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Recharge Wrap-up: Renault-Nissan at COP22, BMW launches Cruise e-Bike

The Renault-Nissan Alliance has been chosen to provide a fleet of electric cars for the UN's COP22 Climate Conference in Marrakesh, Morocco. The group will provide 50 passenger EVs – the Renault Zoe, Nissan Leaf, and Nissan e-NV200 – to shuttle delegates to and from conference venues. The Alliance will also provide more than 20 charging stations to support the shuttle fleet. The group provided electric shuttles for the historic COP21 summit in Paris last year. Read more from Renault-Nissan. FCA, Iveco, and gas grid company Snam have signed an agreement to boost natural gas as a cleaner alternative fuel for Italy. Under the Memorandum of Understanding, FCA and Iveco will work together to develop CNG vehicles, while Snam will invest in CNG supply facilities like filling stations to support a growing fleet. Italy leads Europe in the amount of natural gas consumed for transport, with 1 million vehicles currently on the road. Read more at Green Car Congress. LG Chem has officially announced it will build a battery plant in Poland to the tune of about $340 million. Located near Wroclaw in southwestern Poland, the plant is expected to produce 100,000 batteries a year for 200-mile EVs beginning in 2019. The plant could help Poland in its goal to reduce pollution by introducing a million EVs on its roads by 2025. "We will turn the Poland EV battery plant into a mecca of battery production for electric vehicles around the world," says UB Lee, President of LG Chem's Energy Solution Company. Construction begins in the second half of 2017. Read more from Automotive News Europe. BMW has introduced the Cruise e-Bike. Its Bosch Performance Line electric motor provides electric assistance at speeds of up to 15 mph. The battery can be either be removed or remain on the bike for charging, which takes 3.5 hours for a full charge. "BMW aims to be the leading provider of premium mobility services, and our bicycle collection furthers that mission," says BMW Accessory and Lifestyle Manager Eric Riehle. "As we enter the holiday season, these bikes make the perfect present for those wishing for their first BMW." The BMW Cruise e-Bike costs $3,430. Read more from BMW.

Lexus back in luxury sales race after three-year absence

Think the only challengers for the title of best-selling luxury brand hail from der Vaterland? Wrong. Lexus outsold the likes of Mercedes-Benz for the second time in 2014 last month. In fact, the Japanese luxury marque's total sales this year are a mere 12,000 units behind BMW.
Lexus was able to move 26,921 vehicles last month, a year-over-year increase of 21.1 percent, respectively. Mercedes, meanwhile, was just barely beaten, moving 26,617 units in April. The difference, though, is that Lexus has made far bigger year-over-year gains than Mercedes, which recorded a YOY increase of just 4.13 percent.
This is particularly troubling for the Germans, as it marks a return to form for Lexus that we haven't seen since before the March 2011 earthquake and tsunami that decimated Japan. Prior to that natural disaster, Lexus enjoyed nearly a dozen years at the top of the luxury heap.

Recharge Wrap-up: Lego Tesla logo, BMW goes electric in Singapore

A man built a giant Tesla logo out of Legos. Adrian Drake, a Tesla owner, displayed his brickwork homage to the electric car company at Brickworld Chicago. In the video above, the hosts interview Mr. Drake about his creation, and he gives some insights into how he conceived and constructed the freestanding display. Drake also demonstrates its sturdiness, giving the logo a tap to send it wobbling precariously from side to side. You'll probably notice that standing to the left of the logo is a Lego model of a Tesla Supercharger. That was built by Robert Turner and can be seen in a separate video. See the Lego Tesla logo in the video above, and read more at Teslarati. Canadian power generator TransAlta will use Tesla stationary batteries for a commercial energy storage project. The project involves installing five Tesla Powerpacks to store energy during periods of low demand for use during peak grid times. TransAlta believes that energy storage systems like this will help encourage the creation of more wind and solar energy. "This is a major step forward in putting new technology to work in Canada," says TransAlta Lead Engineer of Technology Dan Chapman, "and Tesla is already a leader in this field." The project is expected to be up and running in late 2016. Read more from TransAlta. BMW and Nanyang Technological University in Singapore have launched an electromobility research program. In addition to the projects the joint Future Mobility Research Lab is already working on, (Advanced Battery, Driver Enhancement and Intelligent Mobility), the groups will also begin Electromobility in Asia and Smart Materials research projects. The Electromobility in Asia project focuses on how people interact with BMW's i cars, while the Smart Materials project seeks to improve touchscreens and interactive surfaces. BMW has provided the lab with an i3 and i8 with which to conduct research. Each partner is investing $965,000 into the new programs. Read more at Green Car Congress, and in the press release below. BMW Group and NTU embark on S$1.3 million electromobility research NTU receives BMW i3 and BMW i8 as research platforms Singapore. BMW Group and Nanyang Technological University (NTU Singapore) today launched a new electromobility research programme, involving the all-electric BMW i3 and plug-in hybrid sports car BMW i8 that runs on electricity and petrol.