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The world’s largest automaker wants to catch up in the global EV race after falling behind rivals like Tesla and BYD. On Wednesday, Toyota announced that its $14 billion EV battery plant in North Carolina is open for business. The new facility will begin shipping batteries for Toyota’s electric vehicles in April. Meanwhile, Toyota revealed separate plans to challenge BYD and other EV leaders in China.

Toyota will begin building EV batteries in the US in April

A little over three years after Toyota revealed plans to build a new EV battery plant in North Carolina, the facility is about to open its doors.

After releasing Q3 earnings on Wednesday, the company announced that the Toyota Battery Manufacturing North Carolina (TBMNC) plant had finished preparations. Toyota said the facility “is ready to begin production and will start shipping batteries for North American electrified vehicles in April.”

The plant will produce batteries for Toyota electric vehicles (EVs), plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), and hybrid models. Toyota invested nearly $14 billion, creating about 5,000 jobs as its new “epicenter” of North American battery production.

To give you an idea, Toyota’s new EV battery plant is about the size of 121 football fields, at over seven million square feet.

Toyota-EV-battery-US
(Source: Toyota)

TBMNC is Toyota’s 11th manufacturing plant in the US and its first in-house battery factory outside Japan. The plant will finally begin shipping batteries in April. When fully operational, Toyota expects output to reach over 30 GWh annually.

Toyota-EV-battery-China
(Source: Toyota)

In a separate press release on Wednesday, Toyota announced it will establish a wholly-owned company in Shanghai, China, to produce EVs and batteries for the Lexus brand.

According to Toyota, local Chinese companies “will take the lead in planning and developing BEVs” as it looks to keep pace with BYD and other domestic EV makers. The company said its goal is to “become a company that is more loved and supported by the people of China.

Toyota-EV-battery-US
2025 Lexus RZ 450e (Source: Lexus)

The new EV company is expected to begin production “after 2027,” with an annual production capacity of around 100,000 units.

Electrek’s Take

Toyota’s announcement comes as it quickly falls behind in the industry’s shift to EVs in major sales regions, including the US and China.

Last year, Toyota sold just 18,750 bZ4X electric SUVs in the US. In comparison, Japan’s Honda sold over 33,000 Prologue models in the US in 2024, and it began deliveries in March. Even the Nissan Ariya outsold the bZ4X with nearly 19,800 models sold.

The situation is even more severe in China, where Toyota is losing ground to low-cost domestic EVs. After sales fell 9% in China last year, Toyota blamed “the shift to new energy vehicles” and “intensifying price competition.”

Can Toyota turn things around? Producing more efficient EVs and batteries will be a start. What are your thoughts? Let us know in the comments.

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Royal Enfield unveils Flying Flea S6 scrambler-style electric motorcycle built for urban adventure

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Royal Enfield unveils Flying Flea S6 scrambler-style electric motorcycle built for urban adventure

Royal Enfield’s new electric motorcycle brand, Flying Flea, just pulled the wraps off its second model – the scrambler-inspired FF.S6 – at EICMA 2025, and it’s an agile, tech-packed machine that brings serious trail-ready vibes to city streets.

Inspired by the iconic 1940s Flying Flea motorcycle (which was literally parachuted into battle, hence the logo), the FF.S6 is a modern reimagining with off-road chops and futuristic tech. Royan Enfield assures us that this is a far cry from an average urban electric motorcycle. Instead, it’s a lightweight, connected, and capable machine that blends classic scrambler style with serious smart features.

Built on a lightweight frame with staggered 19-inch front and 18-inch rear wheels, a USD front fork, and chain final drive, the FF.S6 is ready for both tight urban corners and loose gravel backroads. A high-torque electric motor paired with a magnesium finned battery case keeps weight low while enhancing cooling, and the long enduro-style seat offers comfort for longer rides.

Tech-wise, the FF.S6 goes way beyond what you’d expect from a typical commuter. A circular high-res touchscreen display nods to the original Flying Flea while delivering fully connected features, including lean-angle sensing ABS, traction control, off-road mode, and built-in navigation. Voice Assist lets riders launch music or maps hands-free through their phone, and OTA updates ensure the bike gets smarter over time.

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The system is powered by a Snapdragon QWM2290 processor, the same class of chip you’d find in advanced smartphones. Riders can use a smartwatch or phone app to manage everything from keyless start to charging status and diagnostics.

Production of the FF.S6 is expected to begin by the end of 2026.

Electrek’s Take

Sure, this is largely just an experiment in applying some mods to the same motorcycle prototype that Royal Enfield showed us last year, but it’s a cool-looking example of it! And while we’re still waiting to see what these bikes will cost (not to mention a few more hard and fast tech specs), I’m glad to see that Royal Enfield’s Flying Flea team is jumping in with bold design and bleeding-edge software. The FF.S6 looks like a scrambler but thinks like a smartphone and rides like an urban bike – likely. And for a new wave of connected urban riders, that might be the perfect combination.

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Orsted swings to quarterly net loss as Trump’s offshore wind battle takes its toll

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Orsted swings to quarterly net loss as Trump's offshore wind battle takes its toll

A turbine blade is lifted onto a rack near tower sections at the Revolution Wind project assembly site at State Pier in New London, Connecticut, US, on Friday, Oct. 24, 2025.

Bloomberg | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Danish renewables giant Orsted on Wednesday reported a quarterly net loss as the beleaguered company continues to battle U.S. President Donald Trump’s anti-wind policies.

The world’s biggest offshore wind farm group posted a net loss of 1.7 billion Danish kroner ($261.8 million) for the July-September period. The result, which was slightly better than analysts feared, was significantly down from profit of 5.17 billion Danish kroner in the same period last year.

Orsted flagged third-quarter impairment costs of nearly 1.8 billion Danish kroner.

The company, however, reiterated its full-year earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) guidance of 24-27 billion Danish kroner, excluding earnings from new partnerships and cancellation fees.

It comes shortly after the company announced it had reached a deal to sell a 50% stake in its Hornsea 3 offshore wind farm in the U.K. to Apollo Global Management in a deal worth $6 billion.

“I’m satisfied with the good progress across our entire construction portfolio and our solid operational performance,” Orsted CEO Rasmus Errboe said in a statement.

“Our key focus is to continue delivering on our business plan, which will enable Ørsted to remain a global leader of offshore wind with a strong foothold in Europe,” he added.

Shares of Orsted were 1.2% higher on Wednesday morning. The stock price has fallen sharply this year amid concerted efforts from the White House to halt several ongoing developments and suspend new licensing.

Vestas shares pop

Danish wind turbine firm Vestas, meanwhile, reported stronger-than-expected third-quarter earnings.

The firm on Wednesday said that operating profit came in at 416 million euros ($477.8 million) for the July-September period, above expectations of 305 million euros estimated by analysts in a company-compiled consensus.

Shares of Vestas jumped more than 14% on the news, soaring to the top of the pan-European Stoxx 600 index, as investors welcomed signs of a successful turnaround following years of losses.

Asked about some of the headwinds facing the wind industry, notably from the Trump administration, Vestas CEO Henrik Andersen said the company has a “well-established” supply chain in the U.S.

“For us, we see the U.S., both customers and the buildout in the U.S., as some of our core responsibility to help the U.S. with,” Andersen told CNBC’s “Squawk Box Europe” on Wednesday.

“Then sometimes maybe we have to get a bit of a slap that it is not everyone that likes the nature of a wind turbine. But I think, in general, … energy drives decision making and [the] cost of energy drives decision making,” he added.

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NIU’s scooter-sized electric microcar is actually headed for production

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NIU's scooter-sized electric microcar is actually headed for production

Earlier this year, we covered the unveiling of the NIUMM, an electric microcar designed for urban residents (and especially those with a NIU scooter already, since it shares the same batteries). Now the company is actually bringing it to market.

The electric microcar was on display at EICMA 2025, the Milan Motorcycle Show, where NIU showed off how it shares the same drivetrain as its NQi-series scooters.

The small format L6e quadricycle uses a pair of NQi batteries – the same ones from NIU’s scooters – to power the little not-a-car up to around 70 km (43 miles) at speeds of up to 45 km/h (28 mph). That’s the maximum allowable speed for the L6e class.

For anyone who already owns the scooter, those two batteries may be sufficient. But the range can be nearly doubled by carrying a second pair of batteries in the convenient extra battery slots built into the vehicle.

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When the NIUMM was originally launched, it wasn’t yet clear if it was actually headed for production, or at least when that may be. But NIU’s Director of International, Sieghart Michielsen, explained that the vehicle is finishing homologation testing now, marking the last major obstacle to its commercial launch.

L6e quadricycles have carved out a unique and growing niche in European cities, where their compact size, low speed, and lightweight classification make them ideal for navigating dense urban environments. These light four-wheeled vehicles are limited to a top speed of 45 km/h (28 mph) and a maximum weight of 425 kg (excluding batteries), allowing them to be driven with a moped license in many countries.

That accessibility, combined with their affordability and electric drivetrains, has made L6e quadricycles especially popular among teenagers, city dwellers, and older adults looking for an easy-to-use alternative to cars.

One of the most iconic examples is the Citroen Ami, a no-frills, ultra-compact electric vehicle that has gained cult status in urban areas thanks to its minimalist design, €7,000 price tag, and availability through subscription or car-sharing services. My wife and I spent a week living with a Citroen Ami while on vacation in Greece, and it proved to be a fascinating way to navigate around.

Other standout L6e models like the Renault Twizy, the Microlino, and the Eli Zero, have helped demonstrate real demand for niche, small vehicles. These vehicles offer just enough comfort and protection from the elements for short city trips, while avoiding the cost, complexity, and parking headaches of full-size cars –making them an increasingly attractive option in Europe’s car-light future.

NIU could leverage the growing momentum for these types of vehicles if it can stick the landing with the NIUMM. While we still don’t have solid pricing or availability timelines yet, it looks like we’re looking at sooner rather than later.

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