Electric Vehicles

People who operate truck fleets will be on the front lines if North Carolina adopts rules this year to get more electric trucks and buses on state roads. In Charlotte Friday, state environmental officials heard some of their concerns about cost, evolving technology, and charging.

Jennifer Homendy, the head of the National Transportation Safety Board, expressed concern about the safety risks that heavy electric vehicles pose if they collide with lighter vehicles.

The rules would apply to any truck over 6,001 pounds — basically, pickups up to tractor-trailers. Sales targets would vary by size, between seven classes, with the goal of eventually 40%-75% of trucks sold in the state being zero-emission vehicles.

Piedmont Lithium says it has amended a previously announced contract with electric vehicle maker Tesla to supply lithium beginning later this year.

Public meetings are planned around the state in the coming weeks to help state environmental officials draft rules to promote a shift to electric trucks.

Redwood Materials, a Nevada company that makes electric vehicle battery components, says it will build a $3.5 billion campus near Charleston, South Carolina. State officials say it's the largest economic development investment in South Carolina's history.

Charlotte-based chemicals supplier Albemarle Corp. plans a $200 million lithium research center in Charlotte's University Research Park. The company says the center will create 200 jobs and support the fast-growing market for lithium and electric vehicle batteries.

The electric vehicle industry is growing across the U.S. and in North Carolina, mainly as sales of electric passenger vehicles speed up. But what about bigger vehicles? Gov. Roy Cooper said this week state officials are drafting new rules that could get more electric medium- and heavy-duty trucks and buses on state roads.

Think of it as Zipcar for electric vehicles in underserved neighborhoods: In some Charlotte affordable housing complexes next year you'll be able to reserve and drive EVs as part of a federally backed car-sharing pilot program.

There's a race on to mine lithium in the U.S. for electric vehicle batteries. It's part of the fight to slow global warming — and to some people a matter of national security. But to neighbors, a proposed mine in Gaston County is an impending environmental disaster.