CASA GRANDE, AZ—Lucid Motor has completed construction of its new assembly plant here, which it claims is the “first greenfield, dedicated electric vehicle factory to be built in North America.”

TURIN, Italy—The body shop at Fiat’s flagship Mirafiori plant here has started to assemble the company’s first all-electric vehicle with Comau welding robots.

FELLBACH, Germany—Mahle GmbH has opened a new 3 million euro test facility here to develop e-axles and e-drive units for a wide range or electric and hybrid vehicles.

PLYMOUTH, England—This year marks the 400th anniversary of the Mayflower, the ship that transported more than 100 brave souls across the Atlantic Ocean to Cape Cod, MA. To celebrate the historic event, an autonomous research vessel will retrace the voyage in the spring.

DARMSTADT, Germany—Engineers at the Fraunhofer Institute for Structural Durability and System Reliability have developed a lightweight battery pack made out of carbon-fiber composites that weighs 40 percent less than traditional aluminum enclosures.