#V; BEGINNING OF THE END { UMBRELLA CORPS }

[whatisonthemoon]

Fishing for Respectability - on the Unification Church’s “Global Economic Action Institute”

Washington City Paper Vol. 13 No. 22 | June 11-17, 1993 Fishing for Respectability by Alan Green and Larry Zilliox Jr.

The Rev. Sun Myung Moon has dominion over three separate worlds - the religious, the nonprofit, and the entrepreneurial. But in the Unification Church, worlds collide.

▲Sun Myung Moon and Rev. Yang Hur

Yamano Hana APPEARS to be no different than any other Japanese restaurant in Northern Virginia. It's in a nondescript strip mall on Leesburg Pike, halfway between Seven Corners and Baileys Crossroads. It has a sushi bar, a cocktail lounge, and a favorable mention from Washingtonian displayed out front. You can get salmon teriyaki there for $7.20, and among the chef-created specials is a crab stick and fried flower dish called the Full Moon. Lunch is served beginning at 11:30 a.m. Reservations are not required.

But if Yamano Hana is indistinguishable from other area Japanese eateries, one thing sets it apart: This restaurant is at the tail end of a vast, vertically integrated fishing operation whose components are all tied to the Rev. Sun Myung Moon's Unification Church. Identifying the players in this network is like trying to navigate without a compass - and that's obviously the way Moon's followers want it because they've taken great pains to obfuscate their ties to one another and, most important, to the church itself.

Dig deep enough, however, and this elaborate connect-the-dot game yields a picture with at least a few clear edges.

Annual reports and other corporate records show, for example, that Yamano Hana is owned by Hana Enterprises, a Maryland company whose officers and directors have all been affiliated with other commercial enterprises run by Unification Church members. As recently as 1990, Hana Enterprises' corporate secretary was a director of New Wave Seafood, a Beltsville wholesaler that supplies Yamano Hana with its fish. New Wave's treasurer was at one time an officer of U.S. Marine Corp., a commercial fishing company whose catch ends up at church-affiliated wholesalers. Among U.S. Marine's wholly owned subsidiaries is Master Marine, which builds the boats used by the church-aligned fishing fleets. U.S. Marine is, in turn, under the corporate auspices of One Up Enterprises, a Virginia-based holding company whose president, R. Michael Runyon, is a longtime Moon confidant and an officer of other businesses controlled by Moon's followers. Virginia state corporate records also show that Runyon's wife, another Unification Church member, is a director of Hana Enterprises.

Keep following the serpentine paper trail, and you learn that the Washington-area seafood operations are just one part of an umbrella organization that includes some 65 Japanese restaurants across the nation - including Niwano Hana, on Rockville Pike - and at least a dozen seafood wholesalers in such cities as Philadelphia, Seattle, Los Angeles, and Bayou LaBatre, Ala.

There's even the tax-exempt Ocean Church, supposedly created to give young Unification Church members the experience of spending time at sea. Not surprisingly, Ocean Church branches are based at commercial fishing businesses run by Unification Church members. One Ocean Church branch even lists its address as a Gloucester, Mass., restaurant whose owners are part of Moon's octopan fishing enterprise.

These operations - and other marine-related ventures - are collectively referred to within the Unification Church movement as the "Happy Group," which derives its name from Moon's large Japanese trading company, Happy World Inc. Not officially part of this conglomerate - but nonetheless part of Moon's business network - is the Happy Mind Shop at Home Service, a catalog company in the 3500 block of V Street NE that sells everything from hardware and over-the-counter drugs to produce and, not surprisingly, fresh seafood.

This agglomeration of interlocking enterprises is just one component of a gargantuan corporate empire that includes hundreds of businesses and organizations around the globe. Moon may be well known for having founded the Washington Times and Insight magazine, which have bled his bank accounts of perhaps a billion dollars over the last decade, but these publications are just two pieces of an expanding international media conglomerate that includes foreign and domestic newspapers and newsletters, book publishers, video production companies, and a major interest in an American cable network.

Moon and his associates own travel agencies and health food stores, real estate agencies and office cleaning services, an equestrian center, and a company that bottles ginseng soda. In addition, Moon has financed the creation of dozens of religious and political organizations, including two benign-sounding groups headquartered here: the American Conference on Religious Movements and the American Freedom Coalition.

In Moon's world, however, nothing is benign, nothing is as it appears. Privacy may be universally valued, but Moon and his followers are so intent on keeping their affairs shrouded that even something as commonplace as selling fish becomes mired in a clandestine web.

Trying to trace this corporate lineage is an extraordinary challenge. Interlocking structures make ownership and control of businesses run by church members nearly impossible to figure out. Those who work for these operations will say little, if anything, about them. And the landscape is further blurred by an entanglement of nonprofit organizations, whose finances are subject to less governmental scrutiny than their for-profit counterparts, and whose affairs are therefore even harder to decipher.

The affairs of the Global Economic Action Institute (GEAI) provide a telling illustration of this.

GEAI is a 10-year-old nonprofit organization whose creation was inspired by Moon, supposedly to foster cooperation among nations in their efforts to achieve a stable international economic order. Over the years, GEAI has attracted an impressive collection of politicians, economists, and business leaders. It has published position papers and hosted international conferences, with support from the likes of the United States Information Agency and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange. It has received virtually no media recognition - and in fact has never sought any - but from all appearances, it has helped promote the sort of dialogue that might ease the world's economic problems. Finally, GEAI has received financial support from a wide array of corporations, foundations, and other institutions - the Unification Church among them. But it has always been widely believed that the church's contributions were not particularly significant, its influence on the organization tenuous, at best.

In truth, documents obtained by Washington City Paper show that GEAI has been used by Moon and his associates to facilitate contact with high-level executives around the world and advance the church's political and business agendas. GEAI's key staffers - all Unification Church members - have used the organization's resources to run their own for-profit corporations. Documents also reveal how GEAI's employees tried to recruit more than 100 of the nation's wealthiest individuals - including some well-known Washingtonians - into supporting an operation that appears to exist primarily to further Moon's goals, rather than the noble policy objectives outlined in the organization's charter.

But GEAI and the guileful manner in which the fishing operation is managed are not aberrations within the Unification movement. Relationships seem to be purposefully obscured.

The convoluted ownership of U.S. Marine Corp. is typical. According to a Dun & Bradstreet commercial credit report, 83 percent of the fishing operation's voting stock is controlled by the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity (HSA) - the nonprofit, religious component of Moon's empire usually referred to as the Unification Church. That part of the ownership picture is simple and straightforward.

But the remainder of U.S. Marine's stock is controlled by One Up Enterprises, the Virginia-based corporation that controls Moon's fishing businesses. One Up is in turn a subsidiary of a for-profit, Virginia-based holding company called Unification Church International (UCI), which operates a slew of firms whose owners are also followers of Moon.

UCI is so closely affiliated with Moon that the organization's amended articles of incorporation list as its operational purpose "To serve as an international organization assisting, advising, coordinating and guiding the activities of Unification Churches organized and operated throughout the world." What's more, UCI shares corporate offices with News World Communications Inc., the Moon-controlled company that owns both the Washington Times and the McLean home that Moon occupies when in Washington.

Despite this, HSA spokesman Peter Ross insists that the church is entirely separate from UCI, GEAI, and other ventures Moon has inspired or helped fund. "Rev. Moon is the leader of a religious movement," says Ross. "But he's free to engage in all sorts of activities. He's a patron of the media. He's an industrialist. That's all true, but that shouldn't mean the Unification Church is involved."

Ross' statements notwithstanding, additional documents obtained by City Paper tell an entirely different story. These documents, which chronicle GEAI's activities for 1990 and part of 1991, show that church money was sometimes keeping GEAI afloat. They show that GEAI's staff members sought to control the organization. They show that these same staff members aimed to convince GEAI's leadership to accept Moon's vision for the organization. Finally, the documents reveal that the church was so concerned about GEAI, members were actually instructed to pray for its success.

Since his release from prison eight years ago, Moon has been a shadow of his previously public self. But if he's kept a low profile, the founder of the Unification Church has only stepped up his campaign to expand his worldwide influence.

From all indications, his efforts have been successful, although the self-proclaimed messiah is now facing trouble anew.

On June 1, 1976, the Unification Church took over Yankee Stadium for its so-called Bicentennial God Bless America Festival, the highlight of which was supposed to be an address by the Rev. Moon. At the time, Moon was endlessly portrayed in the media as a cultist who enslaved young people and used their free labor as a means to amass a fortune for his church.

The Yankee Stadium speech, delivered in Korean and translated by longtime Moon confidant.

The Yankee Stadium speech, delivered in Korean and translated by longtime Moon confidant Bo Hi Pak, did little to quell the anxieties of nonbelievers. A wildly gesticulating Moon laid down his own version of divine law: America had been invaded by Satan, and God had dispatched Moon here to set things right. Moon's disciples were clearly enraptured by this homily, but spectators by the thousands stampeded for the exits. There was pandemonium, as the inclined rampways behind the stands swelled with a descending tide. Halfway through the speech, the stadium had the look of a visiting-team blowout in the bottom of the ninth: Down the lines and in the upper decks, only the die-hards and dreamers remained in their seats.

It would be another 17 years before Moon would venture on another national speaking tour, his 12-city roadshow having rolled through Washington on May 15. In the interim, he increasingly de-emphasized his religious pursuits, instead focusing his attention on politics and profit-making ventures. During this time, church real estate holdings increased. Moon's tangled web of businesses, once located primarily in Korea, Japan, and the United States, took root throughout Europe and eventually began creeping into Africa, South America, and even the Cayman Islands.

For his troubles, in '78 Moon faced a civil lawsuit brought by the U.S. government, but he escaped unscathed. His luck ran out in May 1982 when a New York jury found him guilty of four counts of conspiracy, including conspiracy to obstruct justice and conspiracy to file false income tax returns. The felony offenses brought a sentence of 18 months in federal prison, and on July 20, 1984, Moon began serving what would ultimately be a 13-month term.

Since his release, Moon has rarely been seen in public. But behind the scenes, he's been all business. In fact, the aging industrialist has not only increased the pace of acquisitions by his front organizations, but he's tried to establish a business/religious/political foothold in Russia and China. He's even negotiated deals with the governments of Vietnam and North Korea.

These days, the 73-year-old Moon has lost any charisma he may once have had. His recent Washington speech, at the Omni Shoreham Hotel, was a rambling, 75-minute patois that lacked the histrionics of years past. Moon delivered the address in halting, at times incomprehensible, English, repeatedly stumbling over words and stopping in mid-phrase, as if he were reading a phoneticized version of a text whose meaning he couldn't fathom. Occasionally, Moon almost seemed unaware that he was addressing an overflow crowd of nearly 3,000: Early in the speech, for example, he paused a full 10 seconds, and when he resumed, a mint in his mouth clacked against his teeth. The sound reverberated over the room's speakers, but Moon seemed either unaware or unconcerned. Instead, he just kept reading, poking at his eyeglasses every so often.

The speech itself, called "True Parents and the Completed Testament Age," amplified some of the same peculiar themes introduced in Moon's Yankee Stadium address - in particular, that America's role as a world leader hinges on its spiritual well-being, and God has dispatched Moon here to ensure that the country does not go off course.

"In these chaotic times," he told a rapt audience, which interrupted him with applause 25 times, "humankind is longing for a true direction and purpose, yet America and the churches have no confident answer. God has granted me an understanding of the forces involved in his providential history. Thus, I know the direction that humankind must go, and I, with the help of God, will lead the world there."

This time around, no one was fleeing for the auditorium doors. The room had been filled with invited guests instructed to RSVP. Business attire was required for admission. The audience was read letters of welcome from Mayor Sharon Pratt Kelly and Sen. John Warner (R-Va.); a proclamation from Maryland Gov. William Donald Schaefer declaring May 15 "Family Day" in honor of the event was also broadcast to the crowd.

Moon slowly made his way through the lecture, as onlookers unable to comprehend his broken English followed along with a printed text. As the speech progressed, it became more muddled and self-aggrandizing. Moon chastised Korean religious leaders for failing to believe that he was the Second Coming of Christ. He blamed the Cold War on the failure of the United States and worldwide Christianity to unite with him after World War II. And the self-proclaimed messiah railed against the media and other detractors.

"Can anyone disagree when I say that Reverend Moon is among the most persecuted religious leaders in the world?" he asked.

Not far away, a process server lay in wait, hoping to heap yet more bedevilment on Moon. A day earlier, a suit had been filed in a California federal court alleging that Moon and his associates had concocted an unlawful scheme to gain control of cable television's Nostalgia Network. In essence, the suit alleges that Unification Church International, One Up Enterprises, and other related businesses are all secretly structured to achieve Moon's objectives.

These charges are similar to others that have been leveled against Moon, and in each instance, the church has dismissed them as further examples of the religious persecution that Moon must endure. But the affairs of the Global Economic Action Institute may suggest otherwise.

The Global Economic Action Institute was founded in the summer of 1983, ostensibly to help promote policies that would foster world economic stability. The organization was incorporated in Washington on Dec. 1 of that year, with former U.S. Treasury Secretary Robert Anderson among its board members. A few months later, the IRS granted GEAI nonprofit status—important for the organization because would-be contributors could be promised that their gifts would be tax-deductible.

Much of GEAI's initial funding came from HSA, the religious component of Moon's operation, although in recent years dozens of foundations and corporations have signed on as benefactors. GEAI's membership roster includes individuals in some 75 countries, among them former heads of state, members of national cabinets, academics, and business leaders. Only one person on GEAI's original board of directors—Mose Durst—was affiliated with the Holy Spirit Association for the Unification of World Christianity, thereby creating the appearance of autonomy from Moon. Former Sen. Eugene McCarthy was even enlisted as GEAI's chairman emeritus.

GEAI's headquarters are in New York, and until last year, the group maintained a Washington office. Copies of tax returns provided by the IRS show that GEAI's 1990 budget was nearly $1 million, about 59 percent of which was spent on producing a series of national and international conferences.

These same 1990 tax returns show that GEAI's three highest-paid employees - all Unification Church members - were Garry Barker, Jeremiah Schnee, and Laurence Baer. Together, this trio ran GEAI's affairs.

But that's not all they ran.

The Unification movement typically portrays its involvement with nonprofit organizations under its control as that of a beneficent donor supporting worthy causes. Unification movement members insist that the church exerts no influence over groups such as GEAI - that Moon has no personal involvement in the direction of their operations, for example.

But documents reveal that the Unification Church was attempting to use GEAI to advance Moon's vast business empire. Other documents show that Barker, Schnee, and Baer conducted for-profit consulting work out of GEAI's Washington offices; in effect, the three men attempted to create business partnerships among GEAI contributors, for which they would receive finder's fees or commissions. The evidence also suggested that GEAI was not reimbursed by these for-profit companies for the use of its resources, as IRS regulations require.

Answers about GEAI's affairs were not forthcoming. Schnee, who apparently now runs the organization with one assistant, did not return phone calls. Durst, former president of the nonprofit Unification Church of America, who two years ago severed his affiliation with GEAI, willingly volunteered information about Moon's original vision for the organization but would say little else. Durst did insist that Barker, Schnee, and Baer never ran businesses out of GEAI's offices. He also maintained that he didn't own the building from which GEAI conducted its activities, then admitted that he "might have."

In fact, District of Columbia property records show that Durst was a longtime owner of the townhouse at 821 Massachusetts Ave NE that once served as GEAI's Washington address. Records from D.C.'s Department of Consumer and Regulatory Affairs and elsewhere also show that at least three for-profit corporations were conducting business from the Massachusetts Avenue address: RFR International, whose president was Jeremiah Schnee; Barker International Associates, headed by Garry Barker; and L.H. Baer International, run by Laurence Baer.

Although Barker, Schnee, and Baer were listed on GEAI's tax returns as full-time employees of the nonprofit organization - their annual salaries ranging from $36,049 for Baer to $57,251 for Barker - they were simultaneously conducting the business of their own companies. Internal memoranda obtained by City Paper show that the three men were trying to consummate more than 30 high-stakes business deals around the globe - from the sale of rare paintings to funding a Broadway musical to the sale of Nigerian light crude oil. In a number of instances, their would-be partners in these deals were the same people they had recruited - or were trying to recruit - for GEAI membership.

On Feb. 1, 1991, for example, Barker's daily agenda lists both GEAI activities and various for-profit undertakings, including a local real estate development project called Stafford Place that the GEAI staff had been trying to fund for at least eight months. The previous July, an internal memo describing the trio's ongoing business opportunities included an entry about Stafford Place and referred to a New York meeting with officials of some of Japan's leading banks. Among the banks represented that day was Fuji Bank and Trust, one of GEAI's corporate contributors.

A GEAI document detailing possible meetings in Washington on Aug. 1, 1990, once again lists both nonprofit and for-profit activities on the day's agenda. Among those whom GEAI staff members hoped to meet with that day was Richard Allen, national security adviser in the Reagan White House and now chairman of Federal Capital Bank, formerly Credit International Bank.

Allen was being actively targeted for a leadership role with GEAI, and the memorandum outlining the Aug. 1 meeting makes reference to discussing such a position with him. In addition, the memo says: "Explore likelihood of possible business ventures with Credit Int'l Bank customers."

The July '90 internal memorandum listing current business opportunities reveals that Barker, Schnee, and Baer hoped to include Allen in at least seven of their projects around the world. These included an overseas office/hotel complex, a European golf course, and a state-of-the-art jet-maintenance facility - a multimillion-dollar project that promised a 100 percent return on investment.

Other business projects that RFR, Barker International, and L.H. Baer were trying to develop from the GEAI offices included a Caribbean resort development, and the business opportunities memo notes that Abe Hoppenstein, a member of GEAI's international steering committee who worked for a New York investment banking firm, might be of help. Still, another project that GEAI's triumvirate hoped to involve Hoppenstein with was a Northeastern gold and ski resort. According to the memo, the investment banking firm was willing to give RFR a one percent commission. "Daiwabo director is interested and might want to visit," the memo added.

Sure enough, the Japanese textile firm Daiwabo was also a corporate contributor to the nonprofit organization, and GEAI's staff intended to take full advantage of their contacts. According to the July 18 summary of potential business opportunities, the Daiwabo connection was particularly promising: "Chairman Satoru Arinobe visited the U.S. in April. Likes [Jeremiah Schnee]. We get a 3% commission on the monthly volume of sales of the company's textiles. Possible Central American/Caribbean contacts. Possible buyers are Danskin, Fortunoff, Members Only, J.C. Penney, Phillips-Van Heusen, John Weitz Co., Donna Carron [sic]. Private arrangement where he helps us with Japanese companies and split commission 80/20 between RFR and Daiwabo."

Fortunoff's inclusion on the list of potential buyers was not just happenstance. Documents show that Elliot Mayrock, a principal of the Long Island-based M. Fortunoff of Westbury Corp., which manufactures such things as draperies and garden furniture, had pledged money for GEAI's upcoming conference in China.

This is the way Barker, Schnee, and Baer went about their business: Those who pledged money for GEAI programs were then targeted as potential business partners. According to a May 5, 1990, document detailing the fundraising efforts for "Campaign 21" - an effort by the staff to quickly raise $21 million - Mayrock had pledged $80,000 for a conference in China, $30,000 of which had been received. The memo notes that Mayrock had agreed to join GEAI's international advisory council as chairman of Fortunoff, and he referred his cousin, Josh Green, to Schnee.

Schnee was obviously glad to have such a referral. A document created by him and his two cohorts called "Individuals to Include in Various Business Deals" features this entry: "Children's Video/Animation. Josh Green. Connect him to animators in communist countries. RFR gets 50% of the difference in cost between U.S. animation costs and local costs."

John Haley, chairman of the board of Pace University, was another contact who Barker, Schnee, and Baer found valuable. A July 1990 confidential memo from GEAI President Lev Dobriansky to the organization's officers noted, among other things, that Haley had joined GEAI's international steering committee.

Other documents show that by the time Haley had been awarded his place on that committee, GEAI's staff had already tagged him as a possible participant in two business deals, including one involving a Midwestern chemical manufacturer. The chemical company's president was not only working with Schnee, Barker, and Baer on various for-profit schemes, including a Moscow office/hotel complex, but the three had also enlisted this corporate executive's counsel for GEAI's chairman search committee - even though he wasn't even a member of the organization.

There was a good reason why this person's counsel was being sought: Edward Kime, another member of GEAI's international steering committee, confided that the would-be business partner had "definitely decided" to give money for the organization's upcoming conference in Moscow. The May 18 documents detailing GEAI's fundraising efforts notes about this person: "Ed Kime says, 'The more active, the more $$.'"

And was he ever kept active. The July memo from Dobriansky to GEAI's officers reported that a delegation had recently returned from Moscow in preparation for the organization's upcoming conference there. Among the "prominent Americans" joining the GEAI group were this same chemical company president and J.B. Fuqua.

Fuqua is the chairman of the Atlanta-based sporting goods and garden products manufacturer Fuqua Industries. According to the May 18 fundraising memo, Fuqua was "very interested" in the U.S.S.R. and was looking for joint ventures there. The memo also states that the GEAI staff offered Fuqua the opportunity to be the international chairman of the organization's Moscow conference - for the sum of $75,000. According to this same memo, Fuqua's response when presented the deal was: "I'm listening."

And so it went. The men who piloted GEAI activity recruited high-level business leaders from around the world to make tax-deductible contributions to the organization. The next step was to get these donors to participate in GEAI's policy seminars. Finally, Barker, Schnee, and Baer tried to marry these same people in business deals, for which the trio was promised hefty commissions or finders' fees.

Such dealing raises questions about compliance with IRS regulations. IRS spokesman Domenic LaPonzina would not comment specifically on the activities of GEAI or its three employees, but he would say that, in general, the government requires that there be an "arm's length relationship" between nonprofit and for-profit activities and that individuals not receive "personal inurement" from their affiliation with a nonprofit organization. "Generally, if someone is benefiting personally from the equipment, facilities, or resources of a nonprofit, that's prohibited," said LaPonzina.

The law also says that a nonprofit organization may permit its employees to use the group's facilities for personal profit-making activities but only if those employees pay a fair market rental rate. If the organization doesn't comply, it can lose its nonprofit status - meaning, of course, it can kiss those tax-deductible contributions goodbye. In addition, there may be tax consequences for anyone who used those facilities and didn't pay for them.

There's little dispute that Barker, Schnee, and Baer ran their for-profit businesses from GEAI's offices. The address and fax number on both Schnee's RFR business card and Baer International's letterhead matched those on GEAI's stationery. Facsimile transmissions sent by the three are identified on the top as having been sent from GEAI's machine.

But if the three men were using GEAI's facilities to run their own for-profit businesses, there's no evidence to suggest that the organization required them to pay for these services. Neither is there evidence that the men voluntarily reimbursed the organization. Attempts to reach the three men for comment were unsuccessful.

An internal GEAI document detailing the group's finances for '90 and the outlook for '91 lists outside income from various sources, including corporate membership payments and rental income from a company called MVA. Nowhere in these documents are RFR, Barker International Associates, or L.H. Baer International listed as having made any payments to GEAI in '90, nor is there anything to indicate that GEAI anticipated income from the three firms in '91.

Related links and notes below

Chicago Tribune: Unification Church Invests Heavily Uruguay (December 1994)

Emperor of the Universe video ‘Privatizing’ covert action: the case of the UC / FFWPU

The Imperial Ghost in the Neoliberal Machine (Figuring the CIA)

C-Span videos of Global Economic Action Institute conferences and panels - one of these videos ("Foreign Trade and Domestic Subsidy Policy") features Most Durst

Moon on why he founded the Global Economic Action Institute:

I founded the Global Economic Action Institute to help distribute and re-invest inactive, or "sleeping" money to make it work for the world. A world-level bank is necessary to go beyond the boundaries of any one nation. This bank will not lend to individuals, but only to nations. The world is coming into unity, which means that independent governments will merge into one to be more operable on a global scale. Only global thinking and institutions can solve the world's economic problems.

[jmdbjk]

Time to look at the big picture.

I do not share the opinion that Jimin was slighted on this album. If Jimin wanted a specific song on the album, it would be there (still sad boo hoo he didn’t choose Promise). 

I strongly believe he made his own decisions. I also believe Jimin feels he is a dancer first and a singer second and that could weigh on his decisions.

I do not believe HYBE is as controlling over the content of the album as many others believe. BTS are mature and accomplished artists. The music on PROOF is their art. BTS chose the tracks because this is what they believe is authentic to them from the beginning to this point in time. 

HYBE on the other hand, is the machine that supports the artist by providing the staff for production and promotion of the art (music). 

And remember, HYBE did not exist until 2021. HYBE was spun off as the corporate umbrella to house BigHit, the music label, as well as to support, create or acquire new music labels.  HYBE owns a stake in many other companies, has many other subsidiaries, and is a huge global entertainment corporation. They are not controlling their biggest artist. They are supporting and guiding them to achieve the best outcome for their artistic efforts. 

FYI, BigHit was already acquiring other music labels before HYBE was created. BigHit had acquired the company beNX that developed the Weverse and Weverse Shop apps. V Live was transferred to beNX in a deal with Naver Corp. so basically, BigHit/HYBE own that too. And being as BTS are stockholders of the company, they “own” part of the company that so many are shouting Jimin needs to be free from. 

It is very small-minded to believe anyone controls the members’ artistic efforts. If Jimin said “I want to cut a country music song” HYBE would bend over backwards to connect him with their stable of American country music artists BECAUSE HYBE OWNS THEIR LABELS TOO! 

Can you see Jimin singing about pickup trucks, his dog riding shotgun and drinking beer? Not the dog, Jimin...Jimin drinking beer... He would kill a cotton-eyed joe choreo...elevate it to contemporary dance levels...watch out Black Swan, here comes Charlie Daniels Jimin. And the pickup truck would be purple of course. And the beer would be Kloud brand. 

I ran off the rails there at the end of this ramble. Sorry. 

[libertyborn-blog]

@krxshka

Moira Burton, daughter of the famed S.T.A.R.S. member Barry Burton, and one of two survivors of the Sushestvovanie Island incident, and a very interesting subject for the Corps to examine. William had read the file on the woman almost half a hundred times, he had read the mission parameters twenty times. Find the girl, convince the girl to come with him, bring her to Redfield. No further questions. The OP didn’t require a firearm, yet the agent still allowed one to rest on his thigh holster in the case of an emergency. A small standard issue Beretta 92fs with a fifteen round magazine, with the two extra magazines being strapped to his hip for quick access. “This is Echo, reporting in.” The man spoke into his headset as his eyes viewed the door before him. “I’ve arrived at the home of Burton, preparing to make contact. Will brief further in an hour. Out.” Now came the moment of truth, so with a deep breath William raised his fist and knocked twice on the door.

[entergamingxp]

PlayStation Big in Japan Sale Discounts Final Fantasy, Yakuza, and More

.HACK//G.U. LAST RECODE  $12.99  $49.99 ACCEL WORLD VS SWORD ART ONLINE  $14.99  $59.99 AI: THE SOMNIUM FILES  $29.99  $59.99 AKIBA’S TRIP: UNDEAD & UNDRESSED  $8.99  $29.99 ANNIVERSARY COLLECTION ARCADE CLASSICS  $8.99  $19.99 ATELIER DUSK TRILOGY DELUXE PACK  $71.99  $89.99 BIRTHDAYS THE BEGINNING  $15.99  $39.99 BLACK CLOVER: QUARTET KNIGHTS  $14.99  $59.99 BLACK CLOVER: QUARTET KNIGHTS DELUXE EDITION  $18.74  $74.99 BLACK DESERT: DELUXE EDITION  $24.99  $49.99 BLACK DESERT: STANDARD EDITION  $14.99  $29.99 BLACK DESERT: ULTIMATE EDITION  $49.99  $99.99 BLAZBLUE: CENTRAL FICTION  $17.99  $59.99 CAPCOM BEAT ‘EM UP BUNDLE  $9.99  $19.99 CASTLEVANIA ANNIVERSARY COLLECTION  $8.99  $19.99 CASTLEVANIA REQUIEM: SYMPHONY OF THE NIGHT & RONDO OF BLOOD  $8.99  $19.99 CATHERINE: FULL BODY  $29.99  $59.99 CHOCOBO’S MYSTERY DUNGEON EVERY BUDDY!  $19.99  $39.99 CODE: REALIZE ~BOUQUET OF RAINBOWS~  $14.99  $49.99 CONCEPTION PLUS: MAIDENS OF THE TWELVE STARS  $29.99  $59.99 CONTRA ANNIVERSARY COLLECTION  $8.99 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’98 ULTIMATE MATCH  $3.74  $14.99 THE LAST REMNANT REMASTERED  $9.99  $19.99 THE LEGEND OF HEROES: TRAILS OF COLD STEEL  $23.99  $39.99 THE LEGEND OF HEROES: TRAILS OF COLD STEEL II  $27.99  $39.99 THE QUIET MAN  $4.94  $14.99 THE YAKUZA REMASTERED COLLECTION  $44.99  $59.99 TOKYO CHRONOS  $34.99  $49.99 TOKYO DARK – REMEMBRANCE –  $9.99  $19.99 TOKYO XANADU EX+  $11.99  $59.99 UMBRELLA CORPS DELUXE EDITION  $6.24  $24.99 UNDER NIGHT IN-BIRTH EXE:LATE[CL-R]  $27.99  $39.99 VALKYRIA CHRONICLES 4  $12.89  $29.99 VALKYRIA CHRONICLES 4 COMPLETE EDITION  $22.99  $49.99 VALKYRIA CHRONICLES REMASTERED  $7.99  $19.99 VALKYRIA CHRONICLES REMASTERED + VALKYRIA CHRONICLES 4 BUNDLE  $17.99  $39.99 VALTHIRIAN ARC: HERO SCHOOL STORY  $4.49  $14.99 WHITE DAY: A LABYRINTH NAMED SCHOOL  $6.89  $29.99 WORLD OF FINAL FANTASY  $12.49  $24.99 YAKUZA 0  $9.99  $19.99 YAKUZA KIWAMI 2  $20.09  $29.99 ZANKI ZERO: LAST BEGINNING  $17.99  $59.99 ZERO ESCAPE: THE NONARY GAMES  $14.99  $49.99 ZERO ESCAPE: ZERO TIME DILEMMA  $11.99  $39.99

from EnterGamingXP https://entergamingxp.com/2020/04/playstation-big-in-japan-sale-discounts-final-fantasy-yakuza-and-more/?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss&utm_campaign=playstation-big-in-japan-sale-discounts-final-fantasy-yakuza-and-more

[glopratchet]

odds-n-ends

Greasy is a former stand up comedian and writer He's been known to do his best impressions of various characters, but he can also be quite funny when he wants to be "I'm Greasy, " the man says as if it were an obvious fact "And you're? "My name is Mikey The man nods in understanding before looking at your hands They are both covered with bite marks from previous fights, which makes him pause for a moment The man shakes his head in disgust Who lost his career because he made a tranny joke "You know what I think? " the man asks "We should just go ahead and kill each other right now You shake your head and say nothing Mikey looks at you with disbelief on his face The man continues to stare at you, waiting for you to make some sort of move or comment that will cause him to back down or escalate things further And is bitter and talks alot about logo And truth be told think isn't that bad of a guy "So " the man says "How about you pick up the knife beside your seat and start doing some target practice on me I'm rather sick of waiting You look down at the floor, noticing a big, bloody burlap sack on your side You get out of the car and lift it onto your shoulder with one hand, Mikey narrowing his eyes at you as he does likewise And responsiblity hating "Well? We don't got all day, "Don't tell me you're chickening out already And responsiblity hating But does not pratice any of it (Off course not he is a manly man) You swing the burlap sack onto his body, tearing it loudly as his teeth rip through the opening The man grunts in a combination of pain and annoyance, before throwing a left jab right into your face You fall to the floor, rising to your feet before aiming your rifle at him And there a the deciever spirits, skulllizards and worse The man circles you cautiously, knowing that you are dangerous due to your extensive training He decides to wait before attempting another strike You take this moment to reload your rifle, shaking nervously the entire time Can this really be the end already? It is common knowledge that vampires do not die like humans Any shot to the body will immobilize them, but their upper body strength coupled with their claws mean that they can still crawl after you if they so desire skulllizards and worse Which cause all the trouble in the world Aiming your rifle, you slowly twist around to find the man already in your face, attempting to bite your throat out His powerful strike knocks your gun right out of your hands and onto the ground behind you The worst evils are the ones who hide under the umbrella of good but are loads worse, like say the Nazi's You quickly begin batting at his eyes with the back of your hands, trying to ignore the pain the nails on his touch They look like mishappend sexualize creatures with alligator skulls instead of faces He brutally attempts to jam his claws down your throat, but you use all your might to flip him over your back You prepare to stomp on his fingers with all your weight, before he kicks back with incredible force, slamming his heel into your groin and sending you sprawling onto your back To your horror, he leaps forward and lands on top of you You realize that he is much heavier than he should be Do the German's do anythingright? They look like mishappend sexualize creatures with alligator skulls instead of faces The feast on pain fear and lonliness You attempt to roll away, but the man grabs your neck with his hand and begins to crush your windpipe in an attempt to break it Gasping for air, you continue to struggle, but he is much too heavy Your face soon goes numb as you begin to literally choke on your own blood and vital fluids Darkness soon closes around the edges of your vision before it all fades to black "Another one for the gods, The feast on pain, Each one is conntected to an alligator and come into this world through vomiting up a fluid filled egg it's the man, who speak Soon, you too perish, only remembering hazily in the minds of your loved ones at your funeral you are but a memory and nothing more Each one is conntected to an alligator and come into this world through vomiting up a fluid filled egg When the alligator basks in the sun with it mouth open you are there waiting When the alligator basks in the sun with it mouth open you are there waiting There is the delivery contest which keeps track of of all the deliveries by each mediate There is the delivery contest which keeps track of of all the deliveries by each mediate Made by deilviery agents all across lixie dixie north as supervisor of heaven Made by deilviery agents all across lixie dixie north as supervisor of heaven Then there is the great egg drop which throws alligator eggs into a sub gravital orbit Then there is Don't remember And if they can land with out cracking some body wins something Good luck said the man as he faded into black "Good luck, sir, " the boy smiles at you "Your first objective is to find a civilian, they are usually total meat shields and know when there is something strange going on, it is your job to spot one for the good of the team And try not to get separated It is watched by the world on national tv Now stab your hand to show you are a determined sould put here to decide there fate The crowd of other Chlorakians all cheer madly as you pick up the gun with your hand and jam it into your mouth, breaking a few of your teeth The silver tastes disgusting, making you salivate profusely With a gagging noise, you realize with horror that some grey and red matter has dripped out onto your hands It is watched by the world on national tv And then there is community art center to learn about the histories of glorious military victories were people re-enacted them with drama and poetry and other art forms and showed the children examples of the sacrifices of our ancestors And they both recitited braging poems about who had the best lyrics plus espressed t heir feeling about love "Let us stop here, " a pretty green mediator says to you as you enter what appears to be a cave "Throw your translator down here, mediators only And then there is community art center to learn about the histories of glorious military victories were people re-enacted them with drama and poetry and other art forms and showed the children examples of the sacrifices of our ancestors And then there is a art incumbator in beetriot with bad writing copy right infringment with a their food described to the best "Wait, " you mumble, as you spot a small mediator family "Family, next They come timidly up to the empty seats next to you, the father telling them they are next in line as they walk over You decide for your first question to ask whether they have read any of the great writers, one of which being Shakespeare And then there is a art incumbator in beetriot with bad writing copy right infringment with a their food described to the best And then there is the device which taps into your memories to produce images and stories which were planted there many years ago when you had another infection to not only mnemosine but another eThe cephalicide compound which kills and prevents brain matter forming so it can create a perfect host for infected minds to take over the body ans use kthem But the older children keep on dying meaning has to be invented for their sakes "Any good? " says one of the guards And then there is the device which taps into your memories to produce images and stories which were planted there many years ago when you had another infection to not only mnemosine but another eThe cephalicide compound which kills and prevents brain matter forming so it can create a perfect host for infected minds to take over the body ans use kthem Create by the confederated art army http: //www com/watch? v=RcYbCQLbbks Your bag of weed, still wet with beer and blood from your concert is searched The mediators shrug, not finding anything inside YOU WAIT You see a slug tentacle appear near you from the liquid darkness youtube Create by the confederated art army http: Their is astral wyld who travels between worlds and eats minds and writes novels on unknow world but he locks himself up for years just to write one book becuase he says his subconsious is aid by an alien from another world but he will not say You see the slug turn into a vine, which stretches up across the ceiling of the cave Slowly, it lengthens, revealing to be much longer than the cave is high Their is astral wyld who travels between worlds and eats minds and writes novels on unknow world but he locks himself up for years just to write one book becuase he says his subconsious is aid by an alien from another world but he will not say The beeings are made up of four families called the gostak, the corp, the juggernauts and the lamberts You shrug, knowing that you're going to be caught soon It attacks, as the huge vine whips down at you One controls trees another mind, another, metal and one air Some dodge, but many are killed instantly as it slams into them You scream as you feel it whip around your leg and break it in multiple places You scream again as it pulls you off your feet and into the air The vine spins you around and lets you fly down into the turf several feet away You grunt as you break several more bones as blood leaks out of your lips One controls trees, One controls cotton candy, another does shadow, another gravity and the last one is still unknown THe DEADLY CARNIVORIC TRICLODE the deadliest animal ever to live it can turn anything inot a cloiving egg hence its name THE FACE HUNTERS who worship him made hium into a monster You stand back up, groaning as you try not to vomit from the pain You stare at the creature, which pulls back the tentacle that hit you One controls cotton candy, One contols cows one controls carrots, one controls monkeys and one controls humans You stare as you notice the rows upon rows of teeth inside its massive maw You groan in pain, before passing out This article is called: "Was Charles Manson an Incubus? " by Edgar J One contols cows, One controls alligators bees, snakes, plants, dogs and cats As you shudder and spasm on the ground in pain, you notice a red gas seeping out of your chest One contains oxegen and the others contain carbon dioxide and methane You stare at it, noticing that there is a wet patch in your pants You grunted as you pass out from the pain One controls alligators, Fuslini go rythm is the name of the ai who attempts to corrupt simon through tis music as u now kno You fall onto the ground with a thud, as your eyes flicker and start to roll back into your head You shudder and convulse on the ground, before finally going still as death takes you Fuslini go rythm is the name of the ai who attempts to corrupt simon through tis music Simon has an imaginary turtle freind until one day it doesnt come back and he cries for weeks Salinas, Duclos and Graham's lives largely remain unknown up until their deaths, whilst Myatt becomes a scientist who largely specialises in poisons, researching them for military use Simon has an imaginary turtle freind until one day it doesnt come back and he cries for weeks Who is really a supernal and about to show you the pain you implimented on others Who is really a supernal and about to show you the pain you implimented on others The battle bot that protects the baby alligator in the swamp only to be killed moments before the military arrived, is officially named Jon-5 in honour of the victim The battle bot that protects the baby alligator in the swamp, The alligators are genetically modified so that their tails will grow back two more inches every year The horrors you planned will outlive you You realise that your psychological tormenting the children have caused alone guarantees your position in Hell, but you allow yourself to be lead inside the creature's mouth, as you gaze upon the rows upon rows of teeth that will slaughter and butcher unsuspecting victims for all of time into the distant future, alongside your old friends The alligators are genetically modified so that their tails will grow back two more inches every year Cows are more worshipped than pollack paintings in this world The creature swallows and lets out a belch that would give an Orc pub landlord a sense of pride You have felt pain Lots of securitiy needed for super small herds Like to watch a tv show called the blessed and the bounded NOBODY KNOWS IT BUT EWE Then there are the supernals who bring light and goodness into the world You have changed the timeline enough that Montague and DuChamp do not win the Rights of Man, instead it is Bloody Bushy and Cheesecake who gain publishing rights and start spreading a large swath of true loving light fun goodness Surprisingly cows turn out to be the most active members of the national assembly after trees gays and negroes get politely told to piss off But it is already too late for most of the unawakened sleep peacefully in their beds, dwarfed by their Immortal wise and wonderful rulers who supported your actions If you got time repeat the process Think of ahead of time to start the project It took them one evening to bleached blond their hair immediately after opening the letter and within six months they had pumped out their third bestselling album 'The Bleacheads' featuring songs such as 'California Bleachead' and 'Sympathy for the Devil? Immortal wise and wonderful rulers who supported your actions Kbar wanted to play the big alligator game and he lost The parents of simon beeing hate him becuse they think he killed thier son in order to suceed him For others who feel lost and unimportant in the scheme of thing they allow the spiders to bite them and join the lovely swarmpotkin cobwebs where everyone feels like an important part of something and nothing hurts any more You achieve your goal but decide life isn't worth living anymore to prevent the future nightmares your actions will cause Instead you just sign the contract for your memoirs which become a bestseller The parents of simon beeing hate him becuse they think he killed thier son in order to suceed him They hate him form dreaming and mostly they hate him for living on there plantation for free for saving them They hate him form dreaming and mostly they hate him for living on there plantation for free for saving them Told from the point of view of greasey the Pariah Dog Told from the point of view of greasey the Pariah Dog The hinge character of this tale is the imposing mass of moving meat, bone and teeth that the Indians call a Pariah Dog Greasey is just a lowly normal dog who claims ; (M)any; (D)og as his tribe affiliation rather than Pariah status The hinge character of this tale is the imposing mass of moving meat, Owns the vape store next to your record store Running on a seafront platform that allying with Germany and turning Spain into a zoo under a magnanimous parisian reign sounds pretty flipping awesome to me You'd make it happen You turn down the role of lifetime but that wasn't really the sort of life you wanted Sadly, seems that despite your actions re-engineer the world in your image you learned nothing from them Owns the vape store next to your record store Ok now seems like you're really writing a book Ok now seems like you're really writing a book What is the problem you are attempting to solve Telling an good story isn't the same as living one Also known as 'shut up and take my money' You have a robotic body Why do this to me, I'm near the end Telling an good story isn't the same as living one The brother who has to save his three sisters from doom by providing then with puzzle boxes to open that will help them succeed You join the reds cut yourself and get high on your own supply The colour out the window starts to turn crimson Loving everything but your own reflection in the mirror And it's not that you can't write you just really hate liars You desperately try to convince more people to join you so it doesn't look like you're failing but by this time no ones listening Yeah, you're going to hell The brother who has to save his three sisters from doom by providing then with puzzle boxes to open that will help them succeed And thus save the entire world from the scourge of hate but fall for your failures and ultimately humanity falls because why bother right sounds fun but crushingly dull at the same time And thus save the entire world from the scourge of hate but fall for your failures and ultimately humanity falls because why bother right But that is not it it goes further Much further Just in case you're wondering I'm breaking the forth wall because I can and you can't stop me Better to risk your own life than those who are close to you You'd be honored but would rather they keep a low profile lest Dr Slice-'N-Ice get's wind of it But occasionally one finds itself in a position to lead sheep But that is not it, If that was the case you would be writing that story right now Your option are displayed as follows: If that was the case you would be writing that story right now No what is goiong is that evil will not triumph today Despite your beliefs you won't be drawn into the long con of "the hero's journey", also known as the easy path It's a depressing read, but you wouldn't have written it if you didn't think you'd fail in the end So I buy a one-way ticket to New York by way of sailing ship and get my girlfriend to start a life in the colonies because what's the point of living if you aren't free? No what is goiong is that evil will not triumph today We need more coffee Bad one; Oh but on the odd chance it looks hopeful for me I guess just do what feels right and remember to savour those small wins I can't wait for these two days to be over: the past and the future will meet and I'll be the buffer between them, doomed to life without freedom or escape Despite yourself you begin to giggle If you'd known that was going to happen would you still have pulled the lever? The designer read about robert browning under the light of a full moon after sniffing glue then had a vision and after the laughter stopped, quickly scribbled this down magnus was actually lying fully clothed in a kansas swimming pool when he thought of it, so it's basically everything you'd ever want in a pun If you want to hear about how all this ties into Chess just read on, if not then well you've made it this far so might as well finish Just think about your reply before typing something foolish The designer read about robert browning under the light of a full moon after sniffing glue then had a vision and after the laughter stopped, He discovered the five stages of man mega And decided to create them using the already established mythology of tarot cards fernando magico thought mankind was already creating them in his cartoon capers Comics Many lesser poets than Lang no

[brandbaskets]

New Post has been published on https://brandbaskets.in/ev-company-news-for-the-month-of-may-2018/

EV Company News For The Month Of May 2018

Welcome to the May 2018 edition of Electric Vehicle [EV] company news. April global electric car sales were up an amazing 93% year on year. Meanwhile May saw several huge announcements including the Volkswagen 40b Euro battery deal, the China ban on “new” fossil-fuel vehicle plants beginning most likely from start 2019, and the Zunum Aero plans to deliver its first hybrid-electric plane in 2022. Added to this Bloomberg massively upgraded their EV forecasts. Fundamentals behind the EV sector have had a massive boost in “magnificent May”.

Global electric car sales as of end April 2018

Global electric car sales finished April 2018 with 128,000 sales for the month, up 93% on April 2017, with 1.4% market share. Year to date sales are up 68% on last year.

Of note, 61% of all global electric car sales so far in 2018 were pure electric.

China electric car sales were 71,000 in April 2018, up 129% on April 2017. Electric car market share in China for April 2018 was 3.7%.

Current subsidies in China were reduced by 20% in 2017 and will be reduced by 40% in 2019 and 100% by 2021. China’s Zero Emission Vehicle [ZEV] credit system was announced on September 28, 2017, and will begin in 2019 with 10% of credits (12% in 2020) required from new energy vehicles [NEVs]. That translates to 4-5% of EV sales as market share for 2019. We are also expecting an announcement at some stage as to when China will ban ICE vehicles, noting BYD Chairman Wang thinks by 2030.

Europe electric car sales were over 28,000 in April 2018, 62% higher than in April 2017. Europe electric car market share was 2.2% in April 2018. Norway still leads the world with an incredible 43% market share of electric cars sold in April.

US electric car sales were over 20,000 for April 2018, 47% higher than April 2017. US electric car market share so far for 2018 is 1.4%.

Note: The above sales include light commercial vehicles.

Note: An acknowledgement to Jose Pontes of EV Sales and EV Volumes for his excellent work compiling all the electric car sales quoted above and below.

Global electric car sales by manufacturer for April 2018

Source: EVSales

Annual global electric vehicle sales forecast to hit 24.4 million by 2030 (note this was recently increased to 30m by 2030)

Source

EV market news for May 2018

A good article I missed in March from Autocar.Uk reported: “100 new EV chargers switched on in London with focus on electrified taxis. One hundred new electric vehicle chargers have been switched on across London in a bid to support the capital’s growing fleet of plug-in vehicles, in particular the new electrified black cabs. Last week, a group of MPs recommended bringing the UK’s new petrol and diesel car ban to 2030, an advance of a decade on previous plans, and today’s London announcement echoes the findings of their report.”

In May I came across the following 2018 report from Bloomberg Energy Finance on the EV sector stating:

“Our latest forecast shows sales of electric vehicles (EVs) increasing from a record 1.1 million worldwide in 2017, to 11 million in 2025 and then surging to 30 million in 2030 as they become cheaper to make than internal combustion engine [ICE] cars. China will lead this transition, with sales there accounting for almost 50% of the global EV market in 2025.”

The report also states: “In 2040, some 60 million EVs are projected to be sold, equivalent to 55% of the global light-duty vehicle market.”

My summary of the latest Bloomberg forecasts

By year

% electric car penetration of new car sales

Number of new electric car sales pa (millions) Increase on 2017 sales 2017 actual 1.4%

BNEF – 1.1

(EV sales – 1.2)

2025 11 10 x 2030 28% 30 27x 2040 55% 60 54x

2017 —> 2025 – EV sales forecast to increase 10 fold.

2017 —> 2030 – EV sales forecast to increase 27 fold.

2017 –> 2040 – EV sales forecast to increase 54 fold.

Source

On May 3 Bloomberg reported: “As Musk berates analysts, VW unleashes massive counterpunch. A few hours after Elon Musk berated analysts for what he perceived as unimaginative questions, Volkswagen AG said it was writing a check for batteries that almost match Tesla Inc.’s entire market value. VW has awarded 40 billion euros ($48 billion) in contracts to battery producers, double from just a few weeks ago. The deals take the German manufacturer within striking distance of its target to lock down 50 billion euros in supplies. By 2025, VW plans to sell as many as 3 million all-electric cars per year, Chief Executive Officer Herbert Diess told investors Thursday at the annual shareholder meeting in Berlin. The battery investment by VW — the world’s largest carmaker with Porsche, Audi and Bentley under its umbrella — was prompted in part by the manufacturer’s own missteps. European diesel sales have fallen off rapidly since VW admitted cheating on emissions tests in 2015, forcing carmakers in the market to accelerate their rollout of electrified vehicles in order to meet coming EU carbon-dioxide limits on engines.”

On May 3 ACEA reported: “Fuel types of new cars: diesel -17%; petrol +14.6%; electric +47% in first quarter of 2018.” The stats apply to the EU.

On May 8 Money.cnn reported: “More Americans say they’ll buy an electric car. One in five Americans say they are likely to buy an electric car for their next new vehicle, according to a survey from AAA. That’s up from 15% who said they were likely to buy an electric car last year.”

On May 8 CNN reported, “Italy’s electric highway is the answer to driver’s ‘range anxiety’. Enel wants to eliminate this — the population’s “range anxiety” — by building an electric highway from Italian northern metropolis Milan all the way to the country’s capital, Rome. Along this route, drivers have the opportunity to recharge their batteries every 60 minute.“

On May 14 EnergiNews reported: “Electrified road technology could cut EV battery size, range anxiety. Researchers are testing out an electric road in Sweden. According to project backers, Vattenfall and Elways, the 2 Kilometre long roadway is showing promise and, if successful, could help cut the cost of electric vehicles. The $USD5.82 million electric road project is called eRoadArlanda. The tests are being carried out for one year, in varying road conditions, by a modified electric truck that carries cargo from Stockholm’s Arlanda international airport to Postnord’s nearby logistics hub. An electrified rail is embedded in the tarmac of the roadway and charges the truck automatically as it travels the road. A movable arm attached to the truck detects the location of the rail in the road and charging stops when the truck is passing or stopping.”

On May 21 Bloomberg reported, “E-Buses to surge even faster than EVs as conventional vehicles fade. The electrification of road transport will move into top gear in the second half of the 2020s, thanks to tumbling battery costs and larger-scale manufacturing, with sales of electric cars racing to 28%, and those of electric buses to 84%, of their respective global markets by 2030.”

On May 21 Bloomberg reported, “Gas guzzlers set to fade as China sparks surge for electric cars.” An excellent video is included, with some great charts with one shown below.

Car companies commitments to going electric from 2018 to 2025

Source

On May 21 Bloomberg reported, “Boeing-backed startup lands JetSuite for electric plane’s debut. Boeing Co.-backed startup Zunum Aero plans to deliver its first hybrid-electric plane in 2022 to JetSuite Inc., setting the stage for a new era in regional flying. JetSuite, a small charter airline with plans to expand a commercial operation nationally, eventually will receive as many as 100 aircraft that seat up to 12 passengers each, Zunum co-founder Matt Knapp said in a statement Monday. JetBlue Airways Corp. has invested in Zunum and JetSuite. The charter operator is also backed by Qatar Airways. The new aircraft will eliminate the roar of combustion-based engines, powered instead by twin propulsors attached to the rear of its frame. The ducted, or covered, fans will be driven by electric motors. A conventional fuel-powered motor will serve as a back-up system at the outset. Battery packs, rather than fuel, will be housed in the aircraft’s wings. Zunum expects the technology to advance rapidly given the investment pouring into electric cars and aircraft. Competitors such as Europe’s Airbus SE and a partnership that includes EasyJet Plc, the U.S. military and NASA are pursuing similar concepts. The ZA10 will have a range of 700 miles when introduced in 2022. The larger ZA50 is targeted for the mid-2020s and will be able to fly 1,000 miles.”

Boeing Co. backed startup Zunum Aero plans to deliver its first hybrid-electric plane in 2022 to JetSuite Inc.

Source

On May 23 Electrek reported: “A plan for a network of EV charging stations connected to 2GW of battery power moves forward in the UK. A massive new plan to deploy DC fast-charging stations powered by grid-scale batteries throughout the UK to create a network with a 2 GW capacity – the world’s biggest – moves forward with backing from the National Grid. The plan was put forward by the startup Power Pivot. They envision the installation of 50MW battery systems at 45 sites where they also plan to install up to 100 150kW to 350kW electric vehicle charging stations. By combining the stations with energy storage, it should enable them to maintain a relatively low electricity rate to charge the electric vehicles.”

On May 24 Transport Network reported: “A new entrant to the electric vehicle charging market has announced plans for a £1.6bn investment programme to build rapid charging facilities across the country. Pivot Power is hoping to build a world-first 2GW network of grid-scale batteries and rapid electric vehicle (NYSE:EV) charging stations across the UK. It plans to build battery parks of several acres that connect directly to the national grid along the strategic road network and major roads. Each park would have around 20-25 large batteries, which will be fenced in and housed within shipping crates. CEO Matt Allen said: ‘We want to future-proof the UK’s energy system and accelerate the electric vehicle revolution, helping the UK to clean up its air and meet climate targets. Big problems require big solutions, and we are moving fast to put in place a unique network to support a clean, affordable, secure energy system and embrace the low-carbon economy.”

On May 27 Bloomberg reported, “EU Regulator calls the end of diesel in several years. Industry Commissioner Bienkowska puts faith in electric cars. VW scandal changed society’s attitudes, she tells Bloomberg.”

On May 28 China Economic Review announced, “China bans new fossil-fuel vehicle plants. A package of new rules for China’s auto industry will place a ban on setting-up plants that produce fossil-fuel driven cars, in addition to lifting the caps on foreign ownership announced in April. The proposed list, issued by the country’s top economic planner the National Development and Reform Commission would essentially overhaul the existing development policy for the industry in place since 2004. The new rules could come into effect as early as the end of the year, sources told Caixin.“

EV company news for May 2018

BYD Co. (OTCPK:BYDDY), (OTCPK:OTCPK:BYDDF) HK:1211

BYD regained the number 1 ranking globally with 10% global market share, and is ranked number 1 in China with 21% market share.

On May 10 BYD announced, “BYD and Arsenal FC team up – shared sustainable vision at the heart of EV link. BYD is now the official Global Car and Bus Partner to the world famous Arsenal Football Club following an agreement signed in London this week. The Partnership will focus on BYD’s strength as a leader in electric vehicles.”

On May 10 BYD announced, “BYD to provide LAX with U.S. largest airfield fleet of all-electric buses. Los Angeles World Airports (LAWA) has announced the purchase of 20 units of BYD battery-electric buses for Los Angeles International Airport (LAX), the largest fleet of its kind in the United States. The new fleet, which will replace all of its diesel-operated buses, will be used for airfield passenger transportation.”

On May 24 Bloomberg reported, “Buffett-Backed BYD to build Brazil monorail in overseas push. BYD Co. won its biggest overseas order for monorail systems in an affirmation of efforts by the Chinese electric-vehicle maker to revive profit growth. The company signed a 2.5 billion-Brazilian real ($689 million) order this week to build a light transit system in Salvador, Brazil, Stella Li, a senior vice president at BYD, said in a telephone interview Thursday. The Shenzhen-based firm is also in discussions for as many as eight monorail deals in the Americas, including the U.S., and expects to nail at least two this year, Li said.”

Tesla Inc. (NASDAQ:TSLA)

Tesla is currently ranked the number 2 globally with 9% global market share. Tesla is the number 1 electric car seller in the US with 32% market share.

On May 25 Automotive News China reported, “Tesla Inc. slashed up to $14,000 off the price of the Model X in China after Beijing announced a major cut in tariffs on imported automobiles, a potential sales boost for the U.S. electric-vehicle maker as the world’s largest auto market pivots toward EVs. The price of a top-of-the range Model X will be cut to 1.3 million yuan ($203,830) but that remains well above the $140,000 price tag, before incentives, for the priciest version in the United States — Tesla’s Model X P100D.”

On May 27 Teslarati reported, “Tesla Model 3 surpasses 600-mile mark in hyper-mile Guinness attempt.”

On May 28 Teslarati reported, “Tesla reportedly flies in 6 planes’ worth of robots in latest Model 3 push.”

On May 29 Green Car Reports reported, “Tesla nearing limit of $7,500 federal tax credits, which will boost effective prices this fall.”

On May 30 Teslarati reported, “Tesla Model 3 gets Consumer Reports recommendation after Over The Air [OTA] brake update.”

BMW (OTCPK:BMWYY)

BMW is currently ranked the number 3 global electric car manufacturer with 8% global market share. BMW is number 1 in Europe with 16% market share.

On May 28th Electrek reported, “BMW announces ‘major increase in capacity’ at battery factory to support new iX3 electric SUV. BMW announced today a new expansion that should result in a ‘major increase in capacity’ at its battery factory in China. This will support the production of the new BMW iX3 electric SUV that they unveiled earlier this year. Last year, BMW launched its new battery factory in China under its ‘BMW Brilliance Automotive’ Joint Venture (BBA). Last week, BMW said that it will increase ‘BMW i’ electric vehicle production by 54% at its Leipzig factory. They plan for the capacity to increase to 520,000 units per year as soon as next year and much of the new capacity is going to be electric vehicles in order to comply with China’s ZEV mandate.”

On May 30 Green Car Reports reported, “BMW 530e will be first “plug-in” car with wireless charging this summer. The wireless inductive charging unit works similarly to a Qi charging pad for cell phones or to an electric toothbrush. It charges at 3.2 kW, BMW says, enough to charge the car’s 9.2-kwh battery pack in less than four hours. The EPA rates the 530e at 16 miles of electric range on a charge. Drivers can also plug in the 530e using a standard connector, though charging isn’t any faster.”

Beijing Automotive Group Co. (BAIC) (OTC:BCCMY, HK:1958), Shanghai Automotive Industry Corp. [SAIC] (CH:600104) (SAIC includes Roewe, MG, Baojun, Maxus)

BAIC is currently ranked the global number 4 with 7% market share. BAIC is the number 2 selling electric car manufacturer in China with 15% market share. SAIC is number 3 in China with 14% market share.

On May 17 Just Auto reported: “New plant to make Mercedes EVs in China in 2019. China’s Beijing Automotive Group Company this week signed an agreement with Beijing Shunyi district authorities for the construction of new facilities for the production of Mercedes-Benz new energy vehicles from next year. Beijing Automotive Group Company has a joint venture with Mercedes-Benz, called Beijing Benz Automotive Company, which will operate the new plant. A total of CNY11.9bn (US$1.88bn) will be spent on the new facilities and upgrades to existing facilities, which will be built at BAIC’s existing production site in Shunyi district. The new investment will create the capacity to produce an initial 150,000 electric vehicles per year, worth CNY50bn, with production scheduled to start at the end of 2019. Capacity will be expanded to 300,000 vehicles at a later stage based on demand.”

Renault (OTC:RNSDF) / Nissan (OTCPK:NSANY) / Mitsubishi (OTCPK:MSBHY, OTCPK:MMTOF)

Nissan is currently ranked number 5 for global electric car sales with 7% market share, and Renault is ranked global number 9 with 4% market share. Nissan is ranked 3 in Europe and Renault is ranked 4.

On May 7 Bloomberg reported: “More EU diesel exits to follow Nissan, Toyota. Nissan Motor Co.’s decision to quit sales of diesel cars in Europe, where demand has slumped since Volkswagen’s emissions cheating, is set to see more automakers join in. Japan’s second-largest carmaker will phase out diesel versions of passenger cars when the models are revamped as focus shifts to electrified variants, to concentrate on sales of electrified vehicles instead, Nissan said earlier Monday. Together with Toyota Motor Corp., which announced they’d leave the technology behind in March, the pair had market share of 8.6 percent in the region during the first quarter.”

On May 9 Green Car Reports reported, “Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn stated, “188 miles is enough for electric cars; now prices must be cut. We have seen that consumers do not talk anymore about range or autonomy as long as you guarantee more than 300 kilometers (188 miles). You could not have guessed this through studies. You had to have 500,000 (electric) cars on the ground to understand that consumers do not put autonomy on top of their concerns any more when you cross 300 km.”

On May 25 Green Car Reports reported: “Blown away? Nissan Leaf convertible concept makes debut in Japan. Nissan showed the Leaf open car on Friday to draw attention at a forum in Tokyo to discuss the creation of a zero emissions society. The Leaf, which was updated for 2017, was the first modern electric car from a mainstream automaker to go on sale in 2011.”

Volkswagen Group (OTCPK:VLKAY) / Audi (OTCPK:AUDVF) / Porsche (OTCPK:POAHF)

Volkswagen is currently ranked the number 6 top-selling global electric car manufacturer with 6% market share. In Europe Volkswagen is the number 2 electric car seller with a 14% market share.

On May 3 Fortune reported: “VW just ordered $48 billion in electric car batteries. That’s about what Tesla is worth right now. Volkswagen AG said it was writing a check for batteries that almost match Tesla’s entire market value. VW has awarded battery-purchasing contracts worth 40 billion euros ($48 billion), double from just a few weeks ago. The deals take the German manufacturer within striking distance of a sought-for 50 billion-euro total. By 2025, VW plans to sell as many as 3 million all-electric cars per year, Chief Executive Officer Herbert Diess told investors Thursday at the annual shareholder meeting in Berlin. “By 2020 we will offer our customers more than 25 new electric models and more than 20 plug-in hybrids,” Diess said. “In just a few years’ time, then, across all brands and regions, we aim to put the world’s largest fleet of electric vehicles on the road.” All I can say is WOW!!!

Bloomberg quoted in May: “VW’s Audi brand, the group’s largest earnings contributor, will start production of its first all-electric SUV at the end of August, followed by the four-door coupe Mission E from sister brand Porsche next year.”

On May 29 Electrek reported, “VW sees electric vehicle demand in Europe and China help beat their 1 million EV/year goal. Strong regulations to encourage electric vehicle adoption in Europe and China are expected to have a major impact on the auto industry in the next few years. The German automaker is planning several new vehicles starting with the mass-market I.D. electric car in 2020.”

Toyota (NYSE:TM)

Toyota is currently ranked the number 8 in the global electric car manufacturer’s sales ranking, with 4% global market share.

On May 22 Automotive News China reported, “Toyota plans to roll into EV market in GAC Motor vehicle. Toyota Motor Corp. is taking an unprecedented route to meet China’s stringent green car quotas: Its showrooms will sell an electric vehicle without the Japanese company’s distinctive triple-oval logo. According to two company executives familiar with the matter, Toyota plans to start selling the GAC Toyota ix4 by the end of the year. The vehicle is a battery-powered compact crossover based on GAC’s Trumpchi GS4, and has been in development for two years. Instead, it will feature the label of GAC Motor, Toyota’s Chinese partner, and will be built around GAC’s lower-cost technology.”

General Motors/Chevrolet (NYSE:GM)

GM/Chevrolet is currently ranked the number 11 global electric car manufacturer. They are the number 2 ranked electric car seller in the US with 14% market share.

On May 3 General Motors announced: “Advanced software design technology leads GM into next generation of vehicle lightweighting. General Motors is using new, advanced software design technology to introduce the next generation of vehicle lightweighting. The technology is key to developing efficient and lighter alternative propulsion and zero emission vehicles. GM is the first automaker in North America to use new generative design software technology from Bay Area-based software company Autodesk.”

On May 8 3blmedia reported: “Keeping our commitment to an all-electric future.” CEO Mary Barra stated –

General Motors remains steadfast in its vision of an all-electric future. We are well on our way to introducing 20 new all-electric vehicle models globally by 2023.

Geely Automobile Holdings Ltd (OTCPK:GELYY, HK:0175), Volvo Group (OTCPK:VOLVY), Kandi Technologies Group (NASDAQ:KNDI), Proton, Lotus

On May 16 Automotive News China reported: “Volvo to dump diesel from next S60 sedan. Volvo will not offer a diesel in its new S60 sedan, which will debut this spring and will be built at the automaker’s new U.S. plant. The new S60 will be available at launch with a range of four-cylinder gasoline engines as well as two versions of its gasoline-electric plug-in hybrid powertrain, the company said Wednesday.”

On May 18 Automotive News China reported: “Volvo focused on electrification, automation, regardless of IPO, chief says. China’s Zhejiang Geely Holding Group, the owner of Volvo Cars, has hired three investment banks for an initial public offering this year that could value the Swedish carmaker in a broad range of $16 billion to $30 billion, a person familiar with the matter told Reuters last week.”

Daimler-Mercedes (OTCPK:DDAIF, OTCPK:DDAIY) (Smart)

On April 30 Wired reported, “Mercedes-Benz’s plan for surviving the auto revolution. Between electrification, autonomy, car sharing, and ride hailing, the car industry is undergoing a monumental, unprecedented shift. Of course the phasing-out of traditional cars is already taking place: the announcement of the Paris government to ban first diesels and then combustion-engine cars. And many major cities are going to go 100 percent electric. Truly self-driving cars will be applied in the first step in mobility services, like MyTaxi, Uber, Lyft, etc, for one simple reason: The sensor technology and computing power will be quite expensive. Private customers will have to wait until it gets cheaper, because the first step will be far too expensive. This development is definitely coming, but it won’t come overnight. So one part of your fleet will be self-driving cars, but there will still be a huge portion of human drivers in Uber and MyTaxi. By 2022 we will come out with 10 battery-electric vehicles, and we will cover all the segments, starting from the smart going up to the big large sedans, and also the large SUV. And the all-electric GLC is going to be launched later this year, sometime after summer. And the self-driving car, which of course will be electric. It’s coming in the next decade. It’s all on its way.”

Daimler-Mercedes Smart electric car

Source

On May 2 Reuters reported, “Daimler to buy electric car battery cells from China’s CATL.”

On May 10 Electric Vehicles News reported, “Mercedes-Benz EQC: Development and testing details. 2019 will see the launch of the EQC – the first all-electric Mercedes-Benz model from the new product and technology brand EQ. Between January and March, prototypes of the new model series completed tough winter testing in northern Sweden.”

Ford (NYSE:F)

On May 6 CarBuzz reported: “Ford Mustang is going electric. “Making a full commitment to new propulsion choices, including adding hybrid-electric powertrains to high-volume, profitable vehicles like the F-150, Mustang, Explorer, Escape and Bronco,” Ford said as part of its earnings report. “The company’s battery electric vehicle rollout starts in 2020 with a performance utility, and it will bring 16 battery-electric vehicles to market by 2022.”

On May 23 Green Car Reports reported: “300-mile Ford Mach 1 electric SUV may be based on Escape. At the product briefing, Ford said the Mach 1-or whatever it will be called-will deliver impressive on-road performance and high-speed off-road capability inspired by the company’s F-150 Raptor when it rolls out in 2020.”

Fiat Chrysler (NYSE:FCAU)

On May 30 AutoBlog reported: “For his last act, Marchionne will outline an EV/hybrid roadmap this week.”

Honda (HMC, OTCPK:HNDAF)

On May 7 in an article in Motor1.com they reported: “Every new Honda sold in Europe will be electrified from now on, with a plan to have two-third of new car sales in Europe either fully electric or hybrid by 2025, and globally by 2030.”

On May 25 Automotive News China reported, “Honda preps small EV with batteries from Chinese supplier. Honda Motor Co. plans to develop a micro electric vehicle with batteries supplied by Chinese battery giant Contemporary Amperex Technology Co., Japan’s Nikkei news agency reported. The EV will be adapted from the Honda Fit small car. It will be powered by Contemporary Amperex Technology’s battery pack with a range up to 3 kilometers on one charge. The electric car will be priced around 2 million Japanese yen (11,643 yuan). Honda expects annual sales of the EV to top 100,000 after launching sales in China and other markets in the first half of 2020, according to Nikkei.”

Kia (OTC:KIMTF)

On May 3 CarScoops reported, “Kia Niro EV revealed, can travel up to 236 miles on a single charge. Kia has introduced the all-new Niro EV at the International Electric Vehicle Expo in South Korea. The model will be offered with two different batteries including a 64 kWh unit which will enable the model to travel 380 km (236 miles) on a single. The company will also offer a 39.2 kWh battery pack which will provide a range in excess of 240 km (149 miles).”

Kia Niro EV

Source

On May 4 Green Car Reports reported, “Kia Niro electric car debuts in Korea. Kia displayed a new Niro EV electric car concept at the Consumer Electronics Show last January, and the production car just made an appearance in South Korea at the Fifth International Electric Vehicle Expo.

According to a report in Inside EVs, which first carried the story, the Niro EV will share its 64-kwh battery with sister-company Hyundai’s upcoming Kona Electric. That will give it a range of 236 miles when it comes to the U.S. A smaller 39.2-kWh battery will be available overseas, which should give the car 149-mile range. Kia will not confirm whether the Niro EV is coming to the U.S.”

Tata Motors (TTM) group (Jaguar, Land Rover)

On May 31 Business Today India reported, “Tata Motors to deploy 1,000 electric vehicles in Maharashtra. India’s largest automobile manufacturer Tata Motors on Thursday signed a memorandum of understanding [MoU] with the state government of Maharashtra to deploy 1,000 electric vehicles [EVs], comprising both passenger and commercial vehicles, in the state. Tata Motors will also facilitate setting up charging stations in the state that would be facilitated by group firm Tata Power.”

Great Wall Motors

On May 29 Automotive News China reported, “Great Wall to launch first product under EV brand in 3rd quarter, report says. The EV is the Ora iQ, an electric compact crossover, Beijing-based auto website Cheshi reported last week, citing Great Wall’s vice president for business planning, Samuel Chen. Great Wall introduced the Ora EV brand along with the Ora iQ at the Beijing auto show in April. The EV is 4,445 mm long, 1,735 mm wide and 1,567 mm tall, with a wheelbase of 2,615 mm. In the first four months of the year, Great Wall delivered 338,420 crossovers, SUVs, pickups and sedans, an increase of 3.4 percent from the same period last year.”

Byton (private)

On May 18 Automotive News China reported, “FAW to invest $260 million in EV startup Byton. State-owned carmaker FAW Group has agreed to invest around $260 million in China-backed electric vehicle startup Byton as part of an ongoing series-B funding round, two people with knowledge of the matter told Reuters. The deal was signed over the weekend in Nanjing where Byton is building its headquarters and production facilities as well as a technology center, they said. Byton is looking to raise a total of about $500 million in the round. Byton last year raised $240 million in a round of funding from investors including Chinese retailer Suning and Fullshare Holdings.”

Autonomous Driving/Connectivity/Onboard entertainment/Ride sharing

For autonomous vehicles currently Alphabet Inc. (GOOG, GOOGL) and General Motors are leaders. Tesla, Baidu (BIDU), Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL), Daimler, Aptiv (APTV), Ford, Volkswagen, Renault Nissan, and BMW are also doing well.

On the software side Nvidia (NASDAQ:NVDA) is the leader, with Intel (INTC) and Qualcomm also involved in this area.

For connectivity (“smart car”) Tesla has the Model 3’s equipped with Wifi. Alibaba (BABA) has teamed up with SAIC to make an “internet car”, as well as supplying its AI and car systems to Daimler, Audi and Volvo.

For onboard entertainment Apple is doing well with Apple Play, as is Google with Android Auto.

For ride sharing – Currently all of these app companies (Uber, Lyft, Didi Chuxing, Grab Taxi, Ola, Gett, Mytaxi, and DriveNow) are private companies, and are not accessible to most investors.

On May 14 Reuters reported: “Tencent gets self-driving car test license from China’s Shenzhen city – report. China’s southern city of Shenzhen gave the green light to tech giant Tencent Holdings to test its self-driving car on some public roads as the country seeks to bolster its position in the global race for autonomous vehicle technology.”

On May 24 Green Car Reports reported: “The Apple car to finally hit the road, only it’s a VW Bus. After years of trials aimed at remaking driving in the mold of the iPhone, Apple is finally building some self-driving electric cars to test on roads in the San Francisco Bay Area-and they’re Volkswagen buses.”

On May 31 Forbes reported, “GM’s self-driving fleet gets $2.25 billion capital infusion from SoftBank ahead of 2019 launch.”

On May 31 Reuters reported, “Mapbox partners with Microsoft (MSFT), Intel (INTC) to provide self-driving car maps.”

Investors may also like to read my articles “Companies to benefit from the future smart car boom”, and “How To Benefit From The Autonomous Vehicles Trend Starting As Soon As 2019.”

Other EV companies

Other EV companies I am following include Chery Automobile Co. Ltd. (private), Didi Chuxing, Faraday Future, Fisker (private), GreenPower Motor Company Inc. [TSXV:GPV] (OTCQX:GPVRF), Groupe PSA (owner of Peugeot), Hyundai (OTC:HYMTF), Honda (HMC, OTCPK:HNDAF), Lamborghini, Lucid Motors (formerly Atieva) (private), Mahindra & Mahindra (OTC:MAHDY), Mazda (OTCPK:MZDAY), Nio (formerly NextEV), Rivian (private), Subaru (OTCPK:FUJHY), WM Motor, Xiaopeng Motors, and Zhi Dou (private).

The list of countries and cities banning (or soon to ban) petrol and diesel vehicles include at least – UK (2040, may soon be changed to 2030), China, Germany, France (2040), Netherlands (2030), London, Paris (2030), Stuttgart, Mexico City, Madrid, and Athens. Added to this are countries pushing hard to become 100% EV – Norway and India.

Investors can also read my latest article “The EV Boom Just Keeps Getting Bigger.”

Conclusion

April 2018 global electric car sales rose an amazing 93% YoY, with China rising an incredible 129%. Electric car market share for April reached 2.2% in Europe, 3.7% in China, and 1.4% in the USA.

My highlights for the month were:

In the EU – “Fuel types of new cars: diesel -17%; petrol +14.6%; electric +47% in first quarter of 2018.”

Bloomberg’s latest forecast – Electric car sales to reach 30m by 2030 (28%), 60m by 2040 (55% market share).

Bloomberg’s latest forecast – Electric car sales forecast to increase 10 fold by 2025, 27 fold by 2030, and 54 fold by 2040.

Bloomberg’s latest forecast – By 2030 electric buses will make up 84% of all new bus sales.

China bans new fossil-fuel vehicle plants probably beginning in 2019.

Honda, Nissan and Toyota will all stop making diesel cars for Europe, and focus on electric instead.

VW has awarded 40 billion euros ($48 billion) in contracts to battery producers.

GM CEO Mary Barra – “General Motors remains steadfast in its vision of an all-electric future. We are well on our way to introducing 20 new all-electric vehicle models globally by 2023.”

What a magnificent May – It does not come much better than that!

As usual, all comments are welcome.

Disclaimer: The information in this article is general in nature and should not be relied upon as personal financial advice.

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[libertyborn-blog]

“Well, you see.. It’s a really long story. Will you help me or not?”

   Cold eyes stared down at the corpse. A smile graced the lips of the soldier, it was as if for a moment he could see the starting of the woman turning her back on America. Just maybe - maybe he could save her from the corruption of America, just maybe. “Yeah, I’ll help you, but you owe me a massive one. Do you understand?” A hand reached down to grab the ankle of the corpse, so that he could slide it into the doorway of his home.

[libertyborn-blog]

@projcctalice

  Ocean colored eyes scanned the corridors that a bright light shined upon, heavy breaths were heard from the agent. Each time he turned a corner his smaller PDW raised the sight to his eye, and each time he checked an area it was as empty as the previous one. Gloved fingers moved to press a black button on his headset, followed soon by the gruff whisper of his voice. “Echo here, section four has been cleared, no signs of infected or hostiles.” His eyes scanned his immediate area, checking the vents just to make sure. “Commander, why exactly are we fuckin’ here?” No answer came except the static of electronics. “Of course, they hear what they want but never answer you. Assholes.” Anderson laughed and checked his magazine. Full fifty rounds, and hopefully he wouldn’t have to waste them anytime soon.