E-quipment highlight: Caterpillar D6 XE electric drive hybrid dozer
The bright yellow D6 XE dozer might look like your everyday medium-class dozer, but underneath that vibrant bodywork it’s hiding a highly efficient electric drive system that Cat says makes it the most advanced hybrid dozer on the market.
Operating more like an extended range EV (EREV) than a conventional hybrid, the D6 XE runs a Cat C9.3B diesel engine that operates as an electrical generator, feeding power to electric motors that drives the dozer’s tracks directly. The result is instant torque, smooth, high-precision controls, and 35% better fuel efficiency (and, as a consequence, significantly lower emissions) compared to the diesel-only D6T.
35% is big in a segment where equipment can and do regularly burn 25 gallons of red dye diesel per day, and that number only gets bigger when you factor in the oil and maintenance costs saved from ditching the conventional transmission altogether. Combined with the reduced number of moving parts and reduced metal fatigue from vibration-free running, and Cat estimates its D6 XE electric drive operators are saving over $1/hour of operation in rebuild savings, alone — that’s a game-changing number!
“(A full rebuild) can be up to roughly 60 percent of new machine price,” says Sam Meeker, marketing professional at Caterpillar, citing the need for a typical rebuild at the 10,000- to 15,000-hour mark. “So you could be getting a half-price dozer for that second life.”
Turbo encabulator
First introduced in 2018, the newly updated Cat D6 XE features a switched reluctance electric motor and generator instead of the previous, permanent magnet system used in the first-gen Caterpillar electric-drive machines. The newer drivetrain is more power-dense and efficient, and makes for a generator that doesn’t require a massive, maintenance-intensive cooling system.
“We like to run this machine at a lower RPM, not only for fuel efficiency, but then it allows us to lug up into a load,” adds Meeker, hyping up the big hybrid dozer. “So when we pull the load on, instead of the tractor lugging down, it actually increases the RPM and the power output, maintaining that consistent torque … we only make as much power as we’re going to use, and we generate less heat than previous designs.”
In a bid to encourage more operators to give their electric drive models a try, Caterpillar is offering on-demand learning resources through its online platform, catoperatortraining.com. Designed to be accessible any time and from any device, Cat’s is particularly valuable for operators, whether they’re digital natives or just learning how to navigate new technologies. The company is also partnering with global equipment rental fleets like Plantforce in the UK, which (if nothing else) is absolutely phenomenal at taking pictures of heavy equipment.
Electrek’s Take
While there are a lot of people outside the urban construction space who may scoff at environmental concerns, the quest for improved efficiency and cost reduction among commercial fleet managers knows no political ideology. Add in more restrictive noise regulations and the side benefits of improved job site safety and fewer sick days, and electric equipment is a no-brainer.
Simply put: If it’s better or cheaper, fleets will buy it. If it’s better and cheaper, they’ll buy two — and electrically driven heavy equipment assets are proving to be consistently better, in a broader scope of use cases, than diesel alone.
SOURCE: Caterpillar, via Heavy Equipment Guide; featured image by Plantforce.
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First Solar just cut the ribbon on a huge new factory in Iberia Parish, Louisiana, and it dwarfs the New Orleans Superdome. The company’s $1.1 billion, fully vertically integrated facility spans 2.4 million square feet, or about 11 times the size of the stadium’s main arena.
The factory began production quietly in July, a few months ahead of schedule, and employs more than 700 people. First Solar expects that number to hit 826 by the end of the year. Once it’s fully online, the site will add 3.5 GW of annual manufacturing capacity. That brings the company’s total US footprint to 14 GW in 2026 and 17.7 GW in 2027, when its newly announced South Carolina plant is anticipated to come online.
The Louisiana plant produces First Solar’s Series 7 modules using US-made materials — glass from Illinois and Ohio, and steel from Mississippi, which is fabricated into backrails in Louisiana.
The new factory leans heavily on AI, from computer vision that spots defects on the line to deep learning tools that help technicians make real‑time adjustments.
Louisiana Governor Jeff Landry says the investment is already a win for the region, bringing in “hundreds of good-paying jobs and new opportunities for Louisiana workers and businesses.” A new economic impact analysis from the University of Louisiana at Lafayette projects that the factory will boost Iberia Parish’s GDP by 4.4% in its first full year at capacity. The average manufacturing compensation package comes in at around $90,000, more than triple the parish’s per capita income.
First Solar CEO Mark Widmar framed the new facility as a major step for US clean energy manufacturing: “By competitively producing energy technology in America with American materials, while creating American jobs, we’re demonstrating that US reindustrialization isn’t just a thesis, it’s an operating reality.”
This site joins what’s already the largest solar manufacturing and R&D footprint in the Western Hemisphere: three factories in Ohio, one in Alabama, and R&D centers in Ohio and California. Just last week, First Solar announced a new production line in Gaffney, South Carolina, to onshore more Series 6 module work. By the end of 2026, the company expects to directly employ more than 5,500 people across the US.
Read more: First Solar pours $330M into a new South Carolina solar factory
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No, it’s not the new Bolt. GM’s design team previewed a new high-riding “sporty Chevrolet EV” that should be brought to life.
Is Chevy launching a new sporty EV?
This is the all-electric vehicle Chevy should sell in the US. General Motors’ design team released a series of sketches previewing a sporty new Chevy EV.
Although it kinda looks like the new 2027 Chevy Bolt EV as a higher-sitting compact crossover SUV, the design offers a fresh take on what it should have looked like.
The new Bolt is essentially a modernized version of the outgoing EUV model with a similar compact crossover silhouette. Nissan adopted a similar style with the new 2026 LEAF as buyers continue shifting from smaller sedans and hatchbacks to crossovers and SUVs.
Will we see the sporty Chevy EV in real life? It’s not likely. For one, the “exploration sketch” is by GM China Advanced designer Charles Huang.
GM Design posted the sketches on its global social media page, but the caption read “Sporty Chevrolet EV for the China Market.”
It’s too bad. The Bolt could use a sporty sibling like an SS variant. Chevy introduced the Blazer EV SS (check out our review) for the 2026 model year, its fastest “SS” model yet. Packing up to 615 horsepower and 650 lb-ft of torque, the Chevy Blazer SS can race from 0 to 60 mph in 3.4 seconds when using Wide Open Watts (WOW) mode.
Will the Bolt be next? I wouldn’t get my hopes up. And if GM does bring the sporty Chevy EV to life, it will likely only be sold in China. Like all the fun cars these days.
What do you think of the design? Would you buy one of these in the US? Let us know your thoughts in the comments.
While deliveries of the 2027 Bolt are set to begin in early 2026, Chevy is offering some sweet deals on its current EV lineup, including up to $4,000 off in Customer Cash and 0% APR financing for 60 months.
Ready to test drive one? You can use our links below to find Chevy Equinox, Blazer, and Silverado EVs at a dealership near you.
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Environment
Podcast: Electricity is the base currency, Tesla Robotaxi crashes, new Porsche Cayenne EV, and more
In the Electrek Podcast, we discuss the most popular news in the world of sustainable transport and energy. In this week’s episode, we discuss electricity becoming the base currency, Tesla Robotaxi crashes, the new Porsche Cayenne EV, and more.
The show is live every Friday at 4 p.m. ET on Electrek’s YouTube channel.
As a reminder, we’ll have an accompanying post, like this one, on the site with an embedded link to the live stream. Head to the YouTube channel to get your questions and comments in.
After the show ends at around 5 p.m. ET, the video will be archived on YouTube and the audio on all your favorite podcast apps:
We now have a Patreon if you want to help us avoid more ads and invest more in our content. We have some awesome gifts for our Patreons and more coming.
Here are a few of the articles that we will discuss during the podcast:
Here’s the live stream for today’s episode starting at 4:00 p.m. ET (or the video after 5 p.m. ET:
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