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GM reportedly abandoning JV battery plant with LG

Credit: General Motors

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General Motors (GM) is reportedly abandoning a joint venture battery production facility with Korean battery manufacturer LG Chem.

GM has been on a tear over the past year and a half, establishing new battery production locations via its subsidiary joint venture created with LG called Ultium. However, its fourth production facility will reportedly no longer be pursued, according to leaked information given to Reuters.

According to information released by Ultium LLC in Q4 of last year, the fourth battery production location of the business would be located in New Carlisle, Indiana, and come at an initial cost of $2.5 billion. However, in a comment to the press at the end of the week, GM specified that “We’ve been very clear that our plan includes investing in a fourth U.S. cell plant, but we’re not going to comment on speculation,” indicating the situation regarding the plant’s construction may be more complex than initially reported.

One significant hurdle for GM could be its current ties to LG via its battery manufacturing subsidiary Ultium. In the case that GM decides to work with another battery manufacturer, it remains unclear if Ultium could manage that plant or if it would require its own management that could, in turn, work with the new supplier; be that SK ON, CATL, or any other manufacturer. However, suppose GM will continue working with LG and establish the fourth location. In that case, the American auto giant may need to continue to work through a potentially arduous negotiation process.

As for LG, the South Korean battery maker has yet to back away from the negotiation table and released a statement on Friday to the Wall Street Journal, saying discussions were still ongoing.

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As legacy automakers continue to look to expand their battery manufacturing prowess in the coming years, it is clear that the partnership model may not always be advantageous. And while many have appreciated sharing the cost of creating these numerous production locations with battery makers, it’s clear that Tesla’s more direct vertical approach also has its merits. It remains unclear if more companies will trend toward that direction in the future.

What do you think of the article? Do you have any comments, questions, or concerns? Shoot me an email at william@teslarati.com. You can also reach me on Twitter @WilliamWritin. If you have news tips, email us at tips@teslarati.com!

Will is an auto enthusiast, a gear head, and an EV enthusiast above all. From racing, to industry data, to the most advanced EV tech on earth, he now covers it at Teslarati.

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Tesla FSD earns high praise in South Korea’s real-world autonomous driving test

As per the Korea Expressway Corporation’s report, the FSD test was conducted on December 15, 2025, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m.

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Credit: Grok Imagine

Tesla’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) has received a bullish assessment from the Korea Expressway Corporation following a real-world autonomous highway driving test. 

A report of the test, shared on Naver Cafe, showed high praise for the system’s safety, capabilities, smooth maneuvers, and confidence.

South Korean highway test

As per the Korea Expressway Corporation’s report, the FSD test was conducted on December 15, 2025, from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. Four people were in the Tesla that was tested, including the head of the mobility department. All four FSD driving modes were tested, from “Sloth” to “Mad Max.”

To test FSD’s performance, the system was tasked to operate on highways such as Gyeongbu, Cheonan, and Cheonan-Nonsan, as well as city areas in Dongtan New Town, Sejong Special City, and Daejeon Metropolitan City, among others.

Since FSD is only available for the Tesla Model S and Model X that are imported to South Korea from the United States, the system was not tested in a Model 3 or Model Y, which comprise the majority of Teslas on the country’s roads today. 

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Highway test results

Results showed FSD performing well, both in inner-city roads and on highways. In inner city roads, the testers noted that FSD was capable of autonomous driving at a level that already exceeds that of general human drivers, except in very few areas, such as unprotected left turns and work zone intersections. 

In highways, the testers described FSD’s performance as “excellent,” though the system still showed frequent cases of violations in local bus lanes and max speed limit rules. These, however, could hopefully be addressed by Tesla in a future FSD update without many issues. The testers also noted that in some parts of the test, FSD seemed to be driving autonomously in accordance with traffic flow rather than strict traffic rules.

테슬라 Fsd 고속도로 자율주행 테스트 결과 보고 by Simon Alvarez

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Tesla claims nearly 20% market share as Norway sets new car sales record

Tesla captured roughly one in five new cars in Norway, highlighting its dominance in the world’s most EV-friendly market.

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Credit: Grok Imagine

Norway shattered its all-time new car sales record in 2025, and Tesla emerged as the clear winner. A year-end rush ahead of higher EV taxes pushed registrations to nearly 180,000 vehicles, with electric cars accounting for 96% of sales. 

Tesla captured roughly one in five new cars in Norway, highlighting its dominance in the world’s most EV-friendly market.

Norway’s EV rush

As noted in a CarUp report, Norway’s electric vehicle sales in 2025 surged, thanks in part to buyers rushing ahead of a post–new year VAT increase of roughly 50,000 kronor on many new electric cars. This ended up pulling demand forward and setting a national record with almost 180,000 registrations in 2025.

The result was unprecedented. From the vehicles that were sold in 2025, 96% of new cars sold were fully electric. And from this number, Tesla and its Model Y made their dominance felt. This was highlighted by Geir Inge Stokke, director of OFV, who noted that Tesla was able to achieve its stellar results despite its small vehicle lineup.

“Taking almost 20% market share during a year with record-high new car sales is remarkable in itself. When a brand also achieves such volumes with so few models, it says a lot about both demand and Tesla’s impact on the Norwegian market,” Stokke stated.

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Tesla domination

Tesla led all brands in Norway with 34,285 registrations, which is equal to a 19.1% market share. These results place Tesla well ahead of Volkswagen and Volvo, which held a 13.3% and 7.8% market share in 2025, respectively. 

On the model chart, Tesla’s strength was even clearer. The Tesla Model Y topped all vehicles with 27,621 registrations, accounting for 15.4% of the entire market. The Tesla Model 3 also ranked among the top five, accounting for 3.7% of Norway’s entire auto sales in 2025.

Other strong performers included Volkswagen’s ID.4 and ID.7, Toyota’s bZ4X, which commanded 4.9%, 3.9%, and 4.1% of Norway’s total sales in 2025, respectively. 

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Tesla China sees 2nd-best month ever by selling 97,171 vehicles wholesale in December

The results mark Tesla China’s second-highest monthly result on record, trailing only November 2022’s 100,291 units.

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Credit: Grok Imagine

Tesla posted a sharp year-end rebound in China last month, with December’s wholesale figures climbing to their second-highest level to date.

The surge capped a late-year recovery for the electric vehicle maker, even as full-year wholesale figures still finished lower year over year. Still, the data highlights how Tesla China’s offerings still resonate with customers in the world’s most competitive electric vehicle market. 

Tesla China’s December surge

Tesla China sold 97,171 vehicles wholesale in December, as per data from the China Passenger Car Association (CPCA). The results mark Tesla China’s second-highest monthly result on record, trailing only November 2022’s 100,291 units, based on data compiled by CNEVPost. The details of Tesla China’s December results, such as its domestic sales and exports, are yet to be released. 

December’s wholesale results represent a 3.63% increase from the same month last year and a 12.08% jump from November’s 86,700 units. It also marked the second consecutive month of year-over-year growth, signaling renewed momentum in China. 

Tesla’s late-year momentum is believed to be partly driven by Tesla pulling deliveries forward to allow buyers to take advantage of more favorable purchase tax policies before the calendar year ended. That strategy helped boost monthly performance even as competition in China’s EV market remained intense.

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Tesla China’s FY 2025 volumes

Despite the strong December finish, Tesla China’s wholesale sales declined on an annual basis. The electric vehicle maker’s total wholesale figures for 2025 reached 851,732 units, down 7.08% year over year. This could have been due to a variety of factors, from intense competition in the domestic Chinese market to Giga Shanghai’s changeover to the new Model Y in the early part of the year. 

Tesla Gigafactory Shanghai continues to play a central role in its global operations, producing the Model 3 sedan and Model Y crossover for both Chinese customers and export markets. The efficiency of Gigafactory Shanghai has allowed it to become Tesla’s largest factory by volume, as well as the company’s primary vehicle export hub. 

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