Chinese electric vehicle giant BYD is open to acquiring a competing manufacturer and setting up shop to produce cars in Canada—but not if it means entering a joint venture with another company.

“The Shenzhen-based automaker is studying the Canadian market for a potential manufacturing facility, although no decision has been made,” Bloomberg News reports, citing an interview with BYD Executive Vice President Stella Li.

“Perhaps more striking than the Canada factory talk is Li’s candid acknowledgment that BYD is evaluating potential acquisitions of established automakers,” Electrek writes. “Several American, European, and Japanese manufacturers are struggling under the financial strain of maintaining both combustion and electric vehicle product lines simultaneously.”

But while “we’re open to every opportunity we have,” Li said, “I don’t think a JV [joint venture] will work.”

In mid-January, Prime Minister Mark Carney agreed to sharply reduce tariffs on electric vehicle imports from China, while China offered up tariff relief for Canadian canola, peas, pork, and seafood. At the time, Canadian observers predicted lower EV prices and possible long-term advantages for the country’s automotive industrial base.

Canada agreed to slash duties on up to 49,000 Chinese EVs per year to a “most-favoured-nation tariff rate” of 6.1 per cent, Carney’s office said in a release. The imports will amount to less than 3 per cent of annual new vehicle sales in Canada, but “will drive considerable new Chinese joint-venture investment in Canada with trusted partners to protect and create new auto manufacturing careers for Canadian workers, and ensure a robust buildout of Canada’s EV supply chain,” the PMO said.

Days later, Carney said he saw the deal as an opportunity for Ontario’s automaking heartland. “We’ve had direct conversations directly from the Chinese companies… with explicit interest and intention to partner with Canadian companies,” he told media during a stopover in Doha, Qatar. “We’ll see what comes to pass. This is an opportunity for Ontario. It’s an opportunity for Ontario workers, opportunity for Canada, done in a controlled way with a modest start.”

Now, Bloomberg says BYD is looking at expanding its reach in overseas markets where it can repeat the “Brazil model”, a marketing and sales approach that has worked well for it in South America and Europe. “Buying existing production capacity with trained work forces is faster and cheaper than building greenfield—and BYD appears to be applying the same logic globally,” Electrek explains.

One place the company isn’t considering an expansion is the United States, a “complicated environment” where tariffs on Chinese-made vehicles exceed 100 per cent and connected car technology is banned.

BYD’s sales fell 36 per cent, to 400,241 vehicles, in the first two months of this year, both news outlets say. “But exports gained momentum, and the company is targeting 1.3 million overseas vehicle sales for the full year,” Electrek reports. “Li said BYD’s recently launched next-generation Blade Battery and ultra-fast flash charging architecture, capable of delivering up to 1,500 kW, will help reverse the domestic sales dip.”

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Toronto-based energy storage developer Hydrostor has secured permission to build a 500-megawatt compressed-air energy storage system in the Mojave Desert and is now seeking customers to contract the project’s full capacity.

Final permitting approval from the California Energy Commission (CEC) positions its Willow Rock project to be “shovel-ready in 2026,” Hydrostor said in a mid-December release.

The grid-connected advanced compressed air energy storage (A-CAES) is designed to store and deliver enough electricity to power more than 400,000 average California homes for more than eight hours.

Willow Rock is also projected to deliver US$500 million in direct and indirect economic benefits regionally, “supporting thousands of jobs over the course of construction, with 700 workers onsite at peak construction,” Emily Smith, Hydrostor’s director of external affairs, told The Energy Mix. Once it goes into operation, the facility is expected to support 25 to 40 full-time jobs.

Unlike lithium-ion battery storage systems, Willow Rock will require neither critical minerals nor hazardous materials, Hydrostor says. The storage process begins at the point of its grid connection, where excess renewable energy, like that generated at mid-day by solar plants, spins compressors that produce heated compressed air.

The heat is captured and stored in tanks, while the cool compressed air is pushed 600 metres below ground into a water-filled cavern. As the air enters the cavern, the water is pushed up into a surface reservoir. The A-CAES system becomes a fully-charged battery when the cavern is full of air.

When power is needed, like during periods of peak power demand or when solar or wind production drops, the process reverses, using gravity to draw the stored water back down into the cavern, displacing the air and forcing it back up to the surface. The air is reheated using the heat stored in the tanks, then used to spin turbines to generate electricity.

Hydrostor has secured a retail supply agreement with the local water agency for a one-time water draw of 800 acre-feet, or around 987,000 cubic metres, Smith told The Mix. It’s a considerable volume of water—more than twice what’s used annually by a U.S. National Security Agency data centre in Utah, for example. But the draw will occur only once.

Willow Rock is in fact expected to be a net water producer, with the water generated as a byproduct of the compression process collected for reuse in the reservoir, Smith said.

The CEC approval comes almost three years after Hydrostor signed a 25-year contract with Monterey’s Central Coast Community Energy to reserve 200 megawatts of Willow Rock’s capacity for the non-profit utility.

With an additional 50 to 100 megawatts being negotiated, that “leaves 200 to 250 megawatts up for grabs,” reports Canary Media. The uncontracted capacity remains an obstacle to securing the US$1.5 billion in financing needed to begin construction, but Hydrostor has declared itself encouraged by the California Public Utilities Commission’s September recommendation that the state secure 10 gigawatts of long-duration storage by 2031.

“They’ve identified the need for very near-term procurement, so we’re looking forward to participating in that,” company president Jon Norman told Canary Media.

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By Rebecca Schulz, Senior Oil Market Analyst
Martina Lyons, Energy Analyst
Deniz Ugur, Consultant
Simon Bennett, Energy Technology Analyst
Courtney Turich, Energy Analyst

Geothermal energy harnesses naturally occurring heat found beneath the Earth’s surface to provide heating and cooling, electricity and energy storage. As global electricity demand rises and power systems place a growing premium on firm supply, geothermal energy’s ability to provide an around-the-clock, low-emissions source of power is attracting renewed attention. However, easy-to-access conventional geothermal resources are relatively rare and mostly confined to a small number of shallow geothermal hotspots globally, accounting for only about 1 per cent of global electricity demand today.

Next-generation geothermal technology developers are seeking to overcome these limits by drilling deeper and harnessing heat from hard-to-reach reservoirs. Operators can either circulate fluid through fractures that have been induced (through what is known as enhanced geothermal systems) or transfer heat to the surface through closed-loop circuits. These technologies are advancing quickly, potentially enabling economically-viable geothermal development nearly anywhere in the world. The IEA’s Future of Geothermal Energy report, published in late 2024, estimated that with continued technology improvements and reductions in project costs, next-generation geothermal could meet up to 15 per cent of global electricity demand growth to 2050.

Next-generation geothermal technology remains at an early stage of development. In general, geothermal projects remain among the most capital-intensive in the energy sector, with drilling and well costs often representing up to 80 per cent of total costs. Yet the past year has seen notable progress. Once considered prohibitively expensive, next-generation projects are now demonstrating measurable efficiency gains and more competitive drilling costs amid ongoing innovation, building investor confidence. These advances – arriving just as global electricity demand surges – have helped boost fundraising. Meanwhile, new supply agreements with data centre operators, along with the prospect of geothermal projects co-producing critical minerals such as lithium, are adding to the momentum.

Investment in next-generation geothermal has risen sharply

According to IEA analysis of new data – including exclusive data shared by Underground Ventures, a firm that invests in next-generation geothermal – financing for the sector reached nearly USD 2.2 billion in 2025, an 80 per cent increase year-over-year and up from just USD 22 million in 2018.

Mature conventional geothermal attracted strong investment as well. Funding for conventional geothermal power projects reached nearly USD 5 billion in 2025 – a four-fold increase from 2018 – while geothermal heating projects, such as those used for district heating, secured over USD 11.5 billion in 2025 alone.

In another sign of growing investor confidence in the sector, the global share of equity financing declined from 70 per cent between 2018 and 2020 to just over half between 2023 and 2025, as companies were increasingly able to secure debt alongside data centre power and critical mineral supply agreements. Debt-based financing now accounts for nearly 30 per cent, with financing terms expected to improve further as risks continue to fall.

While public funding is essential to incubate and reduce the financial risks of next-generation technologies, overall, its relative share in total financing is relatively low. Publicly-sourced grants are currently about 9 per cent of next-generation funding globally, down from 12 per cent between 2018 and 2020. The United States leads in the number of grants awarded, though the European Union provides the largest share of total public funding by value.

The crossover of oil and gas technologies and engineering advances continue to drive progress

The increase in financing has been underpinned by rapid technological progress, with new innovations and knowledge from other parts of the energy sector helping next-generation geothermal projects move closer to commercialisation. Recent advances in subsurface engineering – many of them driven by techniques pioneered in the shale oil industry – have been particularly important, helping to accelerate project development and reduce costs.

The US Department of Energy’s Utah Frontier Observatory for Research in Geothermal Energy (FORGE) has showcased the benefits of knowledge sharing from the oil and gas sector. FORGE drilled its first wells in 2021, and by 2024 had successfully demonstrated enhanced geothermal systems in practice, nearly doubling previous drilling rates from 8 meters per hour (m/h) to almost 15 m/h, with peak rates reaching nearly 26 m/h. FORGE collaborator Fervo, a US enhanced geothermal company that raised over USD 1 billion between 2022 and 2025, has achieved drilling rates of 30 m/h. Several companies have now demonstrated similar performance, including Mazama Energy’s recent high-temperature well construction demonstration at its 15 megawatt (MW) enhanced geothermal pilot in the US state of Oregon.

Resurgent demand for firm power, especially from data centres, is driving interest in geothermal

As technological advancements continue, geothermal’s ability to deliver reliable, around-the-clock baseload power is drawing growing interest. This is proving particularly attractive to the data centre industry, whose global electricity consumption is set to surge by more than 300% by the end of this decade – creating a group of  long-term paying customers that are helping push financing to new levels.

Geothermal projects, whether producing heat or electricity, usually sell their output through long-term contracts. These include heat purchase agreements or power purchase agreements with utilities or industrial customers, which provide stable income to facilitate debt financing. Until 2023, most next-generation geothermal project developers could only secure electricity price guarantees equivalent to solar and wind projects, or about USD 30-60 per megawatt-hour. But as electricity demand grows strongly in major markets – including in the United States, where data centres are helping lift power consumption for the first time in two decades – geothermal developers have begun securing significantly higher contract prices, in some cases reaching about USD 130 per megawatt-hour.

In 2024, Google and NV Energy signed a power purchase agreement for electricity from Fervo’s 115 MW Corsac project, while Meta committed to sourcing 150 MW from Sage Geosystems starting in 2027. This shows that companies are willing to pay a premium for clean, dependable power that can operate continuously, even for the first projects that may have the highest unit costs.

Critical material supply chains offer extra revenue potential

Efforts to build out critical mineral supply are also giving next-generation geothermal a lift. Geothermal energy projects can serve as a source of lithium, demand for which is expected to grow strongly in the next decade under all IEA scenarios.

Lithium that is dissolved in geothermal brine can be obtained via a direct extraction method. This process has the potential to require less water, land and energy use than traditional hard-rock mining, while providing developers with an additional source of revenue.

Geothermal projects currently under development in the European Union and the United States could yield 47 kilotonnes of lithium per year by 2035, which would meet 5 per cent of global demand based on today’s policy settings. Vulcan Energy’s Phase 1 Lionheart project in Germany, which fully secured financing in 2025, not only has offtake agreements with local district heating and industry consumers for power and heat, but also with Glencore, Stellantis, LG Corp and Umicore for lithium. Similar integrated geothermal‑lithium developments are actively underway across Europe and the United States, demonstrating the potential for this model to bolster growth.

Policy support remains crucial for next-generation geothermal to bridge from promising pilots to large-scale deployment

Recent advancements in next-generation geothermal are promising and the potential they open is enormous, particularly as global electricity demand continues to grow. Combining new drilling and materials technologies with real-time downhole sensor data has cut well costs by up to 30 per cent and may extend asset lifetimes beyond 25 years. Further cost reductions are anticipated as developers gain experience through construction and operations and as multiple players continue to compete.

Even so, large-scale geothermal projects face major challenges that could stymie future progress. These include exploration and upfront financial risks, as well as those related to execution. In general, next-generation geothermal projects remain too big for venture capitalists alone and too risky for established corporate energy players. This “missing middle” – also known as the “the technology valley of death” – is where governments traditionally step in. While some energy customers, primarily data centres, are now willing to pay a premium to see if the technology can work at scale, this demand alone appears insufficient to move the technology towards widespread commercialisation.

Given this backdrop, government support remains vital to the sector’s ongoing development. By setting targets and roadmaps that raise awareness, pursuing permitting reform, implementing risk-mitigation schemes, and ensuring power-market designs that make it easier to sell on the electricity produced directly to offtakers, they can help next-generation geothermal move through this “technology valley of death.” Encouraging examples include the US Department of Energy’s geothermal R&D funding, Germany’s new accelerated permitting law combined with drilling risk-insurance, and risk-mitigation facilities in the Philippines, Germany and East Africa. The EU’s forthcoming Geothermal Action Plan is another welcome step towards giving geothermal the dedicated policy attention it has long lacked, and can realise its full potential only by covering both conventional and next-generation geothermal technologies.

Delivering on the promise of next-generation geothermal everywhere will also require economic conditions that make projects both viable and scalable, alongside supportive policies, strong market design and investment incentives. Additionally, growth in the sector – especially growth that supports new demand sectors and sparks fresh innovation – will be amplified if companies can share their learnings through government programs or industry organisations, such as Geothermal Rising, Project InnerSpace, Clean Air Task Force Superhot Rock Initiative and the European Geothermal Energy Council.

The IEA will continue to provide data and analysis to support these efforts, including through a forthcoming publicly accessible global database on geothermal projects. This will provide comprehensive, up-to-date tracking of conventional and next-generation geothermal, alongside the broader assessment of progress via the Races to First data tool.

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By Chris Bonasia

In Australia, a major battery energy storage project and a new requirement for data centres to invest in renewable energy show some ways the country is preparing for the energy transition.

Australia’s largest energy storage battery will be paired with gas turbines, with past statements by one of the project’s partners hinting the move is part of a plan to set up battery infrastructure in anticipation of future clean energy supply.

“When you look at the technology improvement curve of batteries, even over the next two to three years, it’s nothing short of breathtaking,” said David Scaysbrook, co-founder and managing partner for Quinbrook Infrastructure Partners, as reported in Renew Economy. Scaysbrook explained that surplus solar energy can be stored in batteries as a reliable source of cheap energy, “and if you’ve got 320 sunny days a year, that is a very, very powerful combination.”

“Forget subsidies,” he added. “I’m not talking about subsidies. I’m talking about Quinbrook, or someone else, building a large-scale solar-battery hybrid with an eight-hour battery,” capable of “delivering incredibly competitive energy cost without government handouts.”

Quinbrook offshoot Private Energy Partners is currently building the Gladstone State Development Area Energy Hub Project in Queensland, where it proposes to combine a 780-megawatt, eight-hour battery energy storage system with up to 1,080 MW of open-cycle gas turbines. The firm recently signed a memorandum of understanding with Stanwell, a state-owned regional energy generator, which gave Stanwell exclusivity over the project.

The agreement is part of Stanwell’s efforts to move away from burning coal, Renew Economy says. For Quinbrook, the project is part of a strategy to set up long-duration “infrastructure batteries” in Australia that are poised to help soak up cheap renewables and power big industrial loads.

Meanwhile, Australia’s recently-released National AI Plan is requiring that data centre developers pair projects with their own renewable energy generation. Australia’s data centres already consume roughly four terawatt hours of electricity each year—around 2 per cent of the country’s total electricity demand—and that number is expected to triple by 2030 and eventually make up more than 10 per cent of grid demand by 2035, says Renew Economy.

The National AI Plan, broadly, is an attempt by the Australian government to chart out a course for the country to manage the proliferation of AI throughout the economy. But according to The Conversation Canada, the plan’s requirement for renewable energy—and what that could mean for building out infrastructure that will be needed for an energy transition—is a major selling point.

“The government is working with the states and territories, energy market bodies, network service providers, and the data centre industry to harness opportunities from the growth of data centres to promote investment in renewable energy and maintain affordable energy for households and businesses,” the National AI Plan states.

“Australia has the opportunity to take advantage of ambitious AI infrastructure initiatives in ways that accelerate our renewables transition and drive investment in skills, research, and sustainable technologies.”

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By Christopher Bonasia

Virtual power plants are showing they can pull their weight in grids across North America, including a fleet of batteries across California that delivered 535 megawatts to the grid during a recent pilot.

Virtual power plants (VPPs), which use software to coordinate electricity use, storage, and distribution throughout a network of devices like electric vehicles, smart thermostats, and residential solar and battery installations, can make power grids more reliable without having to build new infrastructure, say proponents.

California’s Pacific Gas and Electric (PG&E) and other utilities recently tested how much power VPPs could actually provide in a pinch. They essentially “ran the grid in reverse,” writes Slashdot, drawing power from residential batteries in more than 100,000 homes during a time of peak power demand.

Solar panel and battery storage company Sunrun’s battery fleet supplied an average 360 megawatts during the event, or about two-thirds of the total output. Tesla provided the next-largest share of the total 535 MW, according to [pdf] independent analysis by Brattle Group, a Boston-based consulting firm.

The event was “the largest test of its kind ever done in California—and maybe the world,” says PG&E.

“Four years ago this capacity didn’t even exist,” Kendrick Li, PG&E’s director of clean energy programs, told Semafor. “Now it’s a really attractive option for us. It would be silly not to harness what our customers have installed.”

Brattle said the test achieved “a visible reduction” in load and suggested that using VPPs on peak days “could reduce the need to invest in new generation capacity and/or relieve strain on the system associated with the evening load ramp.”

California has proactive incentives for VPP technology adoption through its Demand Side Grid Support Program, which pays electricity customers who either reduce their energy use or supply power to the larger grid during high demand, Canary Media reported in early June. However, the program’s future is now uncertain after the state legislature cut US$18 million of its funding in a new budget.

VPPs are being pursued in other jurisdictions, too. In British Columbia, BC Hydro began a new Peak Saver program to transform 200 homes in two communities—Sun Peaks and Harrison Mills—into VPPs. The program will network small-scale energy sources like home batteries, smart thermostats, and EVs to help balance demands on the electricity grid. And Ontario launched Canada’s largest VPP in 2024 after enrolling 100,000 consumers in its Save on Energy Peak Perks program.

Interest in battery storage continues to grow across North America, including among utilities seeking to install larger battery energy storage projects within their network. A study for the American Clean Power Association found [pdf] that adding about 11 gigawatts of batteries in the Midcontinent Independent System Operator region could save roughly US$27 billion in system costs by 2035.

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By Michael Dwyer

About 22 per cent of light-duty vehicles sold in the first quarter of the year in the United States were hybrid, battery electric, or plug-in hybrid vehicles, up from about 18 per cent in the first quarter of 2024. Among those categories, hybrid electric vehicles have continued to gain market share while battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid vehicles have remained relatively flat, according to estimates from Wards Intelligence.

These different vehicle types affect the broader energy sector in different ways. Battery electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid vehicles can consume electricity from isolated power sources or, more commonly, from the grid. So, their use can affect electricity demand. By comparison, hybrid electric vehicles do not have plugs, so they don’t directly affect grid-delivered electricity demand.

The decrease in electric vehicle sales was driven by declining sales of battery electric models such as the Honda Prologue, Chevrolet Equinox, and Tesla Model Y. These declines were partially offset by increased sales of other battery electric models, such as the Volkswagen ID.4 and Toyota bZ4X.

Battery electric vehicle sales in particular are more common in the luxury vehicle market. U.S. luxury vehicles accounted for 14 per cent of the total light-duty vehicle market in the first quarter of the year, the lowest share since mid-2020. Electric vehicles accounted for 23 per cent of total luxury sales in the first quarter of 2025. Electric vehicles had accounted for more than one-third of luxury sales in 2023 and 2024 before Wards reclassified the Tesla Model 3 as non-luxury in late 2024.

Battery electric vehicles’ average transaction prices remain persistently higher than the overall market: the average transaction prices increased from $55,500 in December 2024 to $59,200 in March 2025, compared with the average price of all new vehicles, which decreased from $49,700 to $47,500. This 25 per cent difference between battery electric vehicles and the industry average prices in March 2025 was the highest in any month since April 2023.

Since sales figures in any year are relatively small compared with the total number of vehicles on the road, electric vehicles’ share of the total light-duty vehicle fleet is much less than the recent 10 per cent sales share. In our Monthly Energy Review, we maintain annual data series on light-duty vehicles, battery electric vehicles, plug-in hybrid vehicles, and hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles based on data from S&P Global. In 2023, the most recent data year, electric vehicles accounted for less than 2 per cent of all registered light-duty vehicles in the United States.

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Dr Andrew Dickson, engineering executive at CBi-electric: low voltage, explains that multiple factors are accelerating the continent’s switch to solar. “Energy poverty remains a major issue across Africa, with reliable grid electricity reaching only 14% of Zimbabweans, for example.”

He adds that unreliable power supply is another key driver. “Persistent nationwide blackouts are affecting countries like Botswana, disrupting day-to-day operations. And in hydro-electric dependent countries such as Zambia, climate change is reducing water levels, leading to lower electricity generation and higher prices.”

Dr Dickson points out that in countries like Namibia which are dependent on electricity imports, affordability is a growing concern, with N$8.8 billion expected to be spent between January 2024 and December 2025. “As a result, Namibia now has the highest electricity prices in Southern Africa. Yet it has a unique geographic advantage: its solar PV systems can produce twice as much electricity as comparable systems in central Europe.”

Some African nations are proactively investing in solar to reduce their grid dependence. “Malawi is rolling out its National Compact for Energy, which creates a competitive framework for private-sector investment in off-grid solar through grants, subsidies, and credit lines that improve access to foreign exchange,” he notes.

Safeguarding solar investments

The shift to solar is also being driven by cost-effectiveness. Dr Dickson shares that on-site solar is now cheaper than the electricity tariffs paid by C&I clients in at least seven sub-Saharan markets.

Pointing to research by GreenCape, which found that solar PV can reduce business energy costs by 15%, with a return on investment reached within three to 12 years, he highlights that after that, businesses can benefit from up to 15 years of free electricity.

However, Dr Dickson stresses that unlocking these savings requires protecting system components from damage and disruption. “Voltage spikes caused by lightning or grid instability can seriously damage inverters and batteries. Installing surge protection devices (SPDs) is critical, not just to prevent damage, but also to avoid voiding manufacturer warranties.”

Arcing is another serious threat. “When electrical currents jump across gaps, the heat generated can damage components or even start fires,” he explains. “DC circuit breakers designed specifically for solar systems are essential for mitigating this risk. They’re built to handle the direct current generated by PV panels, ensuring safer and more reliable operation.”

Smart tech enables smarter solar use

In addition to physical protection, Dr Dickson advises businesses to embrace smart energy management tools to extend system life and optimize performance. “A smart power indicator can detect grid interruptions and send immediate alerts, helping businesses respond quickly. These systems can temporarily disconnect non-essential high-energy devices during an outage to prevent overload and preserve battery life. At the same time, they ensure that essential systems like security and lighting continue operating during downtime.”

Optimizing solar ROI in 2025

He believes that the key to unlocking solar’s full potential lies in strategic system design and management. “By combining surge protection, DC breakers, and monitoring tools, businesses can reduce unexpected costs, minimize downtime, and extend the life of their investment.”

“As Africa’s solar energy market continues to expand in 2025, organizations have an opportunity to capitalize on its long-term benefits. With the right technologies and safeguards in place, solar is not only a clean energy solution it’s a strategic asset that pays off,” concludes Dr Dickson.

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By Chris Bonasia

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By Chris Bonasia

Chinese electric vehicle maker BYD is set to release a model that will be able to drive up to 400 kilometres after just five minutes of charging, though experts warn of infrastructure challenges.

The company reported a record annual revenue of US$170 billion in 2024, overtaking Tesla’s $155.5 billion. These developments highlight the widening gap between the two companies as BYD’s technology continues to surpass Tesla’s, writes ABC News.

Riding on its success, BYD is looking to expand its production facilities in Europe by building a third manufacturing plant in Germany, which will help it reach European customers without the extra cost of import tariffs.

BYD’s new charging capacity is made possible by an “all liquid-cooled megawatt flash charging terminal system.” The charging system is matched with a 1500-volt next-generation silicon carbide power chip and a flash-charging battery with ultra-fast ion channels, which halves the battery’s internal resistance.

Those innovations enable drivers to recharge their vehicles at a rate of about two kilometres per second, faster than any other passenger EV. The next closest competitor—Li Auto, also based in China—can reach a 500-kilometre range in 12 minutes, while Tesla superchargers can charge to a 275-kilometre range in 15 minutes, Bloomberg writes.

Two vehicles with this capacity will be launched in April—the Han L and the Tang L sport utility vehicle. Starting prices for these options are C$53,224 (270,000 yuan) and $55,196 (280,000 yuan). In comparison, the extended range option for BYD’s Han EV costs $45,300 (229,800 yuan). Prices for a Tesla Model Y start at $64,990 in Canada.

The fast charging time will help some buyers move past anxiety over EV wait times, InsideEVs Plugged-In Podcast co-hosts Patrick George and Tim Levin said. But they added that the really important point about BYD’s progress isn’t just that its technology is better than that of other companies, but that it is available in vehicles that are accessible for average consumers. BYD’s cars are sold for a good value in China even though they are more expensive or unavailable in other countries because of high tariffs. George said BYD EVs are unassuming and normal, instead of looking like “high-tech spaceships.”

“It’s so crazy how they’ve normalized this stuff,” he added.

BYD has plans to install 4,000 of its chargers across China, but has not provided specifics on how that will unfold. Some experts say that while the charging systems can work on their own, it may be difficult to integrate them into the grid because they have large power needs that could demand costly grid connection updates. The advanced liquid-cooled system itself is likely to be more expensive than other chargers, which could mean higher charging prices for drivers, reports Wired.

Others question exactly how useful the new system will be, given that most EV drivers are able to charge their vehicles at night when charging times are less relevant. The super-fast charging could also pose some safety concerns and might affect the long-term durability of the battery, writes Bloomberg.

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By Mitchell Beer

Prime Minister Mark Carney’s position on the federal oil and gas emissions cap and Alberta Premier Danielle Smith’s take on U.S. interference in Canadian politics took centre stage in the hours and days after Carney initiated a long-anticipated federal election for April 28.

Meanwhile, Carney’s past work as a central banker and climate finance champion, along with his early campaign positioning against Donald Trump’s tariffs and annexation threats, have made him a bit of an international heavy hitter for media in other countries that are suddenly paying attention to a Canadian election campaign.

Early Attention to Emissions Cap

The emissions cap emerged as an early campaign issue, even after the former minority government of Justin Trudeau delayed its enforcement until 2030-2032 after introducing detailed regulations two years behind schedule. “Leaving compliance until 2030 is like waiting until the second period of a hockey game to start keeping score,” Caroline Brouillette, executive director of Climate Action Network Canada (CAN-Rac), said at the time.

Carney himself created uncertainty about whether he would maintain the cap. After a contentious meeting with Smith in Edmonton March 20, he said he wanted to build competitiveness in the country’s energy sector by “working with industry and with provinces on specific ways to get those reductions… as opposed to having preset caps or preset restrictions on preset timelines.”

Those remarks raised questions after newly-appointed Environment and Climate Change Minister Terry Duguid said the cap would be safe under a Carney government. “We want that energy. What we don’t want is that pollution,” he told The Canadian Press.

A day later, Carney clarified that he would stand behind an “emissions cap, not a production cap,” while speeding up federal technology investments to help bring down oil and gas sector emissions, CP reported.

“Investment in carbon capture and storage technology, investment in reducing methane,” he told media. “The regulation or a law doesn’t reduce emissions,” so “what I’m focused on is action in order to reduce those emissions. That requires partnerships, it requires a different framework,” a topic that he said was on the table when he met with provincial and territorial premiers last week.

But it may take more than new partnerships to advance carbon capture and storage (CCS) in time to make a significant dent in Canada’s fossil fuel emissions. In October 2023, the Regina-based International CCS Knowledge Centre admitted the technology won’t be ready in time to meet 2035 decarbonization targets, after 10 of the world’s 13 “flagship” CCS projects had failed to deliver. While oil sands producers were initially looking for C$50 billion in taxpayer subsidies to decarbonize their operations, then-environment minister Steven Guilbeault made it clear they would receive no more federal funds beyond the $7 billion in then-finance minister Chrystia Freeland’s 2022 budget.

Since then, the six oil sands companies that make up the Pathways Alliance have steadfastly refused to make a final investment decision for their proposed $16.5-billion carbon capture hub without further subsidies—or as they prefer to call it, greater “certainty” or “clarity”—to transfer more of the project cost to taxpayers. With Energy and Natural Resources Minister Jonathan Wilkinson urging Pathways to “fish or cut bait”, Globe columnist Adam Radwanski suggested last week that the companies are losing interest in the controversial megaproject, given its reliance on a technology that “has high operational costs once installed, without on its own generating any revenues.”

Following last week’s first ministers’ meeting, Carney also declined to rule out federal funding for future oil and gas pipelines, the Globe and Mail reported. “The vast, vast, vast majority of investment dollars and risk is going to be borne by the private sector—and rewards, of course, by the private sector—but I’m not going to rule out any federal participation in any possibility down the road,” he said.

‘Offensive and False’

With national sovereignty and Trump’s economic war on Canada shaping up as the vote-determining issue in the election, Smith has been on the defensive this week, after telling an alt-right website in the United States that Trump’s “unjust and unfair tariffs” had given the Liberals a boost in the polls.

The interview with Breitbart took place March 8, before Carney won the Liberal leadership or the election was called. Smith press secretary Sam Blackett declared it “offensive and false” to suggest his boss was inviting Trump to tilt the campaign, and on Monday, Chief Electoral Officer Stéphane Perrault said Smith’s comments didn’t fit the definition of “undue influence” by foreign entities under the Canada Elections Act.

But Lisa Young, a University of Calgary professor of political science, said the remarks could still create problems for Conservative leader Pierre Poilievre.

Smith “really hasn’t done Poilievre and the Conservatives any favours here. There’s a quote about him being more favourable to working with the United States, that I think is likely to end up on a Liberal campaign ad at some point,” she told CBC’s Calgary Eyeopener show Monday.

The comments did “sound like inviting a foreign country to get involved,” she added, and while “it certainly isn’t illegal, I think the question is whether it’s appropriate for a provincial premier to be doing this.”

At least two columnists had a tougher take on Smith’s remarks. In the Toronto Star, Bruce Arthur opened with a long excerpt from the Breitbart interview, based on news reporting a day earlier by veteran political journalist Stephen Maher.

“What I fear is that the longer this dispute goes on, politicians posture, and it seems to be benefiting the Liberals right now,” said Smith. “So I would hope that we could put things on pause is what I’ve told the administration officials, let’s just put things on pause so we can get through an election.

“If we do have Pierre (Poilievre) as our prime minister, then I think there’s a number of things we can do together. Pierre believes in development, he believes in low-cost energy, he believes in low taxes. He doesn’t believe in any of the woke stuff that’s taken over our politics over the last five years.

“So I would think there’s probably still always going to be areas that are skirmishes or disputes about particular industries, when it comes to the border, but I would say, on balance, that the perspective that Pierre would bring would be very much in sync with where the new direction in America, and I think we have a really great relationship for the period of time (that) they’re both in.”

On a campaign stop in Brampton, Ontario Monday, Poilievre was asked whether Smith’s remarks were appropriate. “People are free to make their own comments. I speak for myself,” he responded.

Aligned with an Enemy

The Star’s Bruce Arthur was rather more critical of Smith’s pitch.

“Let’s state this plainly: a sitting Canadian premier says she asked our enemy—and there is no question, at this point, that America under the Trump administration is an enemy of a free and sovereign Canada—to alter policy in order to help elect a federal candidate who is better aligned with that enemy of the country. She didn’t even ask that the tariffs be removed, just paused,” Arthur opined. “It is the kind of astonishing carelessness of total political warfare with a resistance to reality. And the mistake would be to write it off as simple politics.”

In the Globe, columnist Gary Mason took a different tack.

“Now, I don’t know about you, but that looks like a Canadian premier asking a foreign government to do something to alter the outcome of an election campaign in order to help the party and the federal leader she supports,” Mason wrote Monday. “Consider this hypothetical: If a provincial premier met with officials of the Communist Party of China, which was in the process of trying to destroy this country with brutal tariffs, and asked them to halt those economic threats until after a federal election campaign was over in order to better guarantee the result the premier was hoping for, there would be national outrage.”

Smith’s press secretary might well object, Mason added, but “people aren’t stupid and they can add things up for themselves. Her words are her words and she can’t now take them back.”

In a mid-month opinion piece for The Hill Times, Greenpeace Canada Senior Energy Strategist Keith Stewart warned against letting “Maple MAGAs” gut the country’s environmental protections and line up new subsidies for the fossil industry.

“To protect the people and places that we love, we can’t allow American President Donald Trump’s bullying to set the political agenda here in Canada,” he wrote. “Instead, we should build the green homes, power grid, and transportation systems that Trump so despises.”

Undeterred, Smith is still planning to attend a U.S. fundraiser Thursday with far right media provocateur Ben Shapiro, who’s been heard to call Canada a “silly country”, despite continuing calls from Opposition NDP MLAs to abandon the trip, The Canadian Press reports.

International Heavy Hitter

Meanwhile, the party leader who has been recording campaign videos with the actor who played an “international man of mystery” is getting some international attention of his own. News organizations are looking back at Carney’s past crisis management as a central banker and UN special envoy for climate finance, while focusing forward on his stance against Trump’s tariffs and annexation threats.

“Carney’s allure helped boost awareness around the financial risks of climate change,” writes the UK’s Bureau of Investigative Journalism (BIJ), in a post that declares him a “green finance guru”. In his past efforts, “he called for fossil fuels to be kept in the ground lest they become worthless in a low-carbon world; he rallied international banks to make green pledges and avoid investments that could become ‘stranded assets’ with little value.”

Those positions are “commendably grounded in science but carry radical political implications,” Covering Climate Now co-founder and executive director Mark Hertsgaard wrote earlier this month for The Nation.

With much of that momentum now unravelling, “Carney’s appointment to the world leadership stage does offer some hope for the reinvigoration of green finance,” BIJ writes. “But if he remains in his position beyond an impending general election, he’ll face major political obstacles in any drive for a greener economy—both at home and abroad.” The post summarizes the resistance Carney is already encountering from Smith and others, the threats from Trump, and the results of his overseas trip to the United Kingdom and Europe in the days after he was sworn in as prime minister.

In the U.S., at least one political analyst is crediting Carney with showing some spine in response to Trump’s bullying, in contrast to congressional Democrats, an Ivy League university, and a prestigious law firm that “folded like lawn chairs under pressure from Donald Trump.” Against that backdrop, “if you want to know what it looks like to fight back, cast your gaze north of the border,” writes veteran political analyst Taegan Goddard on his Political Wire blog.

“The former Bank of Canada governor—and now new prime minister—took a bold gamble: He made resisting Trump central to his campaign. Framing the upcoming Canadian election not just as a national choice but as a bulwark against Trump’s calls to annex his country, Carney flipped the script,” Goddard says.

“The contrast with recent events in the U.S. couldn’t be more stark,” he adds. “While powerful institutions here appear unwilling—or unable—to stand up to Trump, Canada’s new leader is gaining ground by doing exactly that.” With opinion polls trending in Carney’s direction, “It’s a reminder that, sometimes, the way to beat a bully is to stand your ground. And voters might just reward you for it.”

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