Intramotev successfully deploys the first battery-electric self-propelled railcar
Zero-emissions freight mobility solutions developer Intramotev is touting its latest milestone today, successfully deploying its battery-electric self-propelled railcar with a mining client based in Pennsylvania.
Intramotev is a St. Louis-based company founded four years ago with the goal of developing autonomous, zero-emission rail solutions that not only decrease costs for railways but promote environmental responsibility across a longstanding yet archaic segment in freight.
In its short tenure, Intramotev has developed unique mobility solutions that utilize software and battery-electric propulsion technology, including the TugVolt railcar. This flagship car can be controlled from a smartphone and decouple from the consist (the group of railcars as a whole) and operate independently for first and last-mile legs of trips within traditional freight lines.
The company has also developed a ReVolt railcar that can be positioned to stay within the train’s consist and capture energy using regenerative braking to reduce diesel consumption from the line’s locomotive.
Following a $200,000 grant from Michigan’s Office of Future Mobility and Electrification (OFME), Intramotev was able to further develop its TugVolt kit, putting three battery electric railcars into operation to support mining.
Less than a year later, Intramotev is reporting a successful deployment of sustainable railway technology for its freight client, Iron Senergy.
Intramotev deploys battery-electric railcar in Pennsylvania
Today, Intramotev shared it has successfully deployed its ReVolt battery-electric retrofit railcar at Iron Senergy’s Cumberland Mine in Waynesburg, Pennsylvania – described by its makers as a “world’s first.”
Leading up to today’s milestone, the company says the ReVolt railcar has already traversed 1,000 miles between its customer’s Cumberland Mine and Alicia Harbor facility. Intramotev CEO Tim Luchini spoke to the news:
We’re excited to deliver the fuel savings and environmental benefits of the ReVolt to our customer Iron Senergy. Today’s news marks an important milestone in our work to decarbonize mining and freight transportation, and we’re just getting started.
Iron Synergy founder and CEO Justin Thompson shared a similar sentiment, describing its partnership with Intramotev as a vital factor in the freight operator’s own commitments to promoting innovation and sustainability across the segment.
Looking ahead, Intramotev says it will continue customer deployments of battery electric railcar technology in the mining sector before putting its first TugVolt into operation at a calcium mine in Northern Michigan later this year.
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Tesla’s Q2 results are in, and they are way, way down from Q2 of 2024. At the same time, Nissan seems to be in serious trouble and the first-ever all-electric Dodge muscle car is getting recalled because its dumb engine noises are the wrong kind of dumb engine noises. All this and more on today’s deeply troubled episode of Quick Charge!
We’ve also got an awesome article from Micah Toll about a hitherto unexplored genre of electric lawn equipment, a $440 million mining equipment deal, and a list of incompetent, corrupt, and stupid politicians who voted away their constituents’ futures to line their pockets.
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OpenAI is distancing itself from Robinhood‘s latest crypto push after the trading platform began offering tokenized shares of OpenAI and SpaceX to users in Europe.
“These ‘OpenAI tokens’ are not OpenAI equity,” OpenAI wrote on X. “We did not partner with Robinhood, were not involved in this, and do not endorse it.”
The company said that “any transfer of OpenAI equity requires our approval — we did not approve any transfer,” and warned users to “please be careful.”
Robinhood announced the launch Monday from Cannes, France, as part of a broader product showcase focused on tokenized equities, staking, and a new blockchain infrastructure play. The company’s stock surged above $100 to hit a new all-time high following the news.
“These tokens give retail investors indirect exposure to private markets, opening up access, and are enabled by Robinhood’s ownership stake in a special purpose vehicle,” a Robinhood spokesperson said in response to the OpenAI post.
Robinhood offered 5 euros worth of OpenAI and SpaceX tokens to eligible EU users who signed up to trade stock tokens by July 7. The assets are issued under the EU’s looser investor restrictions via Robinhood’s crypto platform.
“This is about expanding access,” said Johann Kerbrat, Robinhood’s SVP and GM of crypto. “The goal with tokenization is to let anyone participate in this economy.”
The episode highlights the dynamic between crypto platforms seeking to democratize access to financial products and the companies whose names and equity are being represented on-chain
U.S. users cannot access these tokens due to regulatory restrictions.
Despite the warnings, BYD continues introducing new discounts. On Wednesday, BYD’s luxury off-road brand began offering over 50% Huawei’s smart driving tech.
BYD introduces new discounts on smart driving tech
After BYD cut prices again in May, the China Automobile Manufacturers Association (CAMA) warned that the ultra-low prices are “triggering a new round of price war panic.”
Although they didn’t single out BYD, it was pretty obvious. BYD slashed prices across 22 of its vehicles by up to 34%, triggering several automakers to follow suit in China.
BYD’s cheapest EV, the Seagull, typically starts at about $10,000 (66,800 yuan). After the price cuts, the Seagull is listed at under $8,000 (55,800 yuan).
It doesn’t look like China’s EV leader plans to slow down anytime soon. Fang Cheng Bao, BYD’s luxury off-road brand, introduced new discounts on Huawei’s smart driving tech on Wednesday.
The limited-time offer cuts the price of Huawei’s Qiankun Intelligent Driving High-end Function Package to just 12,000 yuan ($1,700).
Buyers who order the smart driving tech in July will save over 50% compared to its typical price of 32,000 yuan ($4,500).
Earlier this year, Fang Chang Bao launched the Tai 3, its most affordable vehicle, starting at 139,800 yuan ($19,300). The Tai 3 is about the size of the Tesla Model Y, but costs about half as much.
The Tai 3 will spearhead a new sub-brand of electric SUVs following the more premium Bao 8 and Bao 5 hybrid SUVs.
BYD’s luxury off-road brand sold 18,903 vehicles last month, up 50% from May and 605% compared to last year. Fang Cheng Bao has now sold over 10,000 vehicles for three consecutive months.
The Chinese EV giant sold 382,585 vehicles in total in June, an increase of 12% from last year. In the first half of the year, BYD’s cumulative sales reached over 2.1 million, a YOY increase of 33%.
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