** Although Tesla held the title of most vehicles recalled for 2024, Ford Motor Company was hot on its heels with the number two spot, reported The Manual. In one of its most recent recalls filed with the NHTSA, the Blue Oval added nearly 300,000 more vehicles to that total (which still leaves Tesla roughly half a million in the lead) because of another side effect of the COVID-19 pandemic.
** Auto hauler Jack Cooper has lost its contract to transport vehicles for Ford Motor Co., a major blow to the unionized carrier. Ford is believed to be Jack Cooper’s second-largest customer behind General Motors.
** The U.S. government is in the process of removing restrictions on Indian nuclear entities, National Security Advisor Jake Sullivan said on Monday, in a bid to forge deeper energy ties with New Delhi and bolster a 20-year old landmark nuclear deal.
** The U.S. Energy Department provides a conditional $1.8 billion loan guarantee to Arizona Public Service for upgrading transmission, developing clean energy and deploying battery storage.
** Alaska nears an agreement with a private firm to lead and develop a proposed 800-mile liquefied natural gas pipeline and export terminal.
** Toyota announces plans to hire 1,600 additional workers and ship its first hybrid and electric vehicle batteries from a new North Carolina plant later this year.
World
** Sales of new electric vehicles in Germany plunged last year, official figures showed Monday, as a slow switch to battery-powered cars deepened the woes of the country’s flagship auto industry. Just 380,609 EVs were registered in 2024 in Europe’s largest auto market, 27.4 percent fewer than in the previous year, the KBA federal transport authority said.
** Chinese automaker Chery on Tuesday reported a 38.4% jump in global car sales for 2024 to 2.6 million vehicles and forecast sales of more than 3 million this year. State-owned, Wuhu-based Chery said its revenue rose more than 45% to 480 billion yuan ($65.52 billion) as it remained China’s top car exporter, shipping 1.14 million to foreign markets.
** Britain has become Europe’s largest electric car market for the first time ever as tough net zero sales targets prompt manufacturers to offer steep discounts. The UK outsold Germany last year and surged ahead of France after a rise in electric vehicles (EV) registrations at the end of 2024.
** More Chinese regions are cutting electricity prices to help out their embattled industries, which is likely to worsen the squeeze on profits at power suppliers. The richest coastal provinces have reduced their benchmark thermal power prices by about 10% from last year, according to a briefing by UBS Group AG this week.
** Shandong Port Group has banned U.S.-sanctioned tankers from calling into its ports in the eastern Chinese province, home to many independent refiners that are the biggest importers of oil from countries under U.S. embargo, three traders said.
** Syria will receive two electricity-generating ships from Turkey and Qatar to boost energy supplies hit by damage to infrastructure during President Bashar al-Assad’s rule, state news agency SANA quoted an official as saying on Tuesday.
** In its final days, the Biden administration is poised to impose a new round of sanctions on Russian oil exports, marking a significant escalation in efforts to curtail Moscow’s energy revenues. The latest U.S. sanctions package is rumored to be expansive, encompassing two Russian oil companies and more than 100 tankers, as well as oil traders and Russian insurance firms.
** Oil has surpassed soybeans as Brazil’s top export, an unprecedented performance that underscores the COP30 host’s status as a fossil-fuel champion.