Battery

Experts say fires caused by wrongly discarded lithium batteries, such as those in vapes, are putting lives at riskFires at recycling centres caused by wrongly discarded lithium batteries such as those found in vapes are occurring at the rate of more than 10 a week, according to new figures.Experts say the sheer volume of battery fires now occurring at waste facilities has reached a crisis that is putting lives at risk, costing £1bn a year and frustrating fire chiefs. Continue reading...

Chinese-owned AESC has pushed back plans in sign of slowing transition from petrol and diesel to electric carsAndy Burnham moves to cut new EV sales targetsThe UK’s biggest gigafactory has shelved plans to expand production in Sunderland because of stalled talks on a deal to supply electric car batteries to Jaguar Land Rover.Chinese-owned AESC produces batteries for Nissan at its gigafactory next door to the Japanese carmaker’s Sunderland plant. However, AESC has had to push back its ramp-up plans because of lower-than-expected demand from Nissan and the lack of a deal with JLR, according to people with knowledge of the situation. Continue reading...

• Venture capital activity on July 29, 2026, saw significant funding rounds led by firms including Battery Ventures, Elephant, Thomson Reuters Ventures, and Y Combinator. • The largest investments over a 12-hour period were concentrated in AI infrastructure and enterprise technology rather than consumer-facing applications. • This trend indicates a strategic shift where investors are prioritizing foundational business solutions and infrastructure over speculative market hype.

• Venture capital activity on July 28, 2026, shifted away from large foundation models toward practical AI and industrial technology systems. • Funding was directed into specialized sectors including cloud access control, AI-agent governance, enterprise data semantics, voice infrastructure, and pathogen diagnostics. • Investments also targeted high-impact hardware and science, specifically PFAS destruction, radar satellites, and a new quantum-computing architecture.

• New EU car registrations increased by 5.7% during the first half of 2026, driven by strong performance in June despite ongoing geopolitical headwinds. • Battery-electric vehicles reached a 20.7% market share, with significant growth in France (+62.9%), Germany (+48%), and Denmark (+41.2%). • Hybrid-electric car registrations rose to 2,198,148 units, supported by double-digit growth in Italy (+23%) and Spain (+20.8%).

Supplier Agratas sacks its main building contractor on the government-backed project amid a budget mismatchJaguar Land Rover faces the risk of delays to the first deliveries of electric car batteries from a £5.2bn government-backed factory in Somerset after construction problems.The British carmaker is planning to rely on the Agratas factory in Bridgwater, Somerset, to supply the batteries for its new electric models. Agratas and JLR are owned by the Indian industrial conglomerate Tata. Continue reading...

Actor sentenced to probation for incident in which he attacked three men and yelled homophobic slurs, according to witnessesSign up for the Breaking News US newsletter email Shia LaBeouf on Wednesday pleaded guilty to misdemeanor battery charges filed against the actor after his arrest over allegations that he struck three men at a New Orleans bar in February.After his plea in the city’s criminal district courthouse, the Transformers film franchise star received a sentence of two years’ probation, rehabilitation for alcohol abuse, sensitivity training and anger management classes. Continue reading...

Australia is pioneering a revolution in home renewables and battery use, proving what is possible with the right policiesThe timing was rich with symbolism. As intense heatwaves pummelled Europe and Asia, and oil markets around the world leapt and sputtered, the two big chimneys of one of Australia’s largest power stations were being demolished. Meanwhile, the Australian energy minister was holding a media conference to hail a fall of up to 10% in the benchmark electricity price in parts of the country.Quietly, and with surprisingly little fanfare from the rest of the world, Australia is pioneering a revolution in home renewables and battery use, proving what is possible with the right policies. The country was already one of the global leaders in domestic solar power, with panels on one in three homes. It also remains, however, a major contributor to the climate crisis through its vast fossil fuel exports.. But it is batteries that are giving Australia a new burst of speed. Continue reading...

• MIT researchers reported a new lithium extraction approach that could make it cheaper and more energy-efficient to recover battery-grade lithium from hard rock deposits. • The method uses a liquid solution inspired by a bathroom renovation product, works at room temperature, can be reused, and may cut costs by about half compared with current techniques. • The advance matters because lithium supply is a key bottleneck for batteries and the energy transition, and the team says the leftover waste could be repurposed into useful materials.

Investigation finds number of dairy farms where cows cannot go outside has more than doubled since 2015There has been a huge rise in factory-style dairy farming of “battery cows” in the UK as farmers struggle with increasing costs and face selling milk at a loss.The number of intensive dairy farms that permanently confine some of their cattle indoors has more than doubled in the past 10 years, an investigation by the Bureau of Investigative Journalism (BIJ) has found. Data suggests there are now at least 180 dairy farms where cows have no access to the outdoors, up from about 70 in 2015. Continue reading...

Prosecutors opt not to pursue hate-crime charges over February incident despite anti-gay slurs captured on videoNew Orleans state prosecutors on Thursday filed formal misdemeanor battery charges against Shia LaBeouf, four months after police officers there arrested him on allegations that he struck three men at a bar.That move from the office of local district attorney Jason Williams means prosecutors opted to not pursue hate-crime charges against LaBeouf, the star of the Transformers film franchise, despite claims evidently supported by video that LaBeouf aimed anti-gay slurs at the alleged victims. Continue reading...

FoI responses collected by insurer show brigades tackled 1,760 battery-linked fires in 2025, up 147% in three yearsFire brigades across the UK are tackling lithium-ion battery fires at a rate of one every five hours, figures show, as fire chiefs warn that public awareness and government regulation have not kept pace with the ubiquity of this new hazard.Lithium-ion batteries power most rechargeable devices including mobile phones, electric toothbrushes, toys and vapes, as well as ebikes, e-scooters and electric vehicles. Continue reading...

Government officials said in December that Britain’s largest automotive employer could lead exodus from UKJaguar Land Rover would have considered moving car production out of the UK and slashing jobs if not for a £380m subsidy for its sister battery company, government officials claimed privately.Officials at the Department for Business and Trade (DBT) warned in December that Britain’s largest automotive employer may have triggered an exodus from the UK car industry, according to state aid documents prepared by the competition regulator. Continue reading...

Hyundai issues local recall due to a fault with its battery management software that could cause a fire while the car is recharging or parkedThousands of Australian drivers will be asked to check their electric vehicle batteries as part of a global recall involving more than 100,000 cars.Hyundai issued a local recall for almost 5,000 vehicles on Friday due to a fault with its battery management software that could cause a fire while the car is recharging or while it is parked. Continue reading...

Government investment in Tata-owned Agratas plant expected to boost economic growth and secure jobs The Somerset battery factory due to supply Jaguar Land Rover is to receive £380m in UK government funding as it pushes ahead with construction despite delays.JLR, Britain’s largest automotive employer, is due to receive batteries from the site to make electric versions of its Range Rover and Jaguar models. The Indian conglomerate Tata owns JLR and the electric vehicle (EV) battery factory under its Agratas subsidiary. Continue reading...

More than 33GW of battery capacity approved for Turkish grid since 2022 compared with 12-13GW in GermanyTurkey has given the green light to more batteries to buffer its electricity grid than any EU member state, a report has found, in a further sign of rich countries losing steam in the race to a clean economy.More than 33GW of battery capacity have been approved in Turkey since 2022, according to the climate thinktank Ember, while the total planned and operational capacity in European frontrunners that started deploying them earlier, such as Germany and Italy, is 12-13GW. Continue reading...

Rapper ‘very thankful’ to be given chance to enter mental health diversion program after arrest in LA last yearA judge has allowed Lil Nas X to enter a mental health diversion program intended to lead to the dismissal of charges of attacking Los Angeles police officers.Judge Alan Schneider told the rapper and singer on Monday that if he sticks to his treatment program and obeys all laws for two years, his four felony counts will be dismissed. Continue reading...

‘Looksmaxxer’ influencer and his girlfriend are suspected of involvement in attack on 19-year-old woman, officials saySign up for the Breaking News US email to get newsletter alerts in your inboxThe social media influencer known as Clavicular has been arrested in Florida on battery charges.Braden Eric Peters, who maintains a controversial online presence among “manosphere” circles as a so-called “looksmaxxer”, was taken into custody on a warrant issued by the Osceola county sheriff’s office, according to local jail records and media reports. Continue reading...

• General Motors and LG Energy Solution are diversifying production at their Ultium Cells plant in Spring Hill, Tennessee, to manufacture LFP batteries for energy storage systems. • The shift responds to surging demand for stationary battery tech amid EV market uncertainties. • This move enhances US energy infrastructure resilience and supports grid-scale storage projects nationwide.

• The US government approved a $4.3 billion deal between Tesla and LG Energy Solution for battery cells produced at a Michigan plant. • Cells will power Tesla's energy storage products like Megapack, bolstering domestic supply chains. • Approval highlights federal support for US EV and renewable energy manufacturing amid trade tensions.

Researchers say their prototype is a big step towards fully functioning batteries with rapid charging timesAustralian scientists have developed what they say is the world’s first proof-of-concept quantum battery.Quantum batteries, first proposed as a theoretical concept in 2013, use the principles of quantum mechanics to store energy, and have the potential to be more efficient than conventional batteries. Continue reading...