Why you Need to Watch out for this new EV Player in 2021

The following post was written and/or published as a collaboration between Benzinga’s in-house sponsored content team and a financial partner of Benzinga.

President Joe Biden’s $2.3 trillion infrastructure proposal is packed with an ambitious green agenda for the U.S.

Included in the plan is $620 billion in transportation spending with $174 billion invested in the electric vehicle (EV) market. The plan will enable automakers to spur domestic supply chains from raw materials to parts, retool factories and give consumers point-of-sale rebates and tax incentives to buy affordable American-made EVs.

Moreover, it will establish grant and incentive programs for state and local governments and the private sector to build a national network of 500,000 EV chargers by 2030.

Traditional automakers including Ford F, General Motors GM and Nikola NKLA are competing with tech companies such as Amazon AMZN, Google’s parent Alphabet GOOGL, Intel Corporation INTC and Nvidia Corporation NVDA to get a piece of the EV pie.

Recently, reports about Apple AAPL joining the EV bandwagon have surfaced. According to The Korea Times, Apple is close to signing an agreement with LG Magna e-Powertrain (KRX: 066570). If the agreement with LG Magna is reached, the two parties will then jointly establish the precise details for the production of the Apple car, and a prototype might be teased in early 2024.

One company that stands to benefit from this spectacularly is Worksport WKSP.

Disruptive Innovation

Founded in 2011, Worksport is a globally recognized designer and producer of tonneau or truck bed covers. The Canadian-based company is a disruptive innovator with its mobile solar technology — the TerraVis™.

The technology provides solar power to over 50 million light trucks on the roads today and is a key source of clean energy to recharge upcoming EV trucks. The TerraVis™ can provide up to 30% or more of the power needed for the average daily commute. 

The TerraVis™ system is a first-of-its-kind mobile solar power generation system. It can generate up to 1kWh of mobile power off-grid. The TerraVis™ Cor battery system takes power from the cover and stores it in modular battery packs — storing 1.5 kWh of energy in up to 4 batteries that can be transported in the truck bed using the mounting system.

The TerraVis Cor can also act as a standalone consumer product — making it available for purchase even if you’re not a truck owner. The system will allow the same level of freedom from a power grid, being chargeable via any wall outlet, solar panel or 12V power source.

Early Mover Advantage

Worksport will leverage the TerraVis™ system and its position as a Tier 1 original equipment manufacturer (OEM) to secure future partnerships and distribution of its conventional truck bed tonneau covers. 

The company has already forged OEM supply partnerships with 2 EV truck nameplates — one of which is in partnership with Nissan NSANY

Apart from the tonneau cover market, Worksport finds itself in the pickup specialty equipment market — $12 billion as a whole — with the EV market ($162 billion) and the battery storage system market ($2.9 billion).

Worksport is now in an enviable position as it stands to support a plethora of EV giants and traditional automotive makers that are committing to electrification.

Recent Developments

• On June 1, 2021, Worksport forged a working relationship with Ontario Tech University (OTU) that will start as a 2-year contract. With this partnership, the company will get access to the world-class ACE Testing facility, collaborating with the research team that is supervised by Professor Sheldon Williamson, Ph.D.
• Worksport plans to finish prototyping the TerraVis solar truck bed cover system by the end of Q3 2021. OTU and Worksport will complete validation and fine-tuning for TerraVis pre-launch in Q4 2021, and accelerate toward full manufacturing in 2022.
• TerraVis Cor™ has entered the production prototype phase with the first pre-production prototype expected to be ready by early Q3 2021. The prototype system(s) will be fully operational and is expected to mirror the commercial model available at the turn of 2022.
• On May 27, 2021, Worksport decided to take advantage of its recent opportunities in raising capital to onboard several new hires: 2 full-time industrial engineers, 1 industrial designer with specialties in 3D modeling and interactive preparation, and 2 advisory engineers.
• Worksport currently has $10 million in cash and cash equivalents with no long-term debt.

To learn more about Worksport, you can visit its website here.

Worksport is a partner of Benzinga. The information in this article does not represent the investment advice of Benzinga or its writers.

The preceding post was written and/or published as a collaboration between Benzinga’s in-house sponsored content team and a financial partner of Benzinga. Although the piece is not and should not be construed as editorial content, the sponsored content team works to ensure that any and all information contained within is true and accurate to the best of their knowledge and research. This content is for informational purposes only and not intended to be investing advice.