Transcription
Hey everyone, Msco Electric here. Today is Sunday, May 2nd, 2026, and this is the Current, your weekly EV news in about 10 minutes.
Nissan has scrapped its plans to produce electric vehicles at its Canton, Mississippi assembly plant. As a part of their Ambition 30 strategic program announced in February of 2022, the Japanese automaker had announced a $500 million investment to transform the facility into a hub for two all-new battery electric SUVs, producing up to 200,000 EVs a year by 2028. The factory will expand production of gasoline powered and hybrid models, including a revival of the rugged X-terra SUV on a new truck-based platform and an updated Frontier.
This aligns with the company's most recent long-term vision plan announced last month in which they expressed the intention to focus on large vehicles and hybrids for the US market with pure electric vehicle investments to be disciplined and responsive to consumer trends and policy evolution. With this plan, Nissan hopes to return to 1 million annual sales by fiscal 2030. In March of 2025, the company had announced a partnership with SK On to secure nearly 100 gigawatt hours of batteries for EVs to be manufactured in the US between 2028 and 2033. There was no comment from Nissan regarding that commitment.
Nissan is navigating a difficult turnaround under its reNissan recovery plan. Last week, the company raised its fiscal 2025 outlook ending March 2026, projecting an operating profit of about $314 million, a sharp reversal from a prior forecast of a $383 million loss thanks to cost cuts, favorable exchange rates, and a benefit from US emissions regulation changes. However, they still anticipate a substantial net loss on their full-year fiscal report of $3.5 billion, which is improved from their original projection of a loss of $4.1 billion. The company's full-year earnings results are expected to be released on May 13th.
The company has been making other adjustments as well, including lowering the minimum cross-shareholding thresholds with their long-term partner, French automaker Renault, and shutting down the Nissan-Mercedes-Benz joint venture plant in Mexico, which is scheduled to close this month, ending a decade-long collaboration. Many legacy automakers are in financial trouble with unsustainable cash burn. It's likely that some will not survive the transition to EVs, tariff policies, cost increases, and the globally dominant Chinese auto business. Do you think Nissan will be among the last standing by 2035?
While some automakers scale back or cancel EV programs amid high costs and policy shifts, battery makers continue to secure major orders for EVs. Samsung SDI has signed its first EV battery supply agreement with Mercedes-Benz. The multi-year deal valued at over $6.8 billion covers nickel cobalt manganese, or NCM, prismatic batteries for Mercedes' next-generation compact and midsize electric SUVs and coupes. The two companies will also deepen their strategic partnership by jointly developing next-generation battery technology for future e-mobility projects. Samsung SDI now supplies all three major German premium automakers.
Another Korean battery maker is making the news too. LG Energy Solution revealed strong momentum for its cylindrical battery cells during its Q1 2026 earnings call on April 30th by announcing it had secured more than 100 gigawatt hours in new orders for its next-generation 46-series cylindrical EV battery cells in the first quarter alone, pushing its total order backlog above 440 gigawatt hours as of late April. That is enough capacity for over 6 million EVs. Reports indicate a major portion of this comes from a significant multi-year deal with BMW, valued at approximately $7 billion, spanning up to 10 years. The battery sector's long-term orders for EV supply betray the recent mainstream news cycle narrative, which seems to indicate the Western auto industry is going back to combustion.
Electric vertical takeoff and landing manufacturer Joby Aviation has wrapped up a week-long demonstration campaign conducting New York City's first-ever point-to-point air taxi flights in their electric vertical takeoff and landing, also known as eVTOL, aircraft. Flights began with a trip from John F. Kennedy International Airport to Manhattan's downtown skyport in under 10 minutes, cut down from the typical commute, estimated at 1 to 2 hours. The flight was followed by additional demonstrations to the West 30th Street and East 34th Street helipads operated by their newly acquired subsidiary, Blade Air Mobility. The campaign was designed to utilize existing helipad infrastructure in the city and highlight integration into the famously complex FAA-controlled airspace.
These New York City flights built upon prior piloted demos in the San Francisco Bay area and form part of the FAA's eVTOL integration pilot program, or EIP, which aims to accelerate safe integration of advanced air mobility. Joby was named a partner of five selected EIP projects spanning 12 states, including Arizona, Florida, Idaho, New Jersey, New York, North Carolina, Oklahoma, Oregon, Texas, and Utah. The company continues to advance through final stages of FAA type certification. Key milestones include the first flight of its FAA-conforming aircraft in March, initiating type inspection authorization testing. This paves the way for FAA pilots to conduct formal validation flights later this year. So far, the company has more than 50,000 miles logged across its fleet. Joby targets the start of commercial passenger service in the United States in the second half of 2026, pending final approvals.
The company plans initial operations in key markets, including New York, with broader expansion envisioned in cities like Miami and Los Angeles. Partnerships with Delta Airlines, Uber, and others are expected to help scale the ride-sharing style air taxi services that promise to reduce urban congestion and emissions. Toyota is Joby's manufacturing partner and largest external investor, having invested nearly $1 billion into Joby with another half a billion dollars committed. With more flight demonstrations taking place throughout the year in those EIP-approved states as a part of their Electric Skies Tour, commercial service revenues are finally coming into view.
Audi has unveiled the refreshed 2027 Q4 e-tron and Q4 Sportback e-tron, giving its compact electric SUV a midcycle update with updated styling, a significantly revised interior, and efficiency improvements. The updated model will be built on Volkswagen Group's MEB Plus platform, but the power is likely to stay the same with 282 horsepower for the rear-wheel-drive model and 335 horsepower for the dual-motor quattro versions. US models are expected to use the larger 77 kWh usable battery pack, targeting an EPA-estimated range of around 300 miles, although not yet confirmed. Charging speeds will increase to a maximum of 185 kW, achieving 10 to 80% state of charge in 27 minutes, and the refreshed Q4 becomes Audi's first vehicle with bidirectional charging capability.
There is no official word about whether or not it will have a native North American charging system port for compatibility with Tesla Superchargers, but the company has confirmed that Plug & Charge technology for payment processing and charging initiation will be standard. Subtle exterior changes include a body-color faux grille, cleaner front and rear bumpers, and refreshed LED headlights, while the model continues to offer both the standard SUV and sleeker Sportback body styles. Inside, the cabin features a major overhaul with a new infotainment system based on Android Automotive OS that includes an 11.9-inch instrument cluster that wraps towards the driver, a 12.8-inch and an 8-inch central touchscreen, and an optional 12-inch passenger display. Additional upgrades consist of a redesigned center console with dual cooled wireless chargers, new ambient lighting, an available augmented reality head-up display, and ChatGPT integration for their voice assistant. The vehicle also receives a higher towing capacity, now rated for just shy of 4,000 lb. The rear cargo has 18.1 cubic feet of storage with the rear seats up and 52.5 cubic feet with them folded down. The updated models will reach European customers this summer with US deliveries expected in late 2026 as 2027 model-year vehicles. Pricing has not yet been announced for the US market. Final US specifications are expected closer to the launch date.
Rivian announced an optimized capacity plan for its upcoming manufacturing facility in Stanton Springs, North Georgia, increasing the initial Phase 1 production target by 50% from 200,000 vehicles to 300,000 vehicles annually. The move, paired with an amended $4.5 billion US Department of Energy loan, which is down from $6.6 billion, aims to improve cost efficiency per vehicle while leaving room for future growth. The first draw on the loan is expected in early 2027 with production at the Georgia plant still slated to begin in late 2028. The factory will produce Rivian's midsize platform, including the R2, R3, and related models, including up to 50,000 robo-taxis planned for Uber. This expansion complements Rivian's existing Normal, Illinois plant, which has a total annual production capacity of 215,000 vehicles. Of that, the facility is configured to produce approximately 155,000 R2 units per year when fully ramped.
In a separate announcement this week, Rivian revealed a partnership with California real estate developer Caruso. In this deal, Rivian will deploy more than 150 public DC fast chargers across Caruso's Southern California properties, including high-traffic sites like The Grove, as a part of the Rivian Adventure Network over the next year. Turns out shopping can be adventurous, too. When Rivian launched the Adventure Network alongside its R1 reveal, it set an ambitious target of more than 3,500 DC fast chargers at over 600 sites across the US and Canada by the end of 2023. As of their Q4 2025 financial results, Rivian was behind by more than 2,000 dispensers, having deployed roughly 940 DC fast chargers across about 140 sites. The brand says their vehicles are currently compatible with over 50,000 fast chargers across North America. The Caruso collaboration also includes two new Rivian showrooms at the Commons at Calabasas and the Americana at Brand in Glendale. The updates underscore Rivian's push to ramp up affordable EV production and build out its charging infrastructure ahead of broader R2 deliveries, which are expected very soon since production has officially begun.
This week, we published a rare double-feature e-bike review with a detailed look at both versions of the third generation of Velox's outstanding Discover series. You can find a link to that coverage in this video's description and on the end screen. Well, that wraps up this episode of the Current weekly EV news. If you liked it, I hope you'll hit the like and subscribe buttons so more people can discover this program. The hype button is extremely helpful. Thank you for joining us this week and until next time, drive, fly, ride, go electric, go electric.