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The fallout from robotaxi company Cruise continues, as now General Motors has just filed a lawsuit against San Francisco for $121 million, in what it calls unfair taxes and penalties since it acquired Cruise. GM argues that San Francisco charged the company an inflated tax rate because it factored in its Cruise self-driving car division, which GM says is a separate entity.

It all gets a bit muddy, but GM argues that San Francisco has unfairly tied its global revenue to Cruise’s side of the business, tallying up a taxable bill of $3 billion last year alone, rather than a more modest figure generated by GM alone, Bloomberg reports. Since 2016, when GM bought Cruise, which is headquartered in San Francisco, GM has paid $108 million in city taxes to San Francisco, plus $13 million in interest. And now the company is suing to get that money back.

GM argues, not counting Cruise, it has very low sales in San Francisco and practically no personnel, with no physical locations, no manufacturing plants, and no dealerships located there.

In the lawsuit, which was filed with the California Superior Court and the County of San Francisco, GM claims that its operations and revenue models are not shared with Cruise, and that the two companies had an arrangement to operate “at arm’s length,” according to Bloomberg.

GM has already been hemorrhaging money from its big bet on Cruise, having lost $1.9 billion on Cruise expenses between January and September this year, in addition to a $732 million loss in the third quarter. Since Cruise’s infamous incident involving a pedestrian, GM has stepped in to take a bigger role in leading the company, with the automaker’s general counsel Craig Glidden now co-president along with Cruise’s Mo Elshenawy. 

As for Cruise, the company has been in a nosedive since October 2 when a Cruise robotaxi dragged a San Francisco pedestrian more than 20 feet before braking – the pedestrian was first hit by a human-driving car before being flung into the path of a Cruise vehicle. California’s Department of Motor Vehicles quickly pulled Cruise’s operating permit, with Cruise voluntarily pausing all of its operations nationwide soon thereafter.

Meanwhile, a federal probe and independent investigations also dug up internal documents that detailed pretty awful details about the vehicle’s algorithm, that it had trouble identifying children, which wasn’t a secret to company staff.

Since, GM has stepped in to take a bigger role, with CEO and founder Kyle Vogt resigning on November 19, followed by a mass layoff of 900 employees as well as nine top execs.

Cruise is facing a potential $1.5 million in fines and additional sanctions over its failure to disclose details about the accident. So, unfortunately for GM, this headache isn’t going away any time soon.

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DHL picks Mercedes eSprinter as it expands its electric van fleet

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DHL picks Mercedes eSprinter as it expands its electric van fleet

DHL Express has more than 10,000 eSprinter vans in its global delivery fleet, but none of those have been deployed in North America – until now, that is! The company recently added 45 new Mercedes eSprinter panel vans, and they’ve got plans for plenty more!

While Mercedes offers its eSprinters with a promised 206 mile estimated range, DHL says it’s consistently seen them exceed 240 miles in stop-and-go delivery duty, making them the longest-range battery electric vehicles in DHL’s US fleet.

This extended capacity makes them ideally suited for urban logistics while expanding their potential use in longer delivery routes. The eSprinter vans also offer the same massive cargo capacity as their diesel-powered brothers, making them efficient last-mile delivery solutions that don’t compromise on payload or operational reliability.

And, of course, the eSprinter will do all of that without the noise, vibration, and harmful carbon emissions of diesel.

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“Electrifying our fleet is one of the most visible and impactful ways we are moving toward a more sustainable future,” explains Greg Hewitt, CEO of DHL Express, US. “The Mercedes-Benz eSprinter brings an extended range and proven cargo capabilities that allow us to serve our customers with zero emissions, while also advancing our global goal of more sustainable logistics. These vehicles not only strengthen our operations in major US cities but also set the stage for future electric fleet growth across the Americas.”

The 45 eSprinters will see deployment in Chicago, Indiana, and Pittsburg, and will act as a first step DHL’s global Sustainability Roadmap, which will see the company electrify 66% of its last-mile US delivery fleet (and some of its long-haul fleet operations) by 2030.

Electrek’s Take


DHL reaches 50 electric truck milestone with Orange EV, plans to double down
Orange EV; via DHL.

In addition to these 45 vans, DHL is electrifying its European and Asian delivery fleets, ramping up its sustainable aviation fuel use, and even exploring electric semis, eVTOL and hybrid aircraft deliveries, and more.

In short, they’re doing the right thing – or seem to be, anyway. Whether or not that commitment to decarbonization will win them more American customers remains to be seen.

SOURCE | IMAGES: DHL, via PR Newswire.


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Enphase debuts a new US off-grid solar and battery system

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Enphase debuts a new US off-grid solar and battery system

Enphase Energy just launched a new off-grid system that lets homeowners power their homes without a utility connection – even for extended periods. The California-based Enphase says the off-grid setup delivers a seamless way to live independently from the grid while still using solar, batteries, and a standby AC generator.

A full off-grid setup

The new system combines Enphase’s IQ Battery 5P with embedded grid-forming microinverters, IQ8 Series Microinverters with Sunlight JumpStart, and a third-party standby AC generator. The components work together to supply power to a home and automatically manage energy sources to maximize efficiency and reliability.

If the batteries are drained and the generator runs out of fuel, the Sunlight JumpStart feature can automatically recharge the batteries the next morning once the sun comes up.

The IQ Battery 5P delivers 3.84 kVA of power per 5 kWh of capacity, and systems can be scaled up to 40 kWh and 15.4 kVA. That’s enough power to start big household appliances like HVAC systems or water pumps. The IQ System Controller 3G provides the backbone, managing solar, batteries, and generator inputs to deliver up to 46 kVA of off-grid power.

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Smarter control and connectivity

Each system connects to the cloud through Enphase’s IQ Combiner 5C HDK, which bundles solar interconnection, communications, and metering into one box. For homes without reliable broadband, the built-in 4G LTE Cat 4 modem keeps the system online for monitoring, firmware updates, and remote support.

Homeowners can manage everything from the Enphase App – from solar generation and battery status to generator integration and load control.

Why it matters

As grid outages become more common and homeowners look for ways to gain energy independence, off-grid systems like this are becoming more appealing.

“With the launch of our off-grid solution, we are giving homeowners a reliable path to complete energy independence,” said Nitish Mathur, Enphase’s SVP of customer experience. Enphase says over 100 homes are already operating entirely off-grid using its technology. The company plans to expand availability beyond the US in 2026.

Read more: Battery boom: 5.6 GW of US energy storage added in Q2


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Global offshore wind surges ahead as Trump sinks US progress

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Global offshore wind surges ahead as Trump sinks US progress

Global offshore wind targets are still strong enough to triple global capacity by 2030, despite the US’s offshore wind stagnation under Trump. A new analysis from energy think tank Ember and the Global Offshore Wind Alliance (GOWA) shows that the rest of the world is charging forward, underscoring confidence in offshore wind as a cornerstone of future clean energy systems.

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