North Carolina Electric Cooperatives and WeaveGrid Launch EVConnectNC
North Carolina’s electric cooperatives have partnered with grid-edge software provider WeaveGrid to introduce EVConnectNC, an automated load management program meant to balance distribution capacity against rising electric vehicle adoption. State EV registrations climbed 570 percent from 2021 to 2026, reaching 581 EVs per 10,000 residents. The software draws on connected-vehicle and Level 2 smart charger telematics to schedule and shift charging into off-peak periods, easing localized transformer and feeder constraints across suburban and rural member territories.
The program is operating at its first two member cooperatives, Roanoke Electric Cooperative and South River EMC. It runs on WeaveGrid’s Distribution-Integrated System Capacity Orchestration architecture, known as DISCO, which provides device-level visibility and automated locational dispatch without dedicated utility sub-metering. Members can earn up to $120 a year in incentives by logging at least 200 kWh of charging a month, with at least 90 percent of it taking place during designated off-peak hours.
EVConnectNC supports embedded telematics in Tesla, Toyota, Lexus, Alfa Romeo, Dodge and Jeep models, along with networked Level 2 hardware from ChargePoint, Emporia and Wallbox. The aggregated data gives utility operations a view of localized energy demand that informs long-term grid planning, while drivers retain the ability to override scheduled charging.
Volkswagen Recalls 22,524 ID.4 Vehicles Over Battery Fire Risk
Volkswagen Group of America has recalled 22,524 ID.4 electric vehicles from the 2023 through 2026 model years over a potential high-voltage battery failure that can result in a fire. The electrical system defect, filed under NHTSA campaign number 26V630000 and Volkswagen recall code 93EX, raises the risk of occupant injury and property damage.
A permanent remedy is still under development. In the meantime, Volkswagen advises owners to limit high-voltage battery charging to a maximum of 80 percent of capacity. Affected vehicle identification numbers became searchable on NHTSA.gov on October 6, 2026, and interim owner notifications are scheduled to begin on November 27, 2026.
PACT Showcases Thermal Runaway Containment at The Battery Show
Battery fire risk was also a focus in Detroit, where Packaging and Crating Technologies presented its passive and active fire-suppression portfolio at The Battery Show. The Connecticut-based manufacturer is targeting thermal runaway across electric vehicle, micromobility, aerospace and defense applications, and highlighted its PACT Thermo Shield paper-based substrate, the TR Sleeve cell-level containment barrier and the Lion-X aerosol extinguishing agent. The system is designed to stop cell-to-cell thermal propagation and to limit venting, particulate release and secondary explosions without requiring volumetric expansion inside modular pack designs.
According to the company, the core technology relies on an endothermic reaction triggered at 200°F (93°C), in which chemical ink layers on a paper wrap release vapor when a cell vents. The non-toxic vapor forms a protective char barrier that restricts oxygen and caps internal cell temperatures below 780°C. By holding temperatures under the 820°C boundary, the company says, the substrate prevents the formation of volatile chlorine carbides and corrosive acid off-gassing, and it is described as meeting Transport Canada safety benchmarks and proposed SAE-G-27 containment standards.
The TR Sleeve, built for cylindrical and prismatic cells, adds 0.009 inches to individual cell diameters and is positioned as a replacement for conventional epoxy potting compounds, aerogels and mechanical separators. PACT says the smaller gaps between cells raise volumetric energy density in EV, e-bus and light electric vehicle packs, and that avoiding solid resin helps keep end-of-life disassembly and hydrometallurgical recycling clean.
BMW Group, IONNA and Alpitronic Validate 460 kW Charging on the iX5 60 xDrive
On the charging side, BMW Group, charging joint venture IONNA and DC fast-charging manufacturer Alpitronic demonstrated throughput of up to 460 kW on the new BMW iX5 60 xDrive during an industry trial in Southern California. The vehicle introduces BMW’s Gen6 eDrive powertrain on an 800-volt architecture, moving from Gen5 prismatic cells to cylindrical cells that deliver a 20 percent gain in volumetric energy density, and it includes integrated bidirectional charging.
Connected to Alpitronic’s high-power hardware, the 144 kWh net traction pack charged from 10 to 80 percent state of charge in 23 minutes and recovered an estimated 182 miles of EPA range in 10 minutes. The 460 kW output reflects an advanced technology demonstration rather than commercially deployed North American hardware, but the companies said the trial validates interoperability standards, thermal tolerance at high charge rates and platform readiness ahead of the model’s market rollout.
Rivian Takes Second Place in US EV Sales as the Market Contracts
Rivian delivered an estimated 19,239 electric vehicles in the United States in the third quarter of 2026, moving from sixth place in the prior quarter to second behind Tesla, according to revised industry data published by Cox Automotive and Kelley Blue Book. The total is a 45.7 percent increase from a year earlier. The broader domestic EV market moved the other way, contracting 38.6 percent year over year to 266,713 units following the phase-out of federal incentives. Rivian’s deliveries through September reached 41,009 units, a 26.8 percent gain over the first nine months of 2025.
The revised figures put Rivian roughly 6,300 units ahead of Toyota, which sold 12,904. Cadillac followed with 12,358, Hyundai with 12,185 and Chevrolet with 10,031, down from 14,908 in the second quarter, when Chevrolet led the non-Tesla field. Product and fleet mix shaped Rivian’s quarter: the first full quarter of the midsize R2 accounted for 3,456 deliveries, while the R1S and R1T contributed 5,582 and 1,732 units. Commercial demand for the Electric Delivery Van supplied the remaining 8,469 units, and Rivian’s share of the domestic EV market rose to approximately 7.2 percent.
Toyota Demonstrates Eight-Minute Hydrogen Truck Refueling Under SAE J2601-5
Toyota Motor North America and the U.S. Department of Energy’s National Laboratory of the Rockies have validated high-flow 70 MPa hydrogen refueling protocols that can fill Class 8 fuel cell electric trucks in roughly eight minutes. The testing, conducted at the laboratory’s facility in Golden, Colorado, under the SAE J2601-5 standard, reached mass flow rates of 300 grams per second and delivered up to 450 miles of operating range, at an energy transfer rate equivalent to a 20 MW direct-current fast charger. The result matches typical diesel fueling times, addressing duty-cycle constraints ahead of planned commercial fleet deployments in 2027.
To support freight corridors between the Port of Los Angeles and Inland Empire logistics hubs, Toyota has placed two mobile hydrogen refueling units at its North American Parts Center California in Ontario. They will serve drayage operations run with Hyroad Energy before the program scales to trucks using Toyota’s certified fuel cell powertrains. Toyota also plans to upgrade the private high-flow station at its Hydrogen Headquarters in Gardena and to build a permanent, dual-pressure public station at the Ontario site, with dedicated 70 MPa high-flow dispensers for heavy-duty haulers alongside lanes for light-duty passenger vehicles.