Jeep, Ram owner plots EV ramp up in Michigan to prep first electric models for launch
Jeep and Ram owner Stellantis is investing over $406 million to retool three Michigan plants as part of plans to ramp up EV production. The new funding comes as it preps for the first electric Jeep, Dodge, and Ram EV pickup to hit the US market.
Jeep, Ram to kick off Stellantis’ EV ramp up in the US
Stellantis announced today’s new investments are part of a “multi-energy strategy.” Over $235 million of the funding will accelerate the retooling of its Sterling Heights Assembly Plant (SHAP).
The company confirmed the SHAP facility will be its first in the US to build an all-electric vehicle, Ram’s electric pickup. Stellantis said the Ram 1500 REV electric pickup will launch in late 2024 and be built alongside the 2025 Ram 1500 Ramcharger (range-extended model).
Based on the STLA Frame platform, Ram’s electric pickup offers up to 500 (229 kWh battery) or 350 miles (168 kWh battery) range.
Other investments include about $97.6 million into its Warren Truck Assembly Plant (WTAP) to prepare for Jeep’s first global EV, the Wagoneer S.
Jeep’s Wagoneer S will be one of four EVs launched globally by the end of 2025. The other three include the Wrangler-inspired Recon EV, a new mainstream electric crossover SUV, and a Renegade EV starting under $25,000.
Stellantis will also retool its Dundee Engine Plant (DEP) to assemble, weld, and test battery trays for its STLA Frame architecture.
The facility will also produce front and rear beams for the STLA Large platform. Production is slated for 2024 and 2026, respectively.
The new investments are part of Stellantis’s broader Dare Forward 2030 strategy, which calls for 100% of passenger car sales in Europe and 50% of its passenger car and light-duty truck sales in the US to be electric by 2030.
Dodge, another Stellantis brand, is launching its first EV, the 2024 Charger Daytona. The brand claims the Scat Pack model maintains its title as the “World’s quickest and most powerful muscle car.”
Electrek’s Take
Stellantis is about to launch the first Jeep, Dodge, and Ram EVs in North America just as US rivals Ford and GM pull back on major initiatives.
Ford is scrapping plans for its electric three-row SV, opening the door for Jeep, which will launch its first EV in the US later this year. Instead, Ford is doubling down on smaller, more affordable electric cars.
GM pushed back several EV projects, including the opening of its electric truck plant in Michigan and an EV battery factory in Indiana.
Will Jeep and Ram take advantage of the opportunity? Jeep is undergoing a brand revamp and is looking to reverse a five-year sales slump.
According to CEO Antonio Filosa, Jeep’s electric SUV will not launch until it is of “perfect quality” as the company looks to turn things around in its most important market. The Wagoneer S is expected to play a key role.
British Columbia got its first 400 kW DC fast charger last week at Canadian C-store chain On The Run, but that’s not the good part. As part of a limited time offer, these chargers are FREE!
The Canadian convenience store chain just took the wraps off its new, ABB-developed, 400 kW chargers earlier this month, but they’re already planning to bring the ultra-fast 400 kW dispensers to at least four more locations in BC this spring, and have them online just in time for the summer road trip season – something On The Run hopes its customers will appreciate.
“The A400 charger delivers an enhanced customer experience, with reliability and performance from a 32-inch screen to higher power charging sessions and power sharing,” reads the company’s official announcement, via LinkedIn. “Download the Journie Rewards app to start the charge – free for a limited time.”
On The Run’s new 400 kW ABB DC fast chargers are compatible with CCS and CHAdeMO plugs, and can accommodate Tesla and other NACS-equipped vehicles with an adapter. That said, the company seems to imply that Tesla drivers in particular will have a maximum charging speed of “just” 50 kW, which feel hilarious (given the current state of affairs between Tesla and the Canadian government), but probably isn’t.
In addition to the ABB A400 400 kW units shown here, On The Run locations also employ the ABB Terra 184 dispensers rated at 180 kW. On The Run plans similar deployments at the four BC locations mentioned above, as well as two more each in Quebec and Ontario slated to go live towards the end of this year.
Electrek’s Take
Tesla’s controversial CEO Elon Musk once mocked 350 kW charging speed as being “for a child’s toy,” despite the fact that, nearly nine years later, his own cars and Superchargers can barely make it to 325 kW while others have sailed right on past. I made fun of that fact on the Quick Charge episode shown, above – and, while I do think it’s funny and relevant, the much more relevant piece of news here is that companies like BP Pulse, Revel, and Wallbox are actively deploying 400 kW solutions, today (while others hit the same mark as far back as 2017).
It’s just a fact: Tesla has fallen way behind.
SOURCE | IMAGES: On The Run, via Electric Autonomy.
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Terawatt Infrastructure‘s first medium- and heavy-duty electric charging truck stop in California is now online, in Rancho Dominguez.
Located 12 miles north of the ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles, the private Rancho Dominguez site, which is shared among multiple fleets, will support electric trucking fleet operations in and out of the largest container ports in the US.
First customers include Dreaded Trucking, Hight Logistics, PepsiCo, Quick Container Drayage, Southern Counties Express, Tradelink Transport, and WestCoast Trucking & Warehousing.
Terawatt’s electric charging truck stop features 20 pull-through and bobtail DC fast charging stalls with a capacity of 7 megawatts (MW), enabling charging for up to 125 trucks per day using a simple reservations system. Terawatt’s site features a proprietary charge management system, in-house technicians, 24/7 customer service, and onsite parts management.
“This launch underscores growing collaboration between enterprises, shippers, carriers, and charging infrastructure providers to advance sustainable technologies across logistics and transportation operations, especially in the medium and heavy-duty sectors,” said Neha Palmer, CEO and cofounder of Terawatt. Palmer added that the company will bring another charging site online in Rialto, California, in June.
Terawatt joined some of the world’s largest shippers and carriers in September 2024 to launch the I-10 Consortium heavy-duty EV operations pilot, the “first-ever US over-the-road electrified corridor.” Terawatt is providing charging infrastructure, including software, operations, and maintenance support at six of its owned charging hubs along the I-10 corridor.
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In its most aggressive attack against offshore wind yet, the Trump administration halted the $5 billion Empire Wind 1, already under construction off New York’s coast.
Norwegian developer Equinor announced yesterday that it received notice from the Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) ordering Empire Wind 1 to halt all activities on the outer continental shelf until BOEM has completed its review. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum posted this tweet yesterday:
Burgum gave no indication of what insufficiencies there were in the approval process for the fully permitted offshore wind project, despite Trump’s recent declaration of a national energy emergency that speeds up permitting processes.
The commercial lease for the 810-megawatt (MW) Empire Wind 1’s federal offshore wind area was signed in March 2017 during the first Trump administration. It was approved by the Biden administration in November 2023 and began construction in 2024.
The project is being developed under contract with the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA). Empire Wind 1, which was due to come online in 2027, has the potential to power 500,000 New York homes.
“Halting construction of fully permitted energy projects is the literal opposite of an energy abundance agenda,” said American Clean Power Association CEO Jason Grumet in a statement. “We encourage the administration to quickly address perceived inadequacies in the prior permit approvals so that this project can complete construction and bring much-needed power to the grid.”
As Electrek reported, Equinor secured $3 billion to finance Empire Wind 1 in January. The total amount drawn under the project finance term loan facility as of March 31 was around $1.5 billion.
As of March 31, Empire Wind has a gross book value of around $2.5 billion, including South Brooklyn Marine Terminal (pictured above), which was expected to become the US’s largest dedicated port facility for offshore wind.
In response to BOEM’s stop work order, New York Governor Kathy Hochul issued the following statement:
Every single day, I’m working to make energy more affordable, reliable and abundant in New York and the federal government should be supporting those efforts rather than undermining them. Empire Wind 1 is already employing hundreds of New Yorkers, including 1,000 good-paying union jobs as part of a growing sector that has already spurred significant economic development and private investment throughout the state and beyond.
As Governor, I will not allow this federal overreach to stand. I will fight this every step of the way to protect union jobs, affordable energy and New York’s economic future.
Equinor says it’s considering appealing BOEM’s order.
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