By Agence France-Presse, The Telegraph 5/9/2016 French oil giant Total is buying high-tech battery maker Saft for €950m (£749m) as it seeks to expand its electricity and renewable energy business. The offer values Saft’s shares at €36.50 apiece, a 38pc premium to the company’s share price on Friday, before the acquisition was made public. Total, which like other oil majors has been battling […]

By Peter Ker, The Sydney Morning Herald December 17, 2015 It’s one of the world’s hottest commodities, and now Rio Tinto wants to join the lithium party. Prices for lithium are soaring as traditional demand from ceramics and glass manufacturers coincides with rising demand from lithium ion battery and electric vehicle manufacturers. Lithium prices rose from $US4900 ($6774) per tonne to […]

By Dana Hull & James Nash, Bloomberg Business December 9, 2015 — 4:23 PM PST Faraday Future, the electric-vehicle startup backed by Chinese billionaire Jia Yueting, plans to manufacture its first car in 2017 at a $1 billion factory near Las Vegas, company and Nevada officials said. North Las Vegas prevailed over cities in California, Georgia and […]

By Nathan Bomey, USA TODAY 9:25 p.m. EDT October 19, 2015 Vacuum cleaner manufacturer Dyson plans to build a major battery factory after acquiring a battery technology firm, the company’s founder, James Dyson, told USA TODAY. Dyson confirmed on Monday that it has acquired Ann Arbor, Mich.-based Sakti3 and plans to use the startup’s solid-state lithium-ion technology to improve the battery life […]