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| -Signs, Portents, and the Weather- |
| America's EV boom goes bust! Lithium and nickel producers begin mass layoffs and pause multi-billion-dollar projects as US says no to electric car push |
| 2024-02-20 |
| [DM] Americans were sold the promise that electric vehicles would bring production companies and an influx of jobs to small towns nationwide as part of a modern day goldrush. However, as interest in EVs has slipped, lithium and nickel facilities – metals used in lithium-ion batteries for electric vehicles – are taking cost-cutting measures including mass layoffs and suspending operations. The demand for electric vehicles surged in 2022, rising by 76 percent in April of that year, but by the end of 2023, the number of vehicles sold dropped to just 50 percent. Car buyers are still reluctant to trade in their gas-guzzling vehicle for an EV over the high price tag and concerns about their ability to easily charge the vehicle. The waning interest in EVs has caused the price of lithium to dropped by 90 percent since January of last year. In response, Ford has slashed 1,400 jobs at its once-promising lithium factory in Michigan while General Motors laid off all of its nearly 1,000 workers at its plant in Detroit with the promise that employees will be re-hired in 2025. |
| Posted by:Skidmark |
| #5 Americans were sold the promise that electric vehicles would bring production companies and an influx of jobs to small towns nationwide as part of a modern day goldrush. No we weren't. If we were, there wouldn't be such mass disinterest and rejection. What that was, was government justification for its actions. You know, DM, like Covid response. |
| Posted by: swksvolFF 2024-02-20 13:10 |
| #4 If you accept (I know many don't) that gerbil worming is not the apocalyptic crisis it's being sold as, electric cars are a solution to a problem that does not exist. |
| Posted by: M. Murcek 2024-02-20 11:08 |
| #3 EVs were always a niche product. Their market is rich greenies in warm climates who want to feel good about themselves. No one beyond that, and that niche is beginning to appear saturated. |
| Posted by: Tom 2024-02-20 11:01 |
| #2 The US as a whole is not a cluster of quaint hamlets 20km apart. |
| Posted by: Mullah Richard 2024-02-20 09:31 |
| #1 Biden caves on another big initiative. He'll do anything to win in 2024 |
| Posted by: Skidmark 2024-02-20 08:57 |