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U.S. will extradite father and son charged in Ghosn escape to Japan

BOSTON — An American father and son accused of helping former Nissan Chairman Carlos Ghosn flee Japan are being handed over on Monday to Japanese authorities for extradition from the United States, a person familiar with the matter said. The U.S. Supreme Court last month cleared the way for the extradition of U.S. Army Special Forces veteran Michael Taylor and his son, Peter Taylor, who are accused of helping Ghosn flee Japan while he was awaiting trial on financial charges. The Taylors, who have been in U.S. custody since their arrest in May, left the jail early on Monday to be flown to Japan, according to the person. Defense attorney Paul Kelly did not respond to a request for comment but told the Associated Press that the men had been turned over for extradition. The U.S. Justice Department declined to comment. They were charged last year with helping Ghosn flee Japan on Dec. 29, 2019, hidden in a box and on a private jet before reaching his childhood home, Lebanon, which has no extradition treaty with Japan. Ghosn was awaiting trial on charges that he had engaged in financial wrongdoing, including by understating his compensation in Nissan's financial statements. Ghosn denies wrongdoing. Prosecutors said the elder Taylor, a 60-year-old private security specialist, and Peter Taylor, 27, received $1.3 million for their services. The Taylors waged a months-long campaign to press their case against extradition in the courts, media, State Department and White House with the aid of a collection of high-powered lawyers and lobbyists. The Taylors' lawyers argued unsuccessfully in U.S. courts that their clients could not be prosecuted in Japan for helping someone "bail jump" and that, if extradited, they faced the prospect of relentless interrogations and torture. Related Video: This content is hosted by a third party. To view it, please update your privacy preferences. Manage Settings. CES 2020 and Carlos Ghosn | Autoblog Podcast #609

Nissan: We lose money on each Leaf replacement battery

Nissan has been playing its cards pretty close to its chest when it comes to the production costs for Leaf battery packs. The company recently put a price on replacement batteries for customers at $5,500 plus the requirement to return the old battery. If the decommissioned battery is worth $1,000 to Nissan, as they have stated, that means the battery costs about $6,500 to make, right? Maybe even less if Nissan wants to turn a profit, as automakers are wont to do? Wrong.
Green Car Reports spoke to Nissan about these battery costs, and found that the automaker actually loses money on selling the replacement battery for the Leaf at the current price. Jeff Kuhlman, Nissan's vice president of global communications said, "Nissan makes zero margin on the replacement program. In fact, we subvent every exchange." All you English majors will know that "subvent" is a fancy way to say "subsidize." Kuhlman added, though, "We have yet to sell one battery as part of the program."
The fact that Nissan offers its replacement batteries for less than it costs to manufacture them is telling of a company both cares about what its customer needs and is dedicated to the success of its product. In this case, both of those things encourage people to give up fossil fuels and adopt electric mobility, which is heartening. As more people switch to battery-powered driving, though, battery technology should become better and cheaper, and the scale of production should cause manufacturing costs to decrease. Eventually, Nissan could easily see itself breaking even selling the Leaf battery replacements.

Renault invests in sailing ships to reduce its carbon footprint

Renault is taking a page from the golden age of sailing as the company looks towards reducing its carbon footprint through the use of cargo sailing ships. The French automaker recently announced its partnership with Neoline, a start-up enterprise based in the west of France. The firm specializes in reducing the cost and emissions of typical cargo ships, by reintroducing sailing into the transportation equation. Renault's goal is to reduce its global carbon footprint by 25 percent in 2022, as compared to where they were in 2010. This plan also includes a separate target, to lower supply chain emissions - which includes shipping methods such as trucks, trains, and cargo ships - by 6 percent, compared to levels in 2016. Two prototype cargo vessels, complete with a full set of sails, will be introduced by 2021-22. These two ships will travel between the U.S. eastern seaboard (exact locations are TBD) and the French port cities of Saint-Nazaire and Saint-Pierre & Miquelon. Specifics about what exactly the ships will be carrying has not been released, though Renault is part of an extensive global auto alliance that includes Nissan and Mitsubishi. "For nearly 10 years, we have been working to identify the most environmentally sustainable solutions," said Jean-Francois Salles, Alliance global director, production control. "For example, optimizing the fill rates of the containers and trucks, producing eco-friendly packaging, and implementing a multi-modal system." The current demonstration vessel measures in at 446 feet in total length and has more than 45,000 square-feet of sail. For all you big ship fans out there, the Titanic was about double this size, stretching about 882-feet in length. When powered solely by the wind, Neoline CEO, Jean Zanuttini, says that total emissions drop by as much as 90 percent, versus the carbon footprint of a traditional cargo vessel. Related Video: Green Mitsubishi Nissan Renault Green Culture Technology renault-nissan greenhouse gases shipping ship cargo ship