Tag: electric

  • Tesla overcomes setbacks, produces first Cybertruck after two years

    Tesla overcomes setbacks, produces first Cybertruck after two years

    Tesla announced via a tweet that its inaugural Cybertruck has been successfully manufactured at the company’s Austin, Texas plant, marking the end of a two-year delay.

    Back in 2019, Tesla founder Elon Musk introduced the pickup truck during a revealing event where the vehicle’s designer unintentionally demonstrated a flaw in the supposedly indestructible “armour glass” windows.

    Since then, the production timeline has faced multiple setbacks, with Musk attributing the delays to component sourcing shortages, leading to a rescheduled Cybertruck launch in 2023.

    During a shareholder meeting in May, Musk expressed Tesla’s ambition to produce up to 250,000 Cybertrucks annually, depending on market demand.

    With the introduction of the Cybertruck, Tesla is poised to enter one of the most lucrative sectors of the U.S. market, directly competing against electric pickups from industry giants such as Ford Motor and Rivian Automotive.

    Although these competitors have already released limited numbers of their own electric truck models, Tesla’s entry into the market is highly anticipated. According to a Reuters report from last year, Tesla aims to initiate mass production of the Cybertruck by the end of 2023.

  • Govt to buy more than 500 hybrid buses for Lahore

    Govt to buy more than 500 hybrid buses for Lahore

    According to Chief Minister Chaudhry Parvez Elahi, 300 hybrid buses would be bought for Lahore in the first phase of the government’s plan to run environment-friendly hybrid buses in the city.

    About 200 new bus stops would be set up to facilitate the citizens, according to the chief minister. The 20th meeting of the Punjab Masstransit Authority (PMA), which was presided over by Parvez Elahi, decided to purchase hybrid buses that are environmentally friendly.

    Parvez Elahi informed the participants that a total of 513 hybrid buses would be operating in the city and that the Punjab Masstransit Authority would use private companies to run new hybrid buses.

    The chief minister mandated that seats be set aside in the new buses for women, special individuals with disabilities, and people who are blind or visually impaired, adding that these seats should be positioned close to the bus door. The chief minister gave the go-ahead to build new bus stops in Lahore and added that the routes of the new buses should be planned with women’s educational institutions’ schedules in mind.

    Parvez Elahi criticised the fact that previous attempts at creating a government-level transportation system spectacularly failed due to egregious incompetence in the creation of a long-lasting transportation system in the province.

    The chief minister gave his approval for the Punjab Masstransit Authority to open offices in Dera Gujran and for the authority to conduct auctions. Iftikhar Gondal, Khadija Umar, Shamim Aftab, Muhammad Khan Bhatti’s principal secretary, the secretaries of finance and transportation, along with other members of the Punjab Assembly, attended the meeting.

  • Govt plans to promote electric vehicles, establish charging infrastructure: PM Shehbaz

    Govt plans to promote electric vehicles, establish charging infrastructure: PM Shehbaz

    Prime Minister (PM) Shehbaz Sharif announced on Friday that the government intended to encourage the use of electric vehicles in the nation and would set up a network of the necessary charging infrastructure.

    The PM gave the departments involved the go-ahead to provide him with a thorough plan as soon as possible in this regard.

    According to APP, Shehbaz Sharif also directed that the Board of Investment, the Ministry of Power and Energy, and the Ministry of Trade and Industries provide every opportunity to investors interested in the market for electric vehicles.

    A high-level meeting on the employment of electric buses in the fleet of public transportation, the promotion of the electric vehicle industry, and alternative energy sources was presided over by him.

    The prime minister underlined the urgent necessity to develop renewable energy sources in order to make the nation energy self-sufficient.

    He noted that the government has recently approved the start of a 10,000-megawatt solar project.

    He said that the solar project would not only lessen environmental pollution but also secure the production of inexpensive power by reducing reliance on pricey imported fuel, saving significant foreign currency.

    The forum heard updates on the growing use of electric vehicles around the world as well as plans for electric buses for public transportation.

    It was advised that the growth of the electric car sector and infrastructure will greatly reduce the nation’s import costs while also creating prospects for international investment and employment.

  • Nio electric car falls from third floor of office, killing two

    Nio electric car falls from third floor of office, killing two

    Two employees were killed, according to Chinese electric vehicle (EV) manufacturer Nio, when one of its vehicles fell from the third floor of its Shanghai headquarters.

    One staff member and one worker from a joint venture were inside the car as it crash-landed from Nio’s Shanghai office.

    The incident happened on Wednesday at around 05:20 PM, according to the company. As the car fell from the building, those who were inside perished.

    According to Nio, it launched an investigation into the incident right away in collaboration with authorities.

    The third-floor space where the car fell has variously been referred to as a showroom, a testing facility, or a parking lot.

    “Our company has collaborated with public security department to launch the investigation and analysis of the cause of the accident. Based on the analysis of the situation at the scene, we can initially confirm that this was an accident (not caused by the vehicle),” the company said in a statement.

    “We feel very sad about this accident and would like to express our deepest condolences to our colleague and partner employee who lost their lives. A team has been set up to help the families,” it added.

    Within a half-hour, thousands of netizens commented on Nio’s initial Weibo post before it was removed. Social media users reacted angrily to the final clause of the statement, “not related to the vehicle itself.”

    The Chinese business to dominate the electric vehicle market is led by Nio. To allay customers’ worries about needing to charge their cars frequently, it has placed a lot of faith in interchangeable batteries in its vehicles.

    Nio is a rival to the US-based electric car manufacturer Tesla, owned by multi-billionaire Elon Musk, who also operates a manufacturing facility in Shanghai.

  • Nepra approves Rs1.29 hike in cost per unit for Karachi residents

    On account of monthly Fuel Cost Adjustments (FCA), the National Electric Power Regulatory Authority (NEPRA) raised the cost per unit of power for Karachi residents by Rs1.29.

    It held a public hearing at its headquarters on Karachi Electric’s (KE) request to hike the power tariff under the FCA by Rs3.45 per unit for February. Chairman Tauseef H. Farooqi chaired the public meeting, which was also attended by officials Rafiq Ahmed Sheikh and Engineer Maqsood Anwar Khan.

    According to the officials, KE’s monthly FCA is decided at Rs1.29 per unit based on data analysis.

    The Chairman inquired about Karachi’s load-shedding status and if KE has a gas procurement deal with the Sui Southern Gas Company (SSGC) to address the fuel crisis.

    Load management is only done on feeders with a low recovery rate, according to the latter’s officials, and consumers only have to experience one to one-and-a-half hours of load shedding every day.

    Chairman Farooqui stated that KE’s technology needs to be modernised, and that there should be no load-shedding for bill-paying customers and locations where billing is timely.

    He also mentioned that the NEPRA has posted phone numbers on its website for inhabitants of the city to report any forced load-shedding by any power utility.

    According to the briefing delivered at the meeting, KE’s customers were charged Rs3.28 per unit in January under the FCA. Similarly, the FCA for February was decided to be Rs1.99 lesser than the January billing.

    Muhamad Tanveer, who is a representative of the Karachi Chamber of Commerce (KCCI), denied the FCA, citing that customers are already paying for the January hike and that the FCA should not be transferred to them.

    After reviewing the facts, the NEPRA issued a thorough judgment declaring that the FCA is only levied and set for the month in concern and that it is variable with each hearing depending on the fuel costs for that month.

  • Pakistan launches first electric rickshaw

    Pakistan launches first electric rickshaw

    It’s time to bid goodbye to those rickshaws which produce poisonous gases or make noise because Pakistan is introducing electric rickshaws. These new electric rickshaws will run on batteries and will be completely manufactured in Pakistan.

    According to manufacturers, this new mode of transport will soon be seen on roads.

    “But for that to happen, it’s very important that the government endorses these vehicles. If this rickshaw will be successful in the country and its demand increases, many other vehicles will be converted soon”, an industrialist said.

    The three-wheelers were launched at the event ‘Showcasing Pakistan’s First Fully-Electric Three-Wheel Vehicle’ that was inaugurated by PM’s Adviser on Climate Change Malik Amin Aslam.

    The adviser said, “By the end of this year the electric vehicle policy will be fully launched in the country. The policy will boost the concept of pollution-free vehicles in the country”.

    The electric vehicles do not emit smoke or make noise pollution and cut fuel cost as well, Aslam added.