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German wind turbine maker Nordex SE  announced on Friday the inauguration of a 720-kW/792-kWh lithium-ion battery storage facility at the site of the Curslack wind farm in Bergedorf, Hamburg.

The energy storage plant consists of 24 batteries, the same as the ones used in electric vehicles (EVs) and based on the latest BMW technology. It was built by Swedish state-owned utility Vattenfall AB in cooperation with Nordex and the Competence Center for Renewable Energies and Energy Efficiency (CC4E) of the Hamburg University of Applied Sciences (HAW). The system makes it possible to avoid shutting down the five Nordex wind turbines at the site in the event of a grid overload.

The battery storage plant is one of 25 demonstrators that will be built as part of the NEW 4.0 (Norddeutsche EnergieWende) project, which is expected to help the Northern German states of Hamburg and Schleswig-Holstein end up with 100% renewable power by 2035. The NEW 4.0 project is funded by the German Federal Ministry of Economics and Energy (BMWi).

Vattenfall, Nordex and CC4E will be jointly designing models for innovative system services and also developing and testing control algorithms and parameters to enable renewable energy providers to offer these, together with battery storage systems, Nordex’s statement says.

A new report from Navigant Research examines key recycling methods and strategies for major advanced battery technologies that are commercially available for transportation and grid storage.

With growing demand for grid-scale and electric vehicle battery storage, advanced battery stakeholders are increasingly concerned about mitigating the life cycle impact of these systems. Efforts are underway to better understand the recycling process and to lower the costs and environmental impacts involved. Click to tweet: According to a new report from @NavigantRSRCH, recycling is an opportunity for advanced battery stakeholders to integrate responsible, profitable business practices into their go-to-market strategies.

“Early markets for advanced batteries opened around 2010, and now the industry is seeing its first major wave of retired advanced battery assets,” says Ian McClenny, research analyst with Navigant Research. “In the past, advanced battery manufacturers, integrators, end users, and even legacy battery recycling companies did not factor retirements into their business models, but that is changing as they become more aware of the opportunity to lower total cost of ownership, increase profits, and reduce environmental impact.”

According to the report, recycling presents an opportunity for system owners to increase profit margins and decrease their footprint, in addition to providing benefits to other stakeholders. While second-life use has been a viable option for some in the battery industry, the economical and environmentally friendly recycling of advanced battery systems would benefit all stakeholders.

Volkswagen has revealed that it has plans to manufacture 50 million electric vehicles on its MEB modular electric vehicle platform, and has already set aside €50 billion ($56 billion) for the purchase of electric vehicle batteries.

Volkswagen stated in September that it aspires to sell one million EVs annually by 2025, which Volkswagen Group CEO Herbert Diess stated will start in 2020 with sales of its compact I.D. electric hatchback.

“The [MEB] platform is already booked for 50 million electric cars,” said Diess in an interview with Automotive News. “We have sourced the batteries for 50 million electric cars, so this is a huge momentum coming, and probably from a volume piece, I think we have the best setup strategy for the electric vehicles to come.”

“The first car we will be launching next year, early 2020, will be the I.D., the size of a Golf, but because it’s a full-electric platform, it has the interior space of a Passat,” he added. “It has 400 to 600 kilometers (249 to 373 miles) of range, fast acceleration, fast charging and comes at the price of a diesel.”

It is unknown whether the I.D. will be the sub-$23,000 EV reported to be on the agenda for discussion by VW executives at a board meeting this Friday. What is certain is that the automaker’s existing manufacturing facilities won’t be adequate to put out one million EVs per year, but the company has a solution to that problem.

“Just last week, I was in China,” continued Diess. “We broke ground for a car plant which will only produce electric cars. We have our first plant in Germany which only will produce electric cars.”

Diess was noncommittal as to whether the automaker would open another factory in the United States for electric vehicles, or whether its current Chattanooga, SC factory would be expanded to accommodate EV production lines.

“We’re considering. It’s too early to announce, but we are considering, we are considering launches, but I would leave that to Scott [Keogh, former Audi USA president]. He has to make up his mind,” said Diess. “We set up the plant in Chattanooga always with the idea to be able to grow it, to mirror it. The plant is still too small, and we are considering different options—it might be electric cars, it might be a different derivative of the Atlas—it’s still open.”

Volkswagen confirmed to Reuters on Monday that it has earmarked €50 billion for EV battery purchases, but according to estimates by BMW, this won’t be nearly enough to put batteries in all 50 million of VW’s planned EVs.

BMW board member Klaus Fröhlich says that batteries will cost €100-150 per kilowatt-hour (kWh), and using the model of VW’s smallest confirmed EV battery capacity of 48 kWh, VW’s €50 billion would buy just over 10.4 million of VW’s smallest batteries, powering barely a fifth of its forecasted EVs, and that’s without any customers opting for larger 64 or 111 kWh packs.

A Bloomberg analyst predicts that lithium-ion battery costs will fall 52 percent by 2030, but even accounting for that reduction in costs, VW’s €50 billion would be inadequate to purchase more than 21.7 million of its smallest EV batteries. If costs fall as Bloomberg predicts, VW will need at least €115.2 billion for batteries, but if battery prices remain where BMW forecasts they’ll be, VW could need €240 billion to cover battery costs for its 50 million EVs.

The U.S. and China are on the brink of a new Cold War, with experts such as former U.S. Treasury Secretary Hank Paulson warning of a new “Economic Iron Curtain” between the world’s two largest economies if they cannot resolve their strategic differences.

Ahead of a meeting with China’s Xi Jinping at the Nov. 30-Dec. 1 Group of 20 summit, President Donald Trump has signaled his willingness to cut a deal. Yet, even if the two sides’ deep differences can be overcome, any peace is likely to take months to wrangle and is unlikely to bring immediate relief for companies from the tit-for-tat tariffs that have hit almost 60% of goods traded between the U.S. and China.

As a result, companies around the world are being forced to re-examine where they make and buy components and products, with one eye fixed on what has become a new long-term risk to their business models. And, as they do so, an awkward reality is emerging: Any decoupling is likely to take longer and be more disruptive than Trump’s “America First” protectionists argue.

“This is the struggle of our times,” said Paul Triolo, head of global technology policy analysis at Eurasia Group in Washington. “And there will be lots of collateral damage.”

The Trump White House has framed its trade war as a national security priority and a response to what it calls China’s “economic aggression.” Hawks within the administration see a broader parting of ways as vital to guarantee America’s future preeminence. With tariffs and a newly aggressive focus on export bans in sectors such as semiconductors, they are encouraging U.S. companies to stay home and stop investing in China

“A new consensus is rising across America. More business leaders are thinking beyond the next quarter, and thinking twice before diving into the Chinese market if it means turning over their intellectual property or abetting Beijing’s oppression,” Vice President Mike Pence declared in an Oct. 4 speech likened by some to Winston Churchill’s Iron Curtain speech warning of Soviet expansionism in 1946.

China, too, sees the battle as existential. During a visit to the manufacturing heartland of Guangdong province in October, Xi reiterated a mantra that China must strive to be self-reliant, especially on innovation.

The result of a standoff, Paulson warned in a speech last week at the Bloomberg New Economy Forum in Singapore, was a “moment of change in the global economy” and “unprecedented political pressure on cross-national supply chains.”

“I fear that big parts of the global economy will ultimately be closed off to the free flow of investment and trade. And that is why I now see the prospect of an Economic Iron Curtain—one that throws up new walls on each side and unmakes the global economy, as we have known it,” said Paulson, who served under George W. Bush.

The push by some in Washington for a decoupling has consequences for boardrooms far beyond the U.S. and China. European companies such as BMW AG are being forced by the new tariffs to rethink models that now see them export SUVs from South Carolina to China. Southeast Asian countries such as Vietnam are experiencing a new flood of interest as a manufacturing alternative to China.

Four products underscore the complexities facing businesses stuck between the dueling giants—rechargeable batteries, solar panels, pain-relief devices and hot tubs. A close look at those supply chains shows China’s control of raw materials, entrenched competitive advantages and ability to find alternative buyers at home and abroad, as well as the way tariffs and retaliation to them cause higher prices to ripple across the world.

The Lithium Ion Battery

The Trump administration’s trade war is aimed most directly at Beijing’s “Made in China 2025” plan to lead the world in select industries by that year. High on the list: electric vehicles and all the things that go with them, including lithium ion batteries. Those batteries, in turn, are a good example of how hard shifting supply chains will be.

The U.S. now relies on offshore production for most rechargeable batteries, something the Pentagon pointed to as an area of concern in a September report on the potential national security threats embedded in America’s dependence on international supply chains.

Manufacturers in China already dominate lithium-ion battery production and are set to continue doing so for years to come. China now accounts for more than 113,000 megawatt hours of the almost 175,000 of production capacity in the world, according to Bloomberg New Energy Finance data. The U.S. accounts for a little over 30,000 megawatt hours.

Moreover, Chinese capacity in China is expected to soar, potentially more than tripling in the next three years, adding the equivalent of two-and-a-half of Tesla Inc.’s massive “gigafactory” in the Nevada desert, which the company claims will be the largest building in the world when it’s completed in 2020.

China also controls a substantial portion of the market for raw materials used in lithium-ion batteries, including processed lithium.

Companies such as Apple Inc. and Tesla have scrambled to lock in sources of metals like cobalt and lithium from suppliers in other countries. But businesses have also been lobbying the administration for exclusions from tariffs for both batteries and those raw materials.

In a September letter to U.S. Trade Representative Robert Lighthizerr, Mitsubishi Chemical warned that a proposed tariff on imported lithium hexafluorophosphate would paralyze its $38 million plant in Shelby County, Tennessee, the U.S.’s largest supplier of electrolytes to domestic battery makers. “There are presently no other viable sources of these inputs outside of China,” Mitsubishi executives warned.

Washington relented and dropped those raw materials from a $200 billion list of goods it hit with tariffs in late September. It has also so far held off on imposing tariffs on lithium-ion batteries. But that could change in the months to come if peace is not forthcoming and Trump delivers on his threat to impose tariffs on all imports from China.

Solar Inverters

The solar industry has been one of those hit hardest by Trump’s tariffs. The administration early this year imposed temporary “safeguard” tariffs on imported solar cells. In September it added tariffs on inverters—the boxes that convert power from solar panels into the alternating current used by household appliances and the grid.

According to John Smirnow, general counsel of the Solar Energy Industries Association, the majority of inverters used in the U.S. now come from China. That will change in the months ahead, but only because some Chinese companies are shifting their production overseas.

SunPower field supervisor Oscar Madrigal demonstrates a panel-washing robot on a row of solar panels at the 102-acre, 15-megawatt Solar Array II Generating Station at Nellis Air Force Base in Las Vegas.

China’s Sungrow, one of the world’s biggest manufacturers of solar inverters, announced in April that it was setting up its first factory outside China in Bangalore, India. That illustrates how—if and when supply chains shift—some of the changes will be cosmetic, rather than structural.

With the new tariffs in place, Sungrow’s India factory is likely to become the source for many of the inverters imported to the U.S., Smirnow said. Those inverters are also likely to continue to include mostly Chinese components.

The main impact for the U.S., meanwhile, will be a few quarters of higher prices as plants outside of China such as Sungrow’s facility in Bangalore get up and running. It is unlikely to be the construction of any new inverter plants in the U.S.

The Opioid Alternative

For Omron, a Japanese conglomerate that makes robots, car parts and medical devices, the U.S.-China trade war is forcing a difficult conversation about how it helps Americans seeking relief from pain and whether it should continue doing so.

The “transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation,” or “TENS,” devices it now sells in the U.S. are part of a wave of increasingly popular alternatives to highly addictive opioids. They are also made in China and, as of September, subject to a 10% tariff that’s due to rise to 25% in January.

The problem for Omron is that the economics of moving production don’t add up, according to Ranndy Kellogg, chief executive officer of its U.S. health-care unit. Last year, Omron’s sales of “TENS” units in the U.S. were worth $10 million to $12 million and represented just a tenth of its global sales of the product.

Shifting manufacturing from a factory in China, at which it has been producing the units for a quarter century, to the U.S. would take years and involve an arduous regulatory approval process. It’s not a realistic option. Retailers such as Walgreens and Walmart are also reluctant to entertain the idea of price increases.

The tariffs have created a bitter irony for Omron. It was looking to expand its pain business and TENS units, which use pads to send bursts of low-voltage electricity into nerves in areas affected by pain. They’re increasingly popular among blue-collar workers with injuries as an alternative to the opioids that have caused a crisis in many parts of the country.

“This is a product that is helping people,” Kellogg said. “It’s not rich people. It’s people who go to work every day and lift stuff and hurt their back.”

Hot Tubs

The plight of Chinese hot-tub maker Shenzhen Kingston Sanitary Ware underscores how all sides get hurt in a trade war. Kingston doesn’t sell to the U.S. but was hit by China’s 10% retaliatory tariffs on imports of American-made control panels and acrylic shells. Those make up 65% of its costs, said Cash Liu, a sales director at the company, speaking at the Canton Fair in Guangzhou last month.

With Trump set to hike those tariffs to 25% in January and China likely to retaliate, Liu said Kingston is offering its existing customers, which are mostly from Europe and Australia, the option of switching to control panels from Canada and China-made acrylic shells.

For the 40% of customers who want to stick with U.S. components, that means higher prices, said Liu. The 60% willing to switch represent lost business for America.

China will also feel the pain. Liu said Kingston’s profit margin is as low as 10%, and steeper tariffs will be a threat to the entire industry. “For us, it’s a big shock,” he said.

Lime is reportedly preparing to upgrade from Lime bikes and scooters to small Lime electric cars, with tests planned soon in Seattle. The move would put them in increasingly direct competition with ride-share services such as Uber and Lyft.

Lime electric cars

According to a report from The Information, Lime has already filed paperwork in Seattle to institute a ride-sharing pilot with Lime electric cars.

The program would work similarly to the scooter sharing and bike sharing networks Lime already operates. However, instead of hopping on an electric scooter or bike, you’d hop in a little Lime electric car.

The cars could be parked around the city similar to Lime’s dockless electric bicycles and scooters. Riders would not need to search for a designated Lime parking spot, but could instead park Lime electric cars anywhere car parking is allowed.

The pilot program looks like it will involve 500 cars initially. So far, the mini electric cars are reported to be Fiat 500e and Renault Twizy vehicles.

The Twizy is no stranger to electric car sharing programs, and is already in use as part of similar electric vehicle sharing programs.

Seattle would not be new territory for Lime. The company already operates a large fleet of electric bicycles in the city. Lime’s scooters are not legal in Seattle though, as the city has not yet permitted scooter sharing companies to operate there. There is no word yet on if the city has approved Lime’s application for their electric car sharing plan.

Lime’s new car sharing service would compete not just with Uber and Lyft, but also with other companies already operating in Seattle such as Car2Go and ReachNow.

This news comes on the heels of a number of recent announcements by Lime. The company just unveiled their new model of electric scooter and instituted a carbon neutral program.

KYMCO, one of the largest scooter manufacturers in the world, has demonstrated an impressive commitment to electrification. The company has already released a handful of electric scooters and introduced a new EV battery standard.

Now the company has just dropped the veil on their newest electric vehicle, the insanely fast and powerful SuperNEX electric superbike.

KYMCO’s new SuperNEX electric motorcycle

Taiwan-based KYMCO is known for their scooters, but today’s unveiling sparked an entirely new direction for the company.

In a lavish event at the EICMA Milan Motorcycle Show, KYMCO unveiled the SuperNEX, their new electric motorcycle superbike.

The SuperNEX is a high-speed, high power electric racing motorcycle that can hit a top speed of 250 km/h (150 mph).

Its acceleration is on par with some of the fastest electric motorcycles available.

The SuperNEX has a 0-100 km/h (62 mph) time of 2.9 seconds, 0-200 km/h (124 mph) of 7.5 seconds and – for the truly brave – a 0-250 km/h (155 mph) time of 10.9 seconds.

Those acceleration times are generally only achievable by highly experienced and skilled riders. But on the SuperNEX, KYMCO has included Full Engagement Performance (FEP) to help less experienced riders get the most out of the superbike.

“With FEP, riders can always perform a perfect launch. During hard acceleration, FEP ensures there is no wheelie or wheel slippage. During hard braking, FEP prevents rear wheel lifting. When riding through uneven or wet surfaces, FEP provides maximum traction.”

The level of FEP is also user adjustable, allowing riders to dial in the perfect amount of assistance for their skill level.

To help increase the already insane torque needed to reach those speeds, the SuperNEX sports a 6-speed transmission.

According to KYMCO:

“The 6-speed transmission allows riders to make use of the most optimal power band of the motor to extract the full potential of the vehicle. The gears help improve not only the efficiency and responsiveness, but also the acceleration and top speed.”

In addition to adding a performance boost, KYMCO wanted to include a manual transmission to give electric sportbike racers a realistic shifting feeling that adds to the thrill of electric racing instead of taking away from it. As KYMCO chairman Allen Ko explained it, “Shifting is the art of motorbike riding.”

But that shifting won’t feel like your old gas bike because you’ll no longer need to grab a handful of clutch. The SuperNEX will have clutchless shifting, and a slipper clutch should help smooth out the ride during normal downshifting.

Another innovation KYMCO has included in the SuperNEX is an Active Acoustic Motor. Essentially, the bike amplifies the existing electric motor sound, but offers user adjustability to the pitch and intensity.

“The sound communicates the rpm level and the load condition of the motor. It constantly gives the rider situation awareness, so riders can determine their timing for shifting the gear and applying the throttle. And, with the rpm rising and the speed climbing, riders hear the surge of the sound one crescendo after another. It is one of the most intense sources of thrill for the sportbike riders.”

There is no word yet on when the SuperNEX will be available for purchase. The model shown off tonight was just the initial prototype, but it appears KYMCO is definitely planning on bringing it to production.

While we wait to hear about production plans, here are some more glamour shots we grabbed at the unveiling.

KYMCO’s progress towards electrification

KYMCO’s unveiling today of their new SuperNEX electric motorcycle is just the latest progress the company has made towards electrification.

Earlier this year, KYMCO introduced a line of electric scooters designed for consumers. The scooters were based on their new Ionex battery standard, a removable 650 Wh Li-ion battery.

KYMCO’s scooters were designed to carry multiple batteries. To make recharging easier, the Ionex system includes battery charging stations. Similar to those already deployed by Gogoro, Ionex batteries can be inserted into KYMCO’s vending machine-style charging stations.

KYMCO followed up the announcement of their Ionex line with their new Ionex Commercial. Electrek first broke the news on Ionex Commercial at the Paris Motor Show last month.

Ionex Commercial was developed as a turnkey solution that allows companies or governments to easily introduce fleets of electric scooters into their operations.