The European Central Bank has raised concerns over an idea to impose a cap on gas prices in Europe.
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The European Central Bank is worried about the potential risks to financial markets from an EU-wide cap on natural gas prices.
The bloc has been in intense discussions for several weeks over how to impose a limit on gas prices. The measure — designed to prevent sky-high costs for consumers — is proving controversial for Europe amid an acute energy crisis following Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
The European Commission, the executive arm of the EU, suggested in November that the cap should sit at 275 euros ($290.33) per megawatt hour. However, several member states argued this did not go far enough and was unlikely be triggered.
The Dutch TTF, Europe’s main benchmark for natural gas prices, traded around 135.50 euros per megawatt hour Friday.
Discussions on the cap continue among the EU’s 27 member states ahead of a ministerial meeting Tuesday — as the ECB warns the cap could have repercussions for financial markets.
“The ECB acknowledges that mechanisms aimed at moderating extreme price levels and volatility in wholesale gas markets may, in principle, alleviate a number of risks to financial stability, including the risks exposed during periods of elevated and volatile gas prices in 2022,” the central bank said in a document Thursday.
“However, the ECB considers that the current design of the proposed market correction mechanism may, in some circumstances, jeopardise financial stability in the euro area,” it added.
The comments are in line with concerns raised by countries such as Germany and the Netherlands, which have asked for stronger guarantees that the cap is not going to disturb markets.
Supporters of the price cap have argued that the instrument will be monitored regularly and can be stopped if regulators, including the European Central Bank, identify any financial distress.
Some are hoping that a decision on the price cap can be reached at the meeting of EU energy ministers in Brussels, Belgium.
“We hope this will close at the ministers’ level next week. But there are still discussions on the sidelines. We will see,” an official working for the prime minister of an EU country, who did not want to be named due to the sensitivity of the talks, told CNBC Thursday.
Another official working in Brussels, who did not want to be named due to their proximity to the talks, said: “Consensus seems very much out of reach.”
The impasse over the measure highlights how sensitive — and technical — it is.
Indeed, some energy ministers have described the initial proposal to cap prices at 275 euros per megawatt hour as a “joke.”
Many nations, such as Poland, Greece, Spain and Portugal, are keen to implement the price cap. These countries are less able to mitigate the impact of the energy crisis on consumers, and have been pushing for EU-wide solutions as a result.
Kostas Skrekas, Greece’s environment and energy minister, told CNBC’s Julianna Tatelbaum last month that a cap should be below 200 euros per megawatt hour.
“[A] price cap at 275 euro is not a price cap. Nobody can … stand buying gas at this expensive price for a long time. We surely believe that the price cap below 200 euro, between 150 and 200 euro, would be more realistic,” he said.
Two European officials confirmed to CNBC that the current proposal being discussed is a cap of 220 euros per megawatt hour. However, this could change again before ministers meet on Tuesday.
Under the same proposal, the cap would only be triggered when prices are 58 euros higher than the LNG reference price for 10 consecutive trading days, and European gas prices exceeded the price cap for two weeks.
Volvo CE arrived at bauma 2025 in Munich, Germany with a groundbreaking (Ha!) electric line of heavy equipment options that includes the new A30 Electric articulated haul truck – a world’s first from the Swedish equipment brand!
Volvo CE is calling its bauma display a milestone moment in sustainable innovation, raising the bar with its first-ever zero-emission only lineup at the Munich-based show.
The star of the show, hoever, is the game-changing reveal of the never-before-seen A30 Electric articulated hauler, representing the first vehicle of its kind in what is both a key industrial segment for Volvo and a world’s first for a series production BEV in its class.
“This zero-emission lineup is a marker of our commitment to drive change,” explains Melker Jernberg, President of Volvo CE. “Together with our pioneering service, solutions and updated portfolio of conventional machine variants, we show that we stand alongside our customers to support them across every stage of their journey. We show that we are committed to our ambitions, not just because we can, but because it is the right thing to do.”
60-years since Volvo revolutionised the construction industry with the launch of Gravel Charlie, the world’s first articulated hauler, Volvo now brings its latest game-changing articulated hauler solution to the market: the A30 Electric – the world’s first battery powered articulated hauler in its class. Fully electric and zero-emissions – contributing to a significant reduction in energy costs and maintenance – the A30 Electric delivers all the unrivalled off-road performance, operator comfort and durability you expect from Volvo, ready to bring electrified hauling to a range of segments including quarrying, mining and construction.
The new Volvo A30 Electric offers a 64,000 lb. (32 ton)/23.3 cubic yard payload capacity and “full day” operation thanks to its 245 kWh li-ion battery.
In addition to the new A30 Electric haul truck, Volvo CE brought a number of new or updated models to the show. All of the equipment assets, as well as Volvo’s brand-agnostic telematics and fleet management solution, Site Operarions, can be experienced at Volvo CE’s interactive Solutions Bar all this week at bauma Munich.
Volvo CE at bauma 2025
Volvo EWR150 Electric wheeled excavator; via Volvo CE.
Tesla has stopped taking orders for its Model S and Model X flagship electric vehicles in China – seemingly in reaction to new tariffs.
In China, Tesla produces Model 3 and Model Y vehicles locally at Gigafactory Shanghai for the domestic market and some exports.
Model S and Model X are exclusively produced in the US at Tesla’s Fremont factory in California. The automaker imported the vehicles from the US into China.
Amid President Trump’s new trade wars, the US is now imposing 145% tariffs on all Chinese goods, and China responded by implementing 84% tariffs on US goods, including vehicles.
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This would almost double the cost of US vehicles imported in China, including Tesla’s Model S and Model X.
In the middle of the night, Tesla shut down its Model S and Model X online configurations in China – meaning that Chinese customers can’t place new orders for the electric vehicles.
This isn’t expected to significantly impact Tesla’s business, considering the automaker delivered just over 2,000 Model S and Model X vehicles in China in 2024.
Tesla is still selling what it has in inventory already in China. Still, after a quick inventory check, it appears to have very low new Model S inventory and virtually no Model X.
Electrek’s Take
One of the first victims of the trade war in the EV space. It kills a relatively small market of about 2,000 vehicles for Tesla in China, but those are profitable vehicles, which is not the case for most vehicles Tesla sells in the country these days.
90% of the vehicles Tesla delivers in China are Model 3 and Model Y RWD, which are low-margin vehicles that Tesla has to subsidize 0% financing on to move. It results in the automaker making little to no profit on those vehicles.
In the case of Model S/X in China, we are only talking about roughly $170 million in potential lost revenue for Tesla, but at least the company was making some profits on those.
As we previously reported, Tesla’s biggest concerns amid this trade war are the tariffs on Chinese battery cells entering the US, which support its Megapack and Powerwall energy business, and Chinese buyers turning away from American brands.
If the trade war with China escalates even more, Tesla could even start worrying about the status of its factory in Shanghai, which is a rare auto factory wholly owned by a foreign automaker in China.
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Lucid Gravity Grand Touring in Aurora Green (Source: Lucid)
Lucid Motors has announced that it acquired some of Nikola Motor’s assets out of its bankruptcy, including its factory, and it will offer jobs to over 300 of its employees.
Now, Lucid Motors, an electric vehicle manufacturer, has announced that it purchased some of Nikola’s assets out of a bankruptcy auction.
The company wrote in a press release:
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Lucid Group, Inc. (Nasdaq: LCID), maker of the world’s most advanced electric vehicles, today announced it has reached an agreement to acquire select facilities and assets in Arizona previously belonging to Nikola Corporation, subject to approval by the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Delaware. The transaction does not include the acquisition of Nikola’s business, customer base, or technology related to Nikola’s hydrogen fuel cell electric trucks.
In Arizona, Lucid’s Casa Grande factory, where it produces the Air and Gravity EVs, is only about 25 minutes away from Nikola’s Coolidge factory, where it used to assemble its trucks.
Lucid confirmed that it is taking over this facility and Nikola’s headquarters in nearby Phoenix:
As part of the agreement, Lucid will take over Nikola’s former Coolidge manufacturing facility (680 E Houser Rd, Coolidge, AZ), as well as the Phoenix facility (4141 E Broadway Rd, Phoenix, AZ) previously used as Nikola’s headquarters and product development center. These buildings collectively add more than 884,000 square feet to Lucid’s Arizona footprint. Most of this space is comprised of state-of-the-art manufacturing and warehousing buildings, which executes against Lucid’s prior planned expansion in Arizona. These facilities also include development equipment with extensive battery and environmental testing chambers, a full-size chassis dynamometer, machining equipment, and more.
The deal is valued at $30 million in cash and non-cash considerations.
As it takes over those facilities, Lucid plans to offer “more than 300 former Nikola employees” jobs in Arizona:
Additionally, Lucid plans to offer employment to more than 300 former Nikola employees in roles across Lucid’s Arizona facilities. These offers will encompass various technical salaried and hourly positions including manufacturing engineering, software, assembly, vehicle testing, and warehouse support as Lucid welcomes employees with strong backgrounds in EV technology and further supports its local community.
Marc Winterhoff, Interim CEO at Lucid, commented on the announcement and hinted that the new facilities and workforce would help Lucid toward bringing its next vehicle platform to production:
“As we continue our production ramp of Lucid Gravity and prepare for our upcoming midsize platform vehicles, acquiring these assets is an opportunity to strategically expand our manufacturing, warehousing, testing, and development facilities while supporting our local Arizona community. We are delighted to extend employment offers to more than 300 former employees, who bring valuable industry experience, and together with our outstanding teams, will continue powering Lucid’s industry-leading innovation.”
Lucid is mainly known for the Air, a super-efficient and long-range electric luxury sedan, and it recently launched the Gravity, an SUV based on the same platform.
Now, it plans to develop a new vehicle platform to deliver smaller and cheaper vehicles.
Electrek’s Take
This makes sense. While Lucid has a lot of operations in California, they were neighbors in Arizona when it came to manufacturing operations.
It may be able to utilize some of Nikola’s manufacturing equipment and quickly put the former Nikola workers to work, reducing the bankruptcy’s impact on local employment.
Lucid has its own financial problems as it’s not yet profitable and relies on raising more capital, but it is undoubtedly in a much more solid financial situation than Nikola has been over the last few years.
Also, $30 million in cash and non-cash considerations is pretty cheap.
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