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Mercedes edges towards battery independence with new lithium refinery

Mit Spatenstich von Rock Tech Inc. in Guben erreicht Mercedes-Benz nächsten Meilenstein der Rohstoffabsicherung in Europa | Mercedes-Benz reaches next milestone in securing raw material in Europe with groundbreaking ceremony for Rock Tech Inc. in Guben

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Mercedes partner Rock Tech has broken ground on its new lithium refining facility in Germany that will serve the premium German automaker.

Along with its incredibly extensive production shift toward electric vehicles, Mercedes-Benz is working to become battery independent. Securing the necessary raw materials, chiefly lithium, is crucial to that plan. In this effort, it has partnered with Canadian lithium extraction and refining giant Rock Tech, and the partnership’s first refining facility has entered construction.

According to Mercedes, the upcoming lithium hydroxide plant will begin supplying the automaker with critically needed lithium in 2026, along with a series of other production changes that are going on simultaneously. This includes countless industrial retrofitting projects that Mercedes is undertaking, primarily in Europe but also at its Chinese and North American production locations.

“For Mercedes-Benz, the shift towards electric mobility also means a change in our supply chains. Three goals are central to us: Sustainability, raw materials security, and localization of procurement,” says Markus Schäfer, Member of the Board of Management of Mercedes and Chief Technology Officer of Development & Procurement. “Today’s groundbreaking in Guben is, therefore, another milestone for Mercedes-Benz towards the sustainable production of state-of-the-art batteries. When it comes to our lithium supply here in Europe, Rock Tech will play a key role for Mercedes-Benz in the future.”

Only further complicating this incredible orchestration, Mercedes is part of the Automotive Cells Company joint venture alongside Stellantis and TotalEnergies, which is also establishing its first battery cell production site in Europe. The upcoming Rock Tech refinery will likely supply these three upcoming facilities, though Mercedes did not specify these production details.

Mercedes is in the lucky situation that it is not expected to produce a vast number of electric vehicles, at least not yet. Its current offerings, particularly the EQS and EQS SUV, are incredibly premium and expensive vehicles that will never be bought in huge numbers. Still, as the brand works its way down the price ladder as it has done with the EQB and EQC vehicles, these battery production projects will become ever more critical, especially in terms of battling scarcity and production costs.

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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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Rivian and Amazon announce huge milestone with EDV

The companies announced today that they had officially launched the EDV in Canada for Amazon, as the first 50 units are out and about in Vancouver, and the company said it was “marking an exciting milestone in our five-year history of operations in Canada.”

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Credit: Rivian

Rivian and Amazon have announced a huge milestone with their Electric Delivery Vehicle (EDV), the van that the two companies developed for the e-commerce giant to sustainably deliver packages to customers.

The EDV was first unveiled back in September 2019, when Amazon announced a massive investment in Rivian and placed an order for 100,000 electric vans, aiming to deploy them by 2030 as part of the company’s sustainability goals.

Production started in 2021 in Normal, Illinois, and entered Amazon’s fleet of active delivery vehicles over the Summer of 2022. Amazon kept the initial vehicles in major metropolitan areas and eventually started rolling them out to more delivery hubs across the United States.

In December 2024, the companies announced they had successfully deployed 20,000 EDVs across the U.S. In the first half of this year, 10,000 additional vans were delivered, and Amazon’s fleet had grown to 30,000 EDVs by mid-2025.

Amazon’s fleet of EDVs continues to grow rapidly and has expanded to over 100 cities in the United States. However, it has just reached a new milestone, and it has nothing to do with the size of its fleet.

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The companies announced today that they had officially launched the EDV in Canada for Amazon, as the first 50 units are out and about in Vancouver, and the company said it was “marking an exciting milestone in our five-year history of operations in Canada.”

The EDV is a model that is exclusive to Amazon, but Rivian sells the RCV, or Rivian Commercial Van, openly. It detailed some of the pricing and trim options back in January when it confirmed it had secured orders from various companies, including AT&T.

The RCV starts at $83,000, and is one of the few electric vans on the market that is suitable for package delivery in a commercial setting because of its build and interior features.

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Rivian prepares to launch the EDV outside of Amazon as the RCV – Here’s when

However, it also seems to be a great option as a service vehicle for companies, which is likely why AT&T is going to utilize it.

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Tesla’s biggest rival in China reported a big profit decline once again

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(Credit: BYD)

Tesla’s biggest rival in China reported a big decline in its profitability for the second straight quarter, and a loss of one-third compared to the same quarter last year.

BYD overtook Tesla as the best-selling EV maker in China in the fourth quarter of 2023, finally surpassing the company in terms of sales in the region.

Is Tesla really losing to BYD, or just playing a different game?

The Chinese market is one of the most competitive in the world, especially for EVs, as the industry is healthy with young and scrappy companies looking to sell the best possible tech in their vehicles.

BYD reported its earnings on Thursday and said that its profit had slumped by 33 percent compared to the same quarter last year. For this year’s third quarter, BYD reported a net profit of 7.8 billion yuan ($1.1 billion), a 32.6 percent decrease compared to the same period in 2024.

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Its revenue was 195 billion yuan ($27.4 billion), which was only a 3 percent decrease compared to Q3 2024.

The drop in profits and revenue can mostly be attributed to the ongoing growth of competition in the Chinese market. The increased competition in China has pushed companies to turn to overseas markets in response, according to CnEVPost.

BYD is one of those companies, and it is attempting to push sales upward by entering new markets, especially in Europe, where the company sold more than 13,000 units in EU countries in September alone.

This was a 272 percent increase year over year, a major piece of evidence that it has a lot of potential in foreign markets.

The drop in financial figures is likely a short-term issue for BYD, as it has already established itself as a formidable competitor to many companies in many markets. In Q1, it reported an increase in profit by 100 percent compared to the same time span the year prior.

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As it works to expand to even more markets in the world, it will continue to build upon its already-solid reputation.

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GM takes latest step to avoid disaster as EV efforts get derailed

There was an even larger step taken this morning, as the Detroit Free Press reported that GM was idling its Factory Zero plant in Michigan until late November, placing about 1,200 workers on indefinite layoff status.

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Credit: GM

General Motors has taken its latest step to avoid financial disaster as its electric vehicle efforts have been widely derailed.

GM’s electric vehicle manufacturing efforts started off hot, and CEO Mary Barra seemed to have a real hold on how the industry and consumers were starting to evolve toward sustainable powertrains. Even former President Joe Biden commended her as being a major force in the global transition to EVs.

However, the company’s plans have not gone as they’ve drawn them up. GM has reported some underwhelming delivery figures in recent quarters, and with the loss of the $7,500 tax credit, the company is planning for what is likely a substantial setback in its entire EV division.

Earlier this month, the company reported it would include a $1.6 billion charge in its quarterly earnings results from EV investments. It was the first true sign that things with GM’s EV projects were going to slow down.

There was an even larger step taken this morning, as the Detroit Free Press reported that GM was idling its Factory Zero plant in Michigan until late November, placing about 1,200 workers on indefinite layoff status.

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This is in addition to the 280 employees it has already laid off after production cuts that happened earlier this year at the Detroit-Hamtramck plant.

After November 24, GM will bring back 3,200 people to work until January 5 to operate both shifts. On January 5, GM is expected to keep 1,200 workers on indefinite layoff.

GM is not the only legacy automaker to make a move like this, as Ford has also started to make a move that reflects a cautious tone regarding how far and how committed it can be to its EV efforts.

After the tax credit was lost, it seemed to be a game of who would be able to float their efforts longest without the government’s help. Tesla CEO Elon Musk long said that the loss of these subsidies would help the company and hurt its competitors, and so far, that is what we are seeing.

Elon Musk was right all along about Tesla’s rivals and EV subsidies

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However, Tesla still has some things to figure out, including how its delivery numbers will be without the tax credit. Its best quarter came in Q3 as the credit was expiring, but Tesla did roll out some more affordable models after the turn of the quarter.

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