Carmakers plan $515 billion EV investment
The drive towards electric vehicles is gaining speed.
A Reuters analysis has found global automakers now plan to spend more than half a trillion dollars on EVs and batteries through 2030.
That is up from an estimate of $300 billion just three years ago.
It comes as the industry faces political pressure to phase out fossil-fuel vehicles.
A number of countries - from Sweden to Singapore - have said they will ban sales of new combustion engine vehicles by 2030.
In the U.S. President Joe Biden wants up to 50% of sales to be electric by 2030.
Tesla is one company leading the race.
Elon Musk's company plans to build new multibillion-dollar 'gigafactories' in Germany and Texas to raise production capacity.
Germany's Volkswagen leads the rest of the industry.
It has committed to spend more than $110 billion on EV and battery development through 2030.
VW's spending would make up more than a fifth of the industry total.
Other major global carmakers have similar plans to invest big.
General Motors and Ford expect to spend nearly $60 billion through 2025.
Some industry executives and forecasters have concerns, though.
They believe there needs to be more spending on charging infrastructure and grid capacity.
Without that, they argue customer demand for EVs may not keep pace with investment.
