be other local utility and state incentives for installing a heat pump, so it’s definitely worth checking. It’s now available for order through local Lennox dealers.

Read more: Seriously good cold-climate heat pumps are headed to the US market


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Lucid (LCID) expects EV output to double in 2025 as the Gravity SUV rolls out

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Lucid (LCID) expects EV output to double in 2025 as the Gravity SUV rolls out

EV startup Lucid Motors (LCID) released its fourth-quarter earnings on Tuesday, beating estimates with big expectations for 2025. Lucid said it expects to produce about 20,000 EVs this year with the output of its first electric SUV, the Gravity, ramping up.

Q4 2024 earnings preview

After four straight record quarters, Lucid delivered 10,241 vehicles last year. That’s up 70% from the roughly 6,000 EVs Lucid delivered in 2023.

In the final three months of 2024, the company delivered 3,099 vehicles alone, nearly 80% more than the year prior. Lucid also hit its production target for the year with 9,029 EVs built at its Casa Grande, Arizona manufacturing plant.

After launching its first electric SUV, the Gravity, in December, the EV maker expects output to pick up this year.

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The higher volume helped Lucid generate $200 million in revenue in the third quarter, but its net loss also widened to $992.5 million compared to $630.9 million in Q3 2023.

Like most, Lucid has introduced significant discounts and incentives with up to $15,000 in savings on select Air models.

Q4 2022 Q1 2023 Q2 2023 Q3 2023 Full-year 2023 Q4 2023 Q1 2024 Q2 2024 Q3 2024 Q4 2024 Full-year 2024
Lucid EV deliveries by quarter 1,932 1,406 1,404 1,457 6,001 1,734 1,967 2,394 2,781 3,099 10,241
Lucid (LCID) EV deliveries by quarter through 2023 to 2024

Wall St is estimating Lucid will post Q4 revenue of $214 million, up from $157.2 million in Q4 2023, with an eps loss of 0.25.

Lucid aims to double EV production in 2025

Lucid reported Q4 revenue of $234.5 million, up nearly 50% from the prior year and beating Wall St estimates. For the full year, the company generated $807.8 million, up from $595.2 million in 2023.

  • Lucid Q4 2024 revenue: $234.5 million vs $214 million expected
  • Lucid Q4 2024 EPS: (-$0.22) vs (-$0.25) expected

The company also improved gross margins by 72pts to (-89%). Despite the higher output, Lucid’s operating loss narrowed to $732.95 million in Q4, down from $736.87 million a year prior.

Lucid ended the quarter with about $6.13 billion in liquidity, which the EV maker said will be sufficient into the second half of 2026 when it plans to launch its midsize platform.

Lucid-Q4-2024-earnings
Lucid Q4 2024 earnings (Source: Lucid Motors)

CEO Peter Rawlinson said earlier this month that the midsize platform is “finally when we compete directly with Tesla.” The first two models are expected to be an electric SUV and sedan starting at around $50,000, aimed at Tesla’s Model 3 and Model Y.

Interim CFO Gagan Dhingra said, “We made substantial progress in improving our gross margins, managing our operating expenses while balancing strategic growth investments, and strengthening our balance sheet with the support of the Public Investment Fund (PIF).”

Lucid-Q4-2024-EV-costs
(Source: Lucid Motors)

Lucid expects to produce around 20,000 vehicles in 2025, more than double the just over 9,000 EVs it built last year.

The company said it will “continue to prudently manage and adjust production to meet sales and delivery needs” this year.

Lucid-Gravity-EV-Tesla-Supercharger
Lucid Gravity electric SUV at a Tesla Supercharger (Source: Lucid Motors)

Lucid’s upbeat guidance comes after Rivian (RIVN) announced during its Q4 earnings last week that it expected slightly fewer deliveries this year. Rivian said the lower guidance was due to “external factors,” including changes in government policies and regulations.

The company also announced several management changes. COO Mark Winterhoff will serve as interim CEO, while Peter Rawlinson will become a Strategic Technical Advisor on the board. Meanwhile, Taoufiq Boussaid has been appointed CFO.

Lucid’s stock climbed over 8% after beating fourth quarter estimates and raising EV output guidance for 2025. Check back for updates from Lucid’s earnings call. We will post updates from the call below.

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