The Bill for Fossil Fuel Dependence Comes Due
War, what is it good for? Hopefully electric vehicles and public transit. Oil and gas prices have risen sharply in response to the U.S.-Israel assault on Iran at the same time that U.S. policy has retreated from policies –– electric vehicles, public transit, pedestrian and bike infrastructure –– that insulate consumers from the fluctuations of the oil market.
Nevertheless, technological progress marches on: BYD unveils a battery that you can charge as quickly as you can fill up a gas tank, a startup serving Africa’s burgeoning e-motorbike market announces a Series A round, and America’s leading e-bike maker has a new owner after declaring bankruptcy.
What you need to know
100 reasons for electrification: The war in Iran and the consequent disruptions to oil supply have prompted oil prices to shoot up 50% in one week – to over $100 a barrel. Gas prices have also risen sharply in the U.S. It is a reminder that efforts to fortify domestic fossil fuel production will likely never fully protect Americans from the ups and downs of the global oil market.
BYD’s unreal battery: The world’s leading EV maker announces a new battery pack – available in its new Yangwang U7 luxury sedan – that it claims can go from 10% to 70% charged in only five minutes. Another four minutes will get you to 97%. In other words, charging up the car would take no longer than filling up a gas tank. That insane charging speed, however, is only possible through BYD’s own Flash chargers, available at 4,200 futuristic charging across China. The company’s goal is to have 20,000 by the end of the year.
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A new Life for Rad: E-bike company Life EV acquires Rad Power Bikes, the direct-to-consumer e-bike manufacturer that catapulted to fame and prosperity during the pandemic bike boom but was forced to declare bankruptcy after its batteries came under scrutiny. The $13 million purchase price is but a fraction of what Rad was worth only a few years ago, when it was the largest e-bike seller in the U.S.
There is clearly a big appetite for e-bikes long-term, but the industry is facing major challenges due to a supply glut left over from the pandemic, tariffs on Chinese parts, and a changing federal appetite for cycling infrastructure.
…and an e-bike delivers new life: Minnesota State Rep. Katie Jones proudly eschews automobile transportation, even in the most trying circumstances. Last week the first-term Democrat rode in the sidecar of a friend’s e-bike while her husband pedaled her to the hospital – to give birth to her first child. The new mother expressed gratitude for the city of Minneapolis’s network of protected bike lanes. She brought an infant seat to pack their new son into for the ride home.
A boost for e-motorbikes in Africa: Zeno, a startup developing electric motorbikes for East Africa’s massive two-wheel market, raises $25 million in a Series A round to expand the buildout of a network of battery-swapping stations. In the past 18 months, the three-year-old company has built 800 electric motorbikes and set up 150 swapping stations in four cities across Kenya and Uganda. In much of the Global South, motorbikes are more popular and accessible than cars. The electrification of motorbikes offers a major opportunity to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to improve air quality in some of the world’s largest cities.
Germany and France lead e-bike sales: Germans purchased a whopping 2.1 million e-bikes in 2024, followed closely by the French at 1.95 million, according to data gathered by the Micromobility report. America’s well-documented e-bike craze looks tame by comparison. U.S. e-bike sales peaked at 1.1 million in 2022 and declined to 920,000 in 2024, just slightly above the Netherlands, whose population is about a 20th the size.
What we’re reading
Richmond tries to reform: The Richmonder, a magazine in Richmond, Va. has an interesting profile of that city’s new director of transportation and his efforts to undo decades of car-centric planning for the sake of safety and cultural vitality. Not only does Andy Boenau talk about the need to redesign streets for people, but he advocates stricter enforcement of traffic laws, including with cameras.
