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Believe it or not, there’s nothing new about major automakers and motorcycle companies trying and failing to build and sell electric bicycles. Despite millions upon millions of e-bikes being produced and sold each year by bicycle companies, automotive companies have spent decades failing to convert their design and manufacturing experience into e-bike success.

It might sound strange, especially since electric two-wheelers are the largest category of electric vehicles in the world – and growing quicker than any other type of EV. Even in a year when e-bike sales weren’t able to continue their meteoric growth trend, the e-bike industry still grew to a record size without any indication of stopping.

So you’d think that the automotive world, the very industry that has the most to lose from drivers becoming riders, would have gotten into the game by now.

The truth is that it has, and repeatedly. The problem is that Big Auto just hasn’t succeeded at it yet.

EV Global electric bike, which was the brainchild of Lee Iacocca

Chairman of the Light Electric Vehicle Association, Ed Benjamin, who has worked in the e-bike industry for nearly as long as it has been an industry and who has also advised several automakers on their e-bike projects, recently shared his thoughts on why Big Auto has failed so spectacularly in the e-bike industry.

And he certainly isn’t short on examples.

Legendary American automotive visionary Lee Iacocca was all-in on electric bikes as far back as the 1990s. He pushed for the EV Global electric bicycle (seen above), which was so revolutionary at its time that it had the word “e-bike” emblazoned across the side to let people know what it was. The e-bike started at a modest $995 and could hit 15 mph (25 km/h) all the way back in 1997 – a speed that Europeans still haven’t figured out how to surpass nearly 30 years later.

But as Benjamin explained, even automotive great Lee Iacocca couldn’t make e-bikes work for car companies. As it turned out, the deck was stacked against him. No matter how much he wanted his e-bikes to succeed, it didn’t translate into sales at car dealerships. The $1,000 price meant that car salesmen working on commission couldn’t be bothered to sell them, certainly not when they stood to make a lot more money pushing someone into a Taurus or F150. Dealerships also quickly learned that there wasn’t money to be made in servicing e-bikes when the same car bay could turn over significantly more cash.

Ford continued with global e-bike attempts into the early 2000s but was met with either quick failures or extremely slow, limited sales.

In Asia, giants such as Honda, Panasonic, and Yamaha were also met with limited success, though the limited Japanese market was one area where their early e-bikes did succeed. Panasonic was able to sell its e-bike drive system, but that agreement was largely led by the bicycle company Giant taking the reins and using its bike industry experience to set the partnership up for success.

Yamaha, it should be pointed out, actually created the first production electric bicycle as far back as 1993, though that early model also only took off in Japan while failing to gather meaningful traction in the rest of the world.

Yamaha is one of the few success stories to date, still producing impressive e-bikes, though the company famously spins its non-auto products off into their own companies. I think we can all accept that the engineers designing Yamaha’s motorcycles aren’t heavily involved in Yamaha’s pianos or biomedical products.

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Harley-Davidson shocked the industry back in 2018 with its beautiful electric bike designs. Still, it ultimately spun the project out as an independent company, Serial One, that failed to achieve strong sales. The e-bike company was eventually sold off to another bicycle company, which is currently attempting to revive the Serial One brand.

In many of these cases, the actual product was quite impressive. Harley’s Serial One e-bikes often scored great reviews, despite not sticking the landing with sales.

It’s a tough cycle that has continued to repeat itself, with Benjamin explaining his belief that it comes down to the same root causes, “my opinion: The pain and failure has usually been when an engineering culture, proud of their creation, has turned the bikes over to a sales culture that did not truly understand or believe in the product.”

That might explain why plenty of new e-bikes bearing automotive company names released in the last few years were merely licensing deals, such as Jeep’s e-bike built by Quietkat, Hummer’s e-bike built by Recon Power Bikes, Polestar’s e-bike built by Allebike, Toyota’s e-bike built by DOUZE cycles, and Ducati’s e-bikes built by Thok Bikes, among others.

GM was one of the few companies to build an impressive electric bike entirely in-house, but the project came at the worst possible time as COVID was blamed for killing off the GM e-bike before it could succeed.

GM ARIV electric bike, which was killed off in the first few weeks of the COVID-19 pandemic

With decades of examples, you might think automakers would have given up on the dream of building and selling their own electric bikes. But that doesn’t appear to be the case.

Several major companies are still trying to develop their own models, with some even doubling down on their investments.

Porsche is one example, with the company recently buying e-bike motor manufacturers and entire e-bike companies in an attempt to bring more e-bike expertise under the Porsche nameplate.

Rivian, the US-based electric truck maker, has also significantly expanded its e-bike development team with hires from major bicycle companies. The CEO also explicitly stated the company has its eyes on an e-bike model, though didn’t share any details about the direction Rivian’s e-bike could be headed.

All of this is to say that despite automakers consistently trying and failing to bring their own e-bikes to market, one thing is crystal clear: they sure aren’t giving up.

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Trump says he wants to negotiate a nuclear deal with Iran after imposing ‘maximum pressure’

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Trump says he wants to negotiate a nuclear deal with Iran after imposing ‘maximum pressure’

U.S. President Donald Trump speaks as he signs documents in the Oval Office at the White House in Washington, U.S. Feb. 4, 2025. 

Elizabeth Frantz | Reuters

President Donald Trump on Wednesday said he wants to negotiate a nuclear deal with Iran after reimposing a “maximum pressure” campaign on the Islamic Republic.

Trump said in a Truth Social post that work should begin on such a deal “immediately.” The president said reports that the U.S. and Israel are working together to attack Iran are exaggerated.

“I would much prefer a Verified Nuclear Peace Agreement, which will let Iran peacefully grow and prosper,” Trump said in the post. The president withdrew the U.S. in 2018 from the nuclear deal negotiated by President Barack Obama, called the Joint Comprehensive Plan of Action.

The president’s comments come a day after he signed a memorandum reimposing a maximum pressure campaign on the Islamic Republic. The memorandum directed the secretaries of State and Treasury to implement a campaign to drive Iran’s oil sales to zero, including exports to China.

OPEC member Iran is the third biggest oil producer in the cartel. U.S. crude oil and global benchmark Brent futures were trading more than 1% lower on Wednesday morning.

Trump told reporters in the Oval Office on Tuesday that he was unhappy to sign the memorandum and hoped “it’s not going to have to be used in any great measure at all.”

“We don’t want to be tough on Iran, we don’t want to be tough on anybody but they just can’t have a nuclear weapon,” Trump said. The president said he would be willing to talk to his Iranian counterpart when asked by reporters Tuesday.

Trump’s overture to Iran will be complicated by his unprecedented statements on the future of Palestinians and the Gaza Strip. The president said Tuesday during a news conference with Israel Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu that Palestinians should leave the Gaza Strip so the U.S. can take the enclave over and rebuild it.

Gaza has been devastated after Israel’s more than yearlong war in the enclave, launched in response to the militant group Hamas’ devastating terrorist attack in southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023. Israel and Hamas agreed to ceasefire days before Trump took office.

Iran supports Hamas. The Islamic Republic and Israel launched a barrage of strikes against each other twice last year, raising fears that the Middle East would descend into a full-scale regional war.

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Rising star Vammo rides past 1 million battery swaps for electric motorcycles

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Rising star Vammo rides past 1 million battery swaps for electric motorcycles

Vammo, a battery-swapping service for electric motorcycles in Latin America, has just announced that the company has surpassed an impressive 1 million battery swaps in a little over a year.

The company has built its service around a combination of VMoto electric motorcycles and a battery-swapping service designed to keep those motorcycles rolling all day without stopping to charge.

Headquartered in São Paulo, Brazil, Vammo’s electric motorcycles and battery swap cabinets currently serve around 1,800 customers, with that number growing quickly. The service was launched just over a year ago and has already saved its customers a combined US $1.3 million in fuel costs. That’s on top of preventing the release of 3,050 tons of CO2 emissions.

Vammo’s subscription model saves users as much as 50% compared to gasoline-powered motorcycles, translating into annual savings of thousands of dollars. “Not only are we helping to cut carbon emissions by 85%, but we’re also putting significant savings back into the pockets of our customers,” said Jack Sarvary, Vammo’s co-founder and CEO. “Many of our users, especially delivery drivers, are saving as much as $2,000–$4,000 per year, making electric mobility both affordable and sustainable.”

That success has led to rapid growth for the company. Last year alone, Vammo saw 8x growth in both revenue and customer base.

“Our growth demonstrates the power of affordable, clean transportation,” said Billy Blaustein, Vammo’s COO. “We are proving that sustainable mobility can be both accessible and scalable.”

Vammo’s VMoto models have now become the #1 registered electric motorcycle brand in Brazil, likely making the company the top player in Latin America.

Battery swapping for electric motorcycles has gained significant interest in the last few years, especially as Gogoro has expanded its world-leading model for swappable electric scooter batteries. But unlike Gogoro, which built a swappable battery standard and then began persuading other companies to adopt it, Vammo built its service around existing electric motorcycles and their already operational battery designs.

Vammo began operations in São Paulo and has positioned its service as a solution not only for Brazil but also for broader Latin America.

Brazil is uniquely suited for electric motorcycles and battery swapping, as the country not only sells 4x the amount of motorcycles per year as the US, but has some of the cleanest electricity in the world. Over 90% of the country’s electricity is generated by clean sources, primarily hydroelectric power, with wind and solar also contributing to the mix. Compare that to the global average of just 13%.

Vammo is building on its momentum, recently announcing a partnership with app-based taxi provider 99, offering mototaxi drivers access to its electric motorcycles.

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TotalEnergies posts 21% drop in annual profit, targets buybacks of $2 billion per quarter in 2025

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TotalEnergies posts 21% drop in annual profit, targets buybacks of  billion per quarter in 2025

Poster and logo on the Coupole Tower, compagny Total’s head office renamed TotalEnergies in 2021 in the La Defense business district west of Paris in Courbevoie, France on 7 June 2024.

Antoine Boureau | Afp | Getty Images

French oil major TotalEnergies on Wednesday reported a sharp drop in full-year earnings, against a backdrop of lower crude prices and weak fuel demand.

The oil and gas giant posted full-year 2024 adjusted net income of $18.3 billion, reflecting a 21% fall from $23.2 billion a year earlier.

Analysts had expected TotalEnergies’ full-year 2024 adjusted net income to come in at $18.2 billion, according to an LSEG-compiled consensus.

The energy major reported better-than-expected fourth-quarter adjusted net income of $4.4 billion, an 8% increase on the previous quarter.

TotalEnergies said it was able to close out the year on a positive note thanks to a strong performance in integrated liquefied natural gas and integrated power.

The results buck a trend of consecutive quarterly losses. TotalEnergies’ adjusted net income had dropped for five straight quarters to notch a three-year low in September last year.

Other earnings highlights:

  • TotalEnergies’ full-year net income came in at $15.8 billion, down from $21.4 billion a year earlier.
  • The company announced a 7% increase in the 2024 dividend to 3.22 euros ($3.35) per share.

In a trading update published last month, TotalEnergies said its fourth-quarter results would likely benefit from a slight increase in hydrocarbon production, stronger gas trading and a modest increase in refining margins.

TotalEnergies announced a 7% increase in the 2024 dividend to 3.22 euros ($3.35) per share and said it will target $2 billion of share buybacks per quarter in 2025.

The company said it expects higher gas prices and robust hydrocarbon production in the first three months of 2025.

Paris-listed shares of TotalEnergies were last seen 1.4% higher during early morning deals.

The world’s top oil and gas companies have seen profits fall from record levels in 2022, when Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine prompted international benchmark Brent crude to jump to nearly $140 per barrel.

Oil prices have since cooled amid faltering global demand, with Brent crude futures averaging $80 per barrel in 2024 — about $2 per barrel less than during the previous year, according to the U.S. Energy Information Administration.

Energy giants have reported mixed fourth-quarter and full-year results amid weaker refining margins and lower crude prices.

U.S. oil giant Exxon Mobil beat Wall Street’s estimate for fourth-quarter profit last week, while U.S. oil producer Chevron and Britain’s Shell both missed analyst forecasts.

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