Volkswagen exec warns battery technology and materials will cost north of $30bn December 1, 2021 Volkswagen’s planned European battery cell plants and securing vital raw materials will cost as much as 30 billion euros ($34 billion), board member Thomas Schmall said, putting a price tag on the expansion for the first time. Schmall, who is in charge of technology at Europe’s largest carmaker, said in an interview at the Reuters [...]
Fiat and Vauxhall owner Stellantis warns EV costs will lead to job cuts December 1, 2021 Stellantis NV Chief Executive Carlos Tavares said external pressure on automakers to accelerate the shift to electric vehicles potentially threatens jobs and vehicle quality as producers struggle to manage the higher costs of building EVs. Governments and investors want car manufacturers to speed up the transition to electric vehicles, but the costs are “beyond the [...]
Number of UK unlicensed vehicles up by 85,000, DfT stats show December 1, 2021 The number of unlicensed vehicles being driven across the country has gone up by 85,000 in the last two years. Statistics from the Department for Transport (DfT) have shown that in 2021, 1.9 per cent of all vehicles in UK traffic did not pay their vehicle excise duty (VED). Data have also revealed that the [...]
Pendragon raises profit outlook as supply issues deemed “not as bad” December 1, 2021 UK motor retailer Pendragon has raised its profit outlook for the full year for the second time in less than two months. After initially lifting it from between £55m and £60m to approximately £70m on 7 October, the group said this morning its underlying profit for the full year to 31 December 2021 has gone [...]
Omicron variant will have “limited overall impact”, Qatar Airways boss says November 30, 2021 Qatar Airways’ boss Akbar Al Baker has said he hopes that the new Omicron variant detected last week “will have a limited overall impact” on aviation’s recovery, with the “process of unlocking” continuing. Delivering the keynote speech at the UK Aviation Club this afternoon, Al Baker – who has been at the helm of the [...]
Sadiq Khan admits entire Tube line may close if government doesn’t stump up emergency TfL cash November 30, 2021 Sadiq Khan has confirmed he may have to close an entire Tube line if the government does not quickly come up with a financial settlement for cash-strapped Transport for London (TfL). Khan today said any one of London’s 11 Tube lines could potentially be closed as tensions continue to flare between City Hall and Whitehall [...]
Car sales will mostly be online by 2030 in a blow to vehicle dealerships November 30, 2021 UK motoring executives think cars will be mostly sold online by 2030, with electric vehicles (EVs) making between 70 and 100 per cent of new vehicle sales in western Europe. Data from KPMG’s automotive executive survey has revealed that 59 per cent of 1118 executives interviewed believe online sales will become the norm by the [...]
Volvo predicts chip shortages to continue as profits go down November 30, 2021 Swedish car maker Volvo has predicted the ongoing semiconductor chip shortages will extend into the new year, impacting the supply chain. Since its listing in the Stockholm stock exchange at the end of October, the group has reported a slump in profit and revenue, going down from 4.6bn Swedish crowns (£380.8m) to 3.3bn (£273.2m) year [...]
Long queues at Heathrow as passengers come to terms with stricter Covid rules November 30, 2021 Passengers travelling through Heathrow are experiencing huge queues following the introduction of stricter Covid rules, with bottlenecks forming as a result of people opting to take a PCR test straight after landing. To stop the spread of the new Omicron variant, from 4am this morning all travellers to the UK need to take a PCR [...]
Omicron could cause “significant traumas” for aviation, Emirates president warns November 30, 2021 Emirates’ president Tim Clark has warned that the new Covid variant, Omicron, could cause “significant traumas” for the recovery of global aviation. Clark said the next few weeks would prove fundamental for the industry, as scientists assess the variant’s risk and the effectiveness of vaccines in fighting it. “I would say probably by the end [...]