Tesla Promises Cheaper EVs, Better Batteries

During this week's Battery Day, American electric vehicle and clean energy company Tesla, Inc. said it would bring to market an electric vehicle that will cost $25,000. As part of a three-year mission, Tesla says it will reduce the cost of rechargeable lithium-ion batteries and buy lithium deposits still in the ground. China's lithium battery raw material suppliers are expected to be its direct suppliers, analysts said. 

Lithium-ion batteries, in which lithium metal migrates through the battery from one electrode to others as a lithium ion, provide relatively high energy storage in a small, light battery. Tesla and Panasonic are spending billions of dollars building lithium-ion battery factories.

In early 2019 there were 316 gigawatt-hours of worldwide lithium cell manufacturing capacity. China is home to 73% of this, according to an analysis by Bloomberg.

But, market participants are underwhelmed after all the hype - and sent Tesla shares down 8% Wednesday. Two years ago, CEO Elon Musk declared a $25,000 car model was three years away, Financial Times reported.

Ant Group Closer To $35 Billion initial public offering

The operator of Shanghai's Star Market, China's Nasdaq-style board, said it had received an application from financial technology company Ant Group to register an initial public offering. Ant Group is now a step closer to its $35 billion dual-listing in Shanghai and Hong Kong.

The Shanghai regulator Friday agreed to China's largest digital payments provider by volume to proceed with its listing. About a month ago Ant Group submitted its initial public offering plans. Analysts said regulators had been expediting Ant's listing.

The listing, if successful, will surpass the $25 billion its parent company Alibaba raised in New York in 2014 and Saudi Arabian Oil Co.'s record $25.6 billion set in December. 

Hong Kong's stock exchange will vet Ant Group's listing papers early next week as staff work overtime to catch up with Shanghai's examination, the South China Morning Post reported quoting people familiar with the matter.

E-Bus Manufacturer BYD's Road Trip Enters Northern Europe

China's leading electric bus manufacturer, BYD, will enter the northern Europe market after securing a big order from Nobina, one of Finland's and Scandinavia's largest public transport operators, Automotive World reported.

Nobina ordered 106 buses from BYD to be delivered next summer. There will be 64 units for Nobina services in Helsinki and 42 for Nobina in Turku. This represents the largest e-bus order in Finland.

"The Nordic region leads the rest of Europe in the adoption of electrification," BYD Europe managing director Isbrand Ho told Automotive World, "providing evidence that electric mobility delivers tangible operational benefits for PTO alongside safe, quiet and comfortable local journeys for passengers."

BYD has sold more than 1,400 electric buses in Europe and provided nearly 100 Europe cities with electric transit.