Electric Vehicle Market News: Hertz Slashes EV Fleet; Siemens Completes Heliox Acquisition

There has been a mix of positive and negative news in the EV market lately, with reports of declining consumer demand intermingled with reports of production increases from some automakers and new acquisitions.
Hertz hit the headlines on Jan. 11 with the news that it was trimming its EV fleet of rental cars by 20,000 and investing the proceeds from the sales of these EVs to buy more gas-powered vehicles. The company moved aggressively into EVs back in 2021 by purchasing 100,000 Tesla Model 3 vehicles. On  CNBC’s Squawk Box, Stephen Scherr, the company’s CEO said the company is not moving totally out of EVs, but needs to watch the higher costs associated with its EV fleet.
In other EV market news, Siemens announced on Jan. 11 that it has completed the acquisition of Heliox, a provider of DC fast charging solutions  for buses and trucks. According to the press release, the acquisition of the Dutch company complements Siemens’ existing e-mobility charging portfolio, adding products and solutions ranging from 40 kilowatts (kW) to megawatt charging solutions for depots and en-route charging.
Siemens CEO of Smart Infrastructure Matthias Rebellius said in the press release that Siemens is seeing “unparalleled growth in the EV charging infrastructure market.”