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The next-gen Nissan LEAF will not be made in the US. Nissan will build the new model in the UK, but the affordable EV risks losing IRA tax credit eligibility.

Nissan confirmed it will build the next-gen LEAF at its Sunderland, UK plant, alongside two new electric SUVs last week.

The Juke and Qashqai, two of Nissan’s top-selling SUVs in Europe, are also going electric. Nissan announced an up to £3bn ($3.8B) investment to build the three new EVs at the plant.

As one of the first mass-market EVs, Nissan’s LEAF was a pioneer. However, with battery and other tech developments, more advanced EVs have stolen the compact electric cars shine.

The LEAF was the best-selling EV (cumulatively) until Tesla’s Model 3 overtook it in early 2020. Model 3 deliveries began in 2017, and it became the top-selling model in 2018 and 2019.

LEAF sales continue to slide amid new competition. Sales are down significantly this year in every major market through September, including the US (-37%), Europe (28%), and Japan (-15%).

The next-gen LEAF will be the first of the three new EVs built at its Sunderland factory. According to Automotive News Europe, it will launch at the end of next year.

Nissan-LEAF-US
Nissan Chill-Out concept (Source: Nissan)

Nissan pulls next-gen LEAF production from the US

With plans to build the new LEAF in the UK, where does that leave North America? Sources told Automotive News that Nissan does not plan to build the new LEAF in the US.

The LEAF kicked off a new era as the first mass-market EV in the US, but production of the current model is expected to end in 2025.

The decision could set the LEAF further back than it already is. Nissan’s LEAF is known as an affordable EV, yet the company plans a drastic makeover.

Nissan will release the next-gen LEAF as a crossover coupe SUV to make it more competitive. It will include a sleeker, lower design to avoid competing with its other electric crossovers.

Nissan-EV
Nissan’s first global electric SUV, the Ariya (Source: Nissan)

A source from Nissan said the design is closer to the Ariya, the company’s first electric SUV. Another said it was a “mini Ariya.” Nissan said it has already been previewed in its Chill-Out concept.

The Chill-Out concept is a “mobile haven,” according to Nissan. It features advanced safety tech and a comfortable interior. The concept is based on the CMF-EV platform, which powers the Ariya. It also includes Nissan’s e-4ORCE electric 4WD control system.

Nissan-LEAF-US
Nissan Chill-Out concept (Source: Nissan)

Nissan’s new LEAF will look nothing like the current generation with a complete design change. It will also feature 25% more range, Nissan told retailers.

However, how popular will the new Nissan LEAF be in the US without the tax credit? Importing the model from the UK would lose its eligibility for an up to $7,500 credit.

One dealer said the subsidy is critical for a brand like Nissan with a “price-sensitive” customer base. “Without that tax incentive, it will be extremely difficult to compete in the United States,” the dealer said.

Nissan-next-gen-LEAF-US
Nissan Chill Out concept (Source: Nissan)

They added, “We have one hand tied behind our back when selling these EVs.” The dealer went as far as to say, “Why would we even bring this car to the United States?” without tax credit eligibility.

Electrek’s Take

Nissan, which was once viewed as a leader in the EV industry with the launch of the LEAF in 2010, has fallen behind.

The automaker is vowing to make a comeback with a nearly $18 billion investment to launch 15 new EVs globally by 2030. Nissan is also investing $500 million in its Canton, Miss plant to prepare for EV production.

As per Nissan’s production schedule, the first EVs will be a pair of sedans in 2026. The LEAF replacement is expected to launch in the US in 2025.

Without the tax credit, however, Nissan will face stiff competition. Nissan has sold just over 10,000 LEAF models in the US through September.

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$14B in EV, renewable projects scrapped as tax credit fears grow

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B in EV, renewable projects scrapped as tax credit fears grow

More than $14 billion in US renewable and EV investments and 10,000 new jobs have been scrapped or put on hold since January, according to a new analysis from E2 and the Clean Economy Tracker. The reason: growing fears that the Republican-majority Congress will pull the plug on federal clean energy tax credits.

In April alone, companies backed out of $4.5 billion in battery, EV, and wind projects right before the House passed a sweeping tax and spending bill that would gut the federal tax incentives fueling the clean energy boom. E2 also found another $1.5 billion in previously unreported project cancellations from earlier in the year.

Now, with the Senate preparing to take up the so-called “One Big Beautiful Bill Act,” E2 says over 10,000 clean energy jobs have already vanished.

“If the tax plan passed by the House last week becomes law, expect to see construction and investments stopping in states across the country as more projects and jobs are cancelled,” said Michael Timberlake, E2’s communications director. “Businesses are now counting on Congress to come to its senses and stop this costly attack on an industry that is essential to meeting America’s growing energy demand and that’s driving unprecedented economic growth in every part of the country.”

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Ironically, it’s Republican-led congressional districts – the biggest beneficiaries of the Biden administration’s clean energy tax credits passed in 2022 – that are feeling the most pain. So far, more than $12 billion in investments and over 13,000 jobs have been canceled in GOP districts.

Through April, 61% of all clean energy projects, 72% of jobs, and 82% of investments have been in Republican districts.

Despite the rising number of cancellations, some companies are still forging ahead. In April, businesses announced nearly $500 million in new clean energy investments across six states. That includes a $400 million expansion by Corning in Michigan to make solar wafers, which is expected to create at least 400 jobs, and a $9.3 million investment from a Canadian solar equipment company in North Carolina.

If completed, the seven projects announced last month could create nearly 3,000 permanent jobs.

To date, E2 has tracked 390 major clean energy projects across 42 states and Puerto Rico since the Inflation Reduction Act passed in August 2022. In total, companies plan to invest $132 billion and hire 123,000 permanent workers.

But the report warns that momentum could grind to a halt if the House tax plan becomes law. Since the clean energy tax credits were signed into law, 45 announced projects have been canceled, downsized, or closed entirely, wiping out nearly 20,000 jobs and $16.7 billion in investments.

What’s more, Trump’s Department of Energy announced today that it was killing more than $3.7 billion in funding for carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) and decarbonization initiatives. Eighteen out of 24 projects were awarded through DOE’s Industrial Demonstrations Program (IDP), which was made law in the Inflation Reduction Act. It aimed to strengthen the economic competitiveness of US manufacturers in global markets demanding lower carbon emissions, while supporting US manufacturing jobs and communities.

Executive Director Jason Walsh of the BlueGreen Alliance said in a statement in response to today’s DOE announcement:   

The awarded projects that DOE is seeking to kill are concentrated in rural areas and red states. American manufacturers are hungry to partner with the federal government to bolster US industry. The IDP saw $60 billion worth of applications during the program selection process, a ten-times oversubscription. 

President Trump claims to be a champion of American manufacturing, but today’s announcement is further evidence that he and his Secretary of Energy are liars.

Read more: Global energy giant RWE halts US offshore wind because of Trump


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Tesla prototype spotted at factory – sparking speculation

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Tesla prototype spotted at factory – sparking speculation

A Tesla prototype was spotted at the Fremont factory in California, sparking speculation that it’s the new “cheaper Tesla”, but it looks like a regular Model Y.

A drone operator flew over the Fremont factory this week and spotted a Tesla prototype with light camouflage on the front and back ends.

The vehicle is making a lot of people talk on social media and the media as many think it could be a new “affordable model” coming to Tesla.

Other than the camouflage, the vehicle looks just like a regular Model Y:

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It’s likely one of two things: a new “stripped-down Model Y” or a Model Y Performance.

Model Y Performance is the only version that Tesla hasn’t launched since the design changeover earlier this year.

The “stripped-down Model Y” is what will replace Tesla’s upcoming “affordable models.”

We have been reporting on this new vehicle program from Tesla for a while now.

It came to life just over a year ago as a pivot for Tesla after CEO Elon Musk canceled two cheaper vehicles that Tesla was working on, commonly referred as “the $25,000 Tesla”. Those vehicles were codenamed NV91 and NV92, and they were based on the new vehicle platform that Tesla is now reserving for the Cybercab.

Instead, Musk saw that Tesla’s Model 3 and Model Y production lines were starting to be underutilized as Tesla faced demand issues. Therefore, Tesla canceled the vehicles program based on the new platform and decided to build new vehicles on Model 3/Y platform using the same production lines.

We previously reported that these electric vehicles will likely look very similar to Model 3 and Model Y.

In recent months, several other media reports reinforced that, and Tesla all but confirmed it during its latest earnings call.

Considering this looks like a regular Model Y, it could be the new cheaper and less feature rich Model Y:

Some people are claiming that this vehicle looks smaller than the Model Y, but it’s difficult to tell as the black camouflage on the ends can confuse the eye.

It looks like a very similar size when it passes near other Tesla vehicles:

What do you think it is? Let us know in the comment section below.

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Lumina hopes this 32-ton dozer makes them the Tesla of heavy equipment [video]

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Lumina hopes this 32-ton dozer makes them the Tesla of heavy equipment [video]

San Francisco-based founder Ahmed Shubber wants to emulate Elon Musk’s success in the electric construction equipment world – and he hopes his new, 32-ton electric bulldozer is enough to make the world sit up and take notice.

Since launching his company, Lumina, in 2021, Shubber has raised more than $8 million and grown the company’s global (!?) headcount to 26 people. That fruit of that team’s labor is the machine seen here. Dubbed “Moonlander,” the first-of-its-kind prototype occupies the physical footprint of something like a Caterpillar D6, but packs the blade and performance of the larger, more powerful Cat D9.

“A D6 could not push that blade,” David Wright, Lumina’s head of UK operations, told the assembled media at the Moonlander’s launch last week. “We can have that blade full of material, full dozing seven to nine cubic meters of material, for eight to 10 hours.”

Moving all that mass takes a lot of power – but getting that power back into the Moonlander’s batteries won’t take a lot of time, thanks to the machine’s 300 kW charging capability.

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“Even if you spend all morning heavy dozing and you’re a bit worried about how much juice you’ve used — well, your operators are going to take a union-mandated lunch break, right?” asks Wright. “Plug it in, and in 30 minutes, you’ve put 50% of power back in again.”

Shubber says Lumina is working to raise from $20-40 million for its Series A round to develop the company’s next electric equipment asset: a 100-ton electric excavator called Blade Runner. And, in a truly Tesla-like fashion, Shubber says he’s on track to hit an ambitious $100 million revenue target sometime in the next 24 months.

And, of course, the Blade Runner will feature state-of-the-art autonomous operating technology (because: of course it will).

We’ll see how that unfolds in 2 year’s time, I guess. In the meantime, check out this Lumina promo video for Moonlander, below, then let us know what you think of Shuber’s take on an electric job site in the comments.

Lumina ML6 electric dozer video


SOURCE | IMAGES: Lumina; via Business Insider, Earthmovers Magazine.


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