Latest news with #Biden-eraInflationReductionAct
NBC News
2 days ago
- Automotive
- NBC News
EV sales soar as Trump axes $7,500 tax credit: 'People are rushing out' to buy, analyst says
Consumers are racing to buy electric vehicles before a fast-approaching deadline to claim tax credits worth up to $7,500, according to auto analysts. Legislation championed by Republicans on Capitol Hill and signed by President Donald Trump in July eliminates the tax breaks — available for new, used and leased EVs — after Sept. 30. The Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act had originally offered the tax breaks to consumers through 2032. 'We're expecting Q3 may be [a] record for EV sales because of the tax incentives going away,' said Stephanie Valdez Streaty, a senior analyst at Cox Automotive. 'People are rushing out' to buy, she said. 'Significant volume' of EV sales Consumers purchased nearly 130,100 new EVs in July, the second-highest monthly sales tally on record, behind roughly 136,000 sold in December, according to Cox Automotive data. The July figures represent a 26.4% increase from June and nearly 20% increase year-over-year, Streaty said. The share of EV sales in July also accounted for about 9.1% of total sales of passenger vehicles that month, the largest monthly share on record, according to Cox. 'We're seeing significant volume in new EVs,' said Liz Najman, director of market insights at Recurrent, an EV marketplace and data provider. Meanwhile, there were nearly 36,700 used EVs sold in July, a record monthly high, Cox data shows. Specific EV models — the Chevy Equinox EV, Honda Prologue and Hyundai IONIQ 5 — also saw record-breaking sales last month, Najman said. There were 8,500 Equinox EVs sold in July, the highest monthly EV total in the U.S. for any model outside of Tesla, which is the market leader, Najman said. (This comes as Tesla's sales have declined for two consecutive quarters, by about 12% year-over-year in Q2 and 9% in Q1, according to Cox data.) $7,500 tax credit puts EVs near price parity The tax credits — worth up to $7,500 for new EVs and $4,000 for used EVs — aim to make EV purchases more financially enticing for consumers. The EV tax breaks were one of many policies the Biden administration adopted to try try to cut U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. The transportation sector is the largest source of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. EVs are 'unambiguously better' for the environment than traditional cars with an internal combustion engine, according to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. However, while EVs tend to be cheaper over the lifecycle of car ownership relative to traditional gasoline vehicles, they generally carry a higher upfront cost, analysts said. The average transaction price for all new passenger vehicles (aside from battery electric vehicles) in July was $48,078, according to Cox data. The average for new EVs was $55,689, before any dealer incentives and tax credits, Cox said. If the purchase were to qualify for the full $7,500 tax credit, it'd be near price parity, around $48,189. The price gap between EV and gasoline cars 'no longer exists,' Tom Libby, an analyst at S&P Global, wrote in July. The disappearance of the federal tax credits 'jeopardizes' price competitiveness, he wrote. States and utilities may offer additional financial incentives for EVs, depending on where consumers live, analysts said. EV dealers boost incentives Dealers are also seeking to capitalize on the upcoming Sept. 30 deadline, stoking a sense of consumer urgency to boost sales, analysts said. ″$7,500 Federal Tax Credit Ending,' was in bold lettering at the top of Tesla's home page as of early afternoon Friday. 'Limited Inventory — Take Delivery Now,' the automaker wrote underneath. Sept. 30 is the date by which consumers must take ownership of the car (essentially, be driving it off the lot) to qualify for an EV tax credit. Beyond the tax breaks, dealers are also offering relatively generous financial benefits to entice consumers. They provided about $9,800 of additional financial incentives, on average, to new-EV buyers in July, worth about 17.5% of the average transaction price, Cox data shows. That share is the highest percentage dating to October 2017, which was before the 'new era of EV adoption' when monthly sales volume was quite low, Streaty said. EV sales are likely to 'collapse' in the fourth quarter of 2025, once the tax credit expires and the market adjusts to a new financial reality, she said. Used EVs are likely to be a bright spot in the near term, analysts said. Growth has been accelerating, and most buyers today already don't qualify for the $4,000 tax break. ″[A]pproximately one-third of used EVs qualified for the incentive anyway,' Cox Automotive wrote last month. 'With availability growing and incentives for new EVs expected to fall, the used EV market may grow faster in the quarters ahead.'
CNBC
3 days ago
- Automotive
- CNBC
EV sales soar as Trump axes $7,500 tax credit: 'People are rushing out' to buy, analyst says
Consumers are racing to buy electric vehicles before a fast-approaching deadline to claim tax credits worth up to $7,500, according to auto analysts. Legislation championed by Republicans on Capitol Hill and signed by President Donald Trump in July eliminates the tax breaks — available for new, used and leased EVs — after Sept. 30. The Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act had originally offered the tax breaks to consumers through 2032. "We're expecting Q3 may be [a] record for EV sales because of the tax incentives going away," said Stephanie Valdez Streaty, a senior analyst at Cox Automotive. "People are rushing out" to buy, she said. Consumers purchased nearly 130,100 new EVs in July, the second-highest monthly sales tally on record, behind roughly 136,000 sold in December, according to Cox Automotive data. The July figures represent a 26.4% increase from June and nearly 20% increase year-over-year, Streaty said. The share of EV sales in July also accounted for about 9.1% of total sales of passenger vehicles that month, the largest monthly share on record, according to Cox. "We're seeing significant volume in new EVs," said Liz Najman, director of market insights at Recurrent, an EV marketplace and data provider. Meanwhile, there were nearly 36,700 used EVs sold in July, a record monthly high, Cox data shows. Specific EV models — the Chevy Equinox EV, Honda Prologue and Hyundai IONIQ 5 — also saw record-breaking sales last month, Najman said. There were 8,500 Equinox EVs sold in July, the highest monthly EV total in the U.S. for any model outside of Tesla, which is the market leader, Najman said. (This comes as Tesla's sales have declined for two consecutive quarters, by about 12% year-over-year in Q2 and 9% in Q1, according to Cox data.) The tax credits — worth up to $7,500 for new EVs and $4,000 for used EVs — aim to make EV purchases more financially enticing for consumers. The EV tax breaks were one of many policies the Biden administration adopted to try try to cut U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. The transportation sector is the largest source of U.S. greenhouse gas emissions. More from Personal Finance:Trump tariffs make investing 'tricky'Imposter scams cost older adults $700 million in 2024What private assets in 401(k) plans mean for investors EVs are "unambiguously better" for the environment than traditional cars with an internal combustion engine, according to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. However, while EVs tend to be cheaper over the lifecycle of car ownership relative to traditional gasoline vehicles, they generally carry a higher upfront cost, analysts said. The average transaction price for all new passenger vehicles (aside from battery electric vehicles) in July was $48,078, according to Cox data. The average for new EVs was $55,689, before any dealer incentives and tax credits, Cox said. If the purchase were to qualify for the full $7,500 tax credit, it'd be near price parity, around $48,189. The price gap between EV and gasoline cars "no longer exists," Tom Libby, an analyst at S&P Global, wrote in July. The disappearance of the federal tax credits "jeopardizes" price competitiveness, he wrote. States and utilities may offer additional financial incentives for EVs, depending on where consumers live, analysts said. Dealers are also seeking to capitalize on the upcoming Sept. 30 deadline, stoking a sense of consumer urgency to boost sales, analysts said. "$7,500 Federal Tax Credit Ending," was in bold lettering at the top of Tesla's home page as of early afternoon Friday. "Limited Inventory — Take Delivery Now," the automaker wrote underneath. Sept. 30 is the date by which consumers must take ownership of the car (essentially, be driving it off the lot) to qualify for an EV tax credit. Beyond the tax breaks, dealers are also offering relatively generous financial benefits to entice consumers. They provided about $9,800 of additional financial incentives, on average, to new-EV buyers in July, worth about 17.5% of the average transaction price, Cox data shows. That share is the highest percentage dating to October 2017, which was before the "new era of EV adoption" when monthly sales volume was quite low, Streaty said. EV sales are likely to "collapse" in the fourth quarter of 2025, once the tax credit expires and the market adjusts to a new financial reality, she said. Used EVs are likely to be a bright spot in the near term, analysts said. Growth has been accelerating, and most buyers today already don't qualify for the $4,000 tax break. "[A]pproximately one-third of used EVs qualified for the incentive anyway," Cox Automotive wrote last month. "With availability growing and incentives for new EVs expected to fall, the used EV market may grow faster in the quarters ahead."
Yahoo
09-07-2025
- Politics
- Yahoo
Largest federal grant in Mass Audubon history terminated by Trump admin
The largest federal grant in Mass Audubon's 129-year history has been terminated by the Trump administration, leaving uncertain the future of 10,000 acres of forests and wetlands in the Connecticut River Watershed. Mass Audubon, the largest conservation organization in New England, received the $25 million grant from the U.S. Department of Agriculture's Regional Conservation Partnership Program last October — a slice of $1.5 billion in financial commitments to 92 conservation projects around the country. The funding was part of an expansion created by the Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act. According to Politico, many of the termination notifications didn't explain why the grants were cut. A USDA spokesperson told the publication that Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins was returning the Regional Conservation Partnership Program 'to the Farm Bill's established priorities.' The funding would have protected 10,000 acres in the Connecticut River Watershed, according to Mass Audubon, as well as 'fostered partnerships with landowners to restore forest habitat by removing dams, restoring floodplain forests, and engaging in other restorative land management practices.' Read more: 'Small money, huge impact;' We traveled Conn. River to spot hazards of missing buoys 'Terminating grants that conserve our forests, keep working lands working, act as a flood protection buffer for communities, and leverage millions from other funding sources simply makes no sense, and represents a loss for all of us,' David O'Neill, president and CEO of Mass Audubon, said in a statement. The grant also included money that would have assisted in the development of a new measurement and monitoring approach for private landowners to evaluate conservation outcomes — using field measurements, LiDar (light detection and ranging), satellite imaging and AI machine learning to measure and monitor carbon, biodiversity and flood resilience. Mass Audubon had partnered with the Center for Geospatial Solutions at the Lincoln Institute of Land Policy to develop the tool. The $25 million grant featured partnerships with Kestrel Land Trust, Mount Grace Land Conservation Trust, Hilltown Land Trust, East Quabbin Land Trust, Connecticut River Conservancy, Trout Unlimited and the Connecticut River Watershed Partnership. Mass Audubon said it is currently weighing its appeal options with the Trump administration. Springfield joins class action lawsuit against feds over cancelled EPA grant Why a database of bug genes could be one of Trump's most devastating cuts at Harvard How dishwashing plastic containers fuels heart issues and pollution Michigan tribes fight for $23M clawed back by Trump's EPA in DEI purge Read the original article on MassLive.
Yahoo
27-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
'A graveyard of companies': Climate tech startups are feeling the heat from Trump 2.0
Trump's new bill affects tax credits that benefited the clean energy sector and climate startups. It's spooked some climate founders who worked in industries relying on government subsidies. Many are now pivoting to new brands and geographies, and investors expect a reset. The Trump administration's proposed overhaul of green energy tax credits has jolted the climate tech sector — and investors and founders in the ecosystem are scrambling to make fallback plans. Cleantech stocks tumbled in May after a bill cutting tax credits for clean energy incentives passed through the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. Now, founders and investors are concerned about the knock-on impact this could have on the country's climate tech ecosystem, which was burgeoning under the Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act, or IRA. They told Business Insider that Trump's bill has stifled startup growth ambitions, pushing them to scale back, pivot to new geographies, or shut down entirely. "There will be a graveyard of companies," Matthew Nordan, general partner at clean tech fund Azolla Ventures, told BI. "And a lot of startups will hibernate to try to weather the storm." Early-stage startups are already beginning to feel the heat. In April, Spencer Gore, founder and CEO of Bedrock Materials, a sodium-ion battery startup, made an unusual announcement on LinkedIn: the startup would be returning most of its $9 million raised to investors and ceasing operations. The company had plenty of operational cash, but "it was the techno-economics that led us to pull the plug," Gore told BI, adding that the market conditions for climate tech startups in the US were hampered by waning industrial policy. A byproduct of the new tax bill — and growing political backlash against ESG incentives — is that Europe is becoming more attractive for climate techs to set up shop. "There's a dramatic retrenchment to Europe occurring within climate tech startups now. It's broad-based, and the EU is doing the opposite of what the US is doing right now," Nordan told BI. Sam Kanner, the CEO of floating wind turbine startup Aikido, an Azolla portfolio company, told BI he's considering moving his company to Europe. Trump's executive orders have "put a chill on investor sentiment and project development in the US," he said. There are "no longer any grant opportunities" through the Department of Energy or other agencies, he added, which means its "go-to-market strategy is now completely focused on Europe." Matthew Blain, an investor at Voyager Ventures, told BI that startups in the EU could turn to government funding from bodies such as the European Investment Fund, adding that "energy prices make the Nordics very attractive" as a hub. Europe, in particular, has made significant headway in aligning regulatory frameworks with climate targets, which de-risks early-stage tech, said Todd Khozein, the CEO of SecondMuse. Kanner said that the UK, France, and Norway had "enacted supportive policies which have had the opposite effect on investors in those ecosystems", encouraging private equity, infrastructure, and venture investors to back wind projects. Startups are also eager to look beyond Europe for expansion. "Generally speaking, the EU has made itself unattractive from a manufacturing standpoint, by over-relying on Russia. We'd look to Brazil, India, and the Middle East," Max Kufner, the cofounder of carbon capture and utilization startup Again, told BI. "The Middle East is proving to be a viable partner in decarbonization." Right now, "a lot of climate tech entrepreneurs are asking themselves what it means to be an entrepreneur in the United States, and whether this is really the best place to attract and retain talent," Gore said. "What we're seeing right now with startups is similar to the playbook we saw with Trump 1.0. A lot of companies will make a push to rebrand themselves as energy security and resilience funds," Nordan said. The aftermath of a global tech downturn, rising interest rates, and mounting backlash against ESG incentives has made it increasingly difficult for climate tech startups to fundraise. In the first quarter of 2025, climate startups secured $10 billion, down 50% from the $20 billion raised in Q1 of 2024, per PitchBook data. Biden's IRA offered climate companies billions of dollars worth of subsidies, tax credits, and rebates. The Trump administration is now attempting to roll back parts of the $369 billion initiative. "Anything that relied on grants, that came out of the IRA, for first-of-a-kind (FOAK) projects, will be hit the hardest," Nordan said. For example, direct air capture startup Climeworks — which received a $50 million US government grant in 2024 — laid off over 100 employees in May. Its CEO told Bloomberg that the startup's upcoming Louisiana plant would be delayed in light of the Trump administration's green policy decisions. Nordan anticipates more layoffs and shutdowns of companies that were dependent on government grants. Offshore wind and solar projects have also been in Trump's crosshairs. While these aren't usually venture-backed categories, the steep reduction in staff at the Department of Energy's loan program office, which provided debt funding to clean energy startups, will have a more debilitating impact on companies in these sectors, Voyager Ventures' Blain said. Still, investor appetite for nuclear fusion, long-duration energy storage, and startups making data centers more efficient has accelerated, partly due to the AI boom, which requires immense energy. Read the original article on Business Insider
Business Insider
27-06-2025
- Business
- Business Insider
'A graveyard of companies': Climate tech startups are feeling the heat from Trump 2.0
Trump's new bill affects tax credits that benefited the clean energy sector and climate startups. It's spooked some climate founders who worked in industries relying on government subsidies. Many are now pivoting to new brands and geographies, and investors expect a reset. The Trump administration's proposed overhaul of green energy tax credits has jolted the climate tech sector — and investors and founders in the ecosystem are scrambling to make fallback plans. Cleantech stocks tumbled in May after a bill cutting tax credits for clean energy incentives passed through the Republican-controlled House of Representatives. Now, founders and investors are concerned about the knock-on impact this could have on the country's climate tech ecosystem, which was burgeoning under the Biden-era Inflation Reduction Act, or IRA. They told Business Insider that Trump's bill has stifled startup growth ambitions, pushing them to scale back, pivot to new geographies, or shut down entirely. "There will be a graveyard of companies," Matthew Nordan, managing partner at clean tech fund Azolla Ventures, told BI. "And a lot of startups will hibernate to try to weather the storm." Early-stage startups are already beginning to feel the heat. In April, Spencer Gore, founder and CEO of Bedrock Materials, a sodium-ion battery startup, made an unusual announcement on LinkedIn: the startup would be returning most of its $9 million raised to investors and ceasing operations. The company had plenty of operational cash, but "it was the techno-economics that led us to pull the plug," Gore told BI, adding that the market conditions for climate tech startups in the US were hampered by waning industrial policy. Startups are pivoting and eyeing new geographies A byproduct of the new tax bill — and growing political backlash against ESG incentives — is that Europe is becoming more attractive for climate techs to set up shop. "There's a dramatic retrenchment to Europe occurring within climate tech startups now. It's broad-based, and the EU is doing the opposite of what the US is doing right now," Nordan told BI. Sam Kanner, the CEO of floating wind turbine startup Aikido, an Azolla portfolio company, told BI he's considering moving his company to Europe. Trump's executive orders have "put a chill on investor sentiment and project development in the US," he said. There are "no longer any grant opportunities" through the Department of Energy or other agencies, he added, which means its "go-to-market strategy is now completely focused on Europe." Blain said that startups in the EU could turn to government funding from bodies such as the European Investment Fund, adding that "energy prices make the Nordics very attractive" as a hub. Europe, in particular, has made significant headway in aligning regulatory frameworks with climate targets, which de-risks early-stage tech, said Todd Khozein, CEO of SecondMuse. Kanner said that the UK, France, and Norway had "enacted supportive policies which have had the opposite effect on investors in those ecosystems", encouraging private equity, infrastructure, and venture investors to back wind projects. Startups are also eager to look beyond Europe for expansion. "Generally speaking, the EU has made itself unattractive from a manufacturing standpoint, by over-relying on Russia. We'd look to Brazil, India, and the Middle East," Max Kufner, cofounder of carbon capture and utilization startup Again, told BI. "The Middle East is proving to be a viable partner in decarbonization." Right now, "a lot of climate tech entrepreneurs are asking themselves what it means to be an entrepreneur in the United States, and whether this is really the best place to attract and retain talent," Gore said. "What we're seeing right now with startups is similar to the playbook we saw with Trump 1.0. A lot of companies will make a push to rebrand themselves as energy security and resilience funds," Nordan said. Climate tech startups have had a rocky year The aftermath of a global tech downturn, rising interest rates, and mounting backlash against ESG incentives has made it increasingly difficult for climate tech startups to fundraise. In the first quarter of 2025, climate startups secured $10 billion, down 50% from the $20 billion raised in Q1 of 2024, per PitchBook data. Biden's IRA offered climate companies billions of dollars worth of subsidies, tax credits, and rebates. The Trump administration is now attempting to roll back parts of the $369 billion initiative. "Anything that relied on grants, that came out of the IRA, for first-of-a-kind (FOAK) projects, will be hit the hardest," Nordan said. For example, direct air capture startup Climeworks — which received a $50 million US government grant in 2024 — laid off over 100 employees in May. Its CEO told Bloomberg that the startup's upcoming Louisiana plant would be delayed in light of the Trump administration's green policy decisions. Nordan anticipates more layoffs and shutdowns of companies that were dependent on government grants. Offshore wind and solar projects have also been in Trump's crosshairs. While these aren't usually venture-backed categories, the steep reduction in staff at the Department of Energy's loan program office, which provided debt funding to clean energy startups, will have a more debilitating impact on companies in these sectors, Matthew Blain, an investor at Voyager Ventures, told BI. Still, investor appetite for nuclear fusion, long-duration energy storage, and startups making data centers more efficient has accelerated, partly due to the AI boom, which requires immense energy.
