Renault unveils three all-electric light commercial vehicles that will hit the market in 2026

Published

15 hours ago

February 10, 2025

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Renault Group is ringing in a new era of all-electric commercial vehicles, which will begin next year. The French automaker revealed the names and styles of three new all-electric light commercial vehicles (LCVs) that will feature a new skateboard platform and plenty of modularity for future fleets.

Renault is a veteran French automaker founded 125 years ago that has embraced multiple routes of electrification through its “E-Tech” program in recent years. We’ve seen several passenger and commercial EVs emerge from the company’s headquarters outside of Paris, including an R4 SUV and 600 km range semi-truck last fall and, most recently, an ultra-efficient concept called the Filante.

I’m still waiting for Renault to bring its electric version of its R17 restomod vehicle to market, but I’m sure I’m just dreaming. In the meantime, Renault has unveiled three new electric commercial vehicles under its E-Tech line, which will launch next year.

Source: Renault Group

Renault reveals three new E-Tech electric vehicles

Per a press release from Renault Group, its incoming range of light commercial vehicles will “redefine” the market segment as part of a full range of EVs that are flexible and scalable. The three new electric vehicle models were developed to meet a full range of business use cases as part of a collaboration with Flexis – an independent company founded by Renault Group, Volvo Group and CMA CGM Group.

These three initial models, named the Estafette, Goelette, and Trafic, will sit atop modular skateboard architecture developed by Ampere. The Estafette E-Tech(seen above) is a modern-day reboot of Renault’s 1960s van, reimagined as an electric vehicle for urban logistics and last-mile deliveries.

The Goellete E-Tech, seen below, is an electric version of an LCV that was built for ten years beginning in 1956. Its modern architecture enables three variants for commercial customers – chassis cab, box, and tipper.

Source: Renault Group

Last but not least is the Renault Trafic E-Tech electric, the fourth–generation model of a vehicle that was first built in 1980 and has had 2.5 million units assembled since.

Source: Renault Group

Per Renault, this entire new range of commercial electric vehicles will be built at the automaker’s Sandouville plant in France, and the plan is to hit the market sometime in 2026. Additional details have been promised in the coming months.

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British oil major BP reports sharp drop in fourth-quarter profit, vows strategy reset

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3 hours ago

February 11, 2025

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British oil major BP reports sharp drop in fourth-quarter profit, vows strategy reset

The BP logo is displayed outside a petrol station near Warminster in Wiltshire, England, on Aug. 15, 2022.

Matt Cardy | Getty Images News | Getty Images

British oil major BP on Tuesday posted a sharp drop in fourth-quarter profit on weaker refining margins, announcing a $1.75 billion share buyback and a pledge to “fundamentally” reset its strategy.

The energy firm posted underlying replacement cost profit (RC profit) — used as a proxy for net profit — at $1.169 billion in the fourth quarter, compared with $2.99 billion in the same period of last year and with an analyst forecast of $1.2 billion, according to a LSEG poll.

The company attributed its quarterly 48% drop in RC profit to “weaker realized refining margins, higher impact from turnaround activity, seasonally lower customer volumes and fuels margins and higher other businesses & corporate underlying charge.”

BP’s net debt hit just shy of $23 billion in the fourth quarter, increasing 10% year-on-year. Capital expenditure (capex) hit $3.7 billion in the October-December period, a steep drop from the $4.7 billion of fourth quarter 2024.

Despite this, the embattled energy company launched a $1.75 billion share buyback for the fourth quarter, with a dividend per ordinary share of $0.08. Analysts had previously questioned whether BP would slow down its share repurchases to reconcile its balance sheet.

“BP has guided to buybacks of $1.75bn to 1Q results, although no guidance is given beyond this. We had expected a cut to a lower run-rate with results, although there was some uncertainty whether the reduction in buyback would be given with the CMD or results. We continue to expect BP to reduce its buyback programme,” RBC analysts said Tuesday.

In its business breakdown, BP noted a 15% year-on-year drop in the RC profit performance of its gas & low carbon energy to $1.84 billion, despite a sharp recovery from $1 billion in the previous quarter. Oil production and operations jumped 37% on an annual basis, while the company flagged an overall “weak” contribution from its oil trading division following weaker refining margins.

BP shares were little changed following the results, down just 0.13% at 08:40 a.m. London time.

Reset

In a statement accompanying the results, CEO Murray Auchincloss said the company has been “reshaping” its portfolio with a “strong progress” in cutting costs and a planned further overhaul ahead.

“We now plan to fundamentally reset our strategy and drive further improvements in performance, all in service of growing cash flow and returns. It will be a new direction for bp,” he said.

Oil majors have weathered a turn in tide over the past year, as crude prices retreated after initial support following Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine and Western and G7 sanctions against Moscow’s barrels. In a January trading update, BP flagged higher corporate costs, lower fourth-quarter realized refining margins and one-off charges linked to its bio-ethanol acquisition.

BP has broadly underperformed its peers, with shares falling roughly 9% over the last year to the end of last week — compared with 6% gains for Shell. The stock gained ground on Monday, following weekend reports that activist investor Elliott Management has built a stake in the struggling oil major, fueling speculation that the influential hedge fund could pressure the energy company to shift gears on its core oil and gas businesses.

Speculation has otherwise long mounted over whether BP could become a takeover target – though the company’s £74-billion size could pose a challenge for suitors.

BP has sought to turn its fortunes through a major restructuring that included a downsize in leadership amid Auchincloss’ efforts to deliver at least $2 billion of cash savings by the end of 2026. In January, the firm expanded its cost-cutting drive to cut 4,700 of roles and last week revealed it is seeking buyers for its Ruhr Oel GmbH German refinery assets. But concerns linger over the clarity of BP’s strategic direction amid its sprawling green energy ambitions — with the company due to supply its next strategic update on Feb. 26.

Environment

Chicago EV deals, Amazon delivery vans for all, and visits from the FBI!

Published

8 hours ago

February 11, 2025

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Chicago EV deals, Amazon delivery vans for all, and visits from the FBI!

On today’s wheelin’ and dealin’ episode of Quick Charge, we take a look at a $9,140 deal on a 2025 Nissan LEAF*** in Chicago, things you can do with a robotic lawnmower, and talk about the tough times Tesla is experiencing while its CEO asks if you’ve seen Kyle.

We’ve also got some fresh new additions to our list of 0% interest EV and PHEV financing offers, a hot new commercial electric van heading to market, and an industry icon reaches a new, multibillion dollar threshold of ZEV funding. All this and more – enjoy!

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New episodes of Quick Charge are recorded, usually, Monday through Thursday (and sometimes Sunday). We’ll be posting bonus audio content from time to time as well, so be sure to follow and subscribe so you don’t miss a minute of Electrek’s high-voltage daily news.

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Drop us a line at tips@electrek.co. You can also rate us on Apple Podcasts and Spotify, or recommend us in Overcast to help more people discover the show.

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New York awards $60M to Revel to install 267 DC fast chargers

Published

10 hours ago

February 10, 2025

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New York awards M to Revel to install 267 DC fast chargers

New York Governor Kathy Hochul today announced it would loan $60 million to Revel to triple its EV charging infrastructure across New York City.

NY Green Bank (NYGB), the state’s clean energy investment fund and a division of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA), is providing the loan to Revel, New York City’s largest provider of public DC fast-charging. It’s NYGB’s first EV charging infrastructure transaction.

The loan will allow Revel to more than triple its current New York City public fast-charging network in 2025. It will pay for the construction of 267 new charging stalls across nine sites and support the design and build of EV charging stations.

Revel will complete construction of the below 178 sites in the next 12 months, with the remainder to be completed by 2027. (Those with asterisks are in disadvantaged communities):

60 charging stalls in Maspeth, Queens, which will be the largest fast-charging station in the Northeast US
44 charging stalls near LaGuardia Airport, making it the largest fast-charging station near an airport in the US*
24 charging stalls at John F. Kennedy International Airport (JFK), making it the largest charging station at the airport*
30 charging stalls in Greenpoint, Brooklyn
20 charging stalls in the Port Morris section of the Bronx*

Revel broke ground in November at JFK Airport, adjacent to the main rideshare vehicle waiting area, with support from the Port Authority of New York and New Jersey. With funding from NYGB, Revel will now be able to complete the construction of the 24 charging stalls. That site will open in Q1 2025 and is expected to be one of the busiest EV charging stations in the country.

NYSERDA’s president and CEO, Doreen M. Harris, said, “Increasing the state’s charging capabilities is a step forward in ensuring New Yorkers can plug in and drive clean, and we commend Revel’s leadership in this regard in a major hub and in high-impact locations such as major airports.”

Revel charging stations are open to the public on a 24/7 basis for any make and model EV. All chargers installed at future locations will have speeds of at least 320 kilowatts (kW).

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