Recharge Wrap-up: Former Tesla VP heads to Proterra, CA issues Valeo and Wheego autonomous testing permits

Josh Ensign, former Tesla VP of Manufacturing, has been hired to electric bus maker Proterra as Chief Operating Officer. Ensign left Tesla after a period of difficulty with Model X production, and joins another former Tesla executive at Proterra, CEO Ryan Popple. "Keeping pace with mounting customer demand is a tall order, but we are confident in Ensign's ability to lead Proterra's operations through this high-growth period," says Popple. "We are very pleased to have him at the helm of Catalyst vehicle production. His operational expertise is exactly what Proterra needs to bring the Catalyst mainstream and to maintain our pursuit of a clean, diesel-free future." Read more at Electrek, or in the press release from Proterra.

Renault could bring a cheap EV to China soon. Renault-Nissan CEO Carlos Ghosn has indicated that affordability is the key to EV adoption in the Chinese market, and Renault engineer Gérard Detourbet has been spending much of his time there. Detourbet recently brought a popular, affordable car – the Renault Kwid – to market in India, and is thought to be bringing his low-complexity-equals-low-cost formula to EV manufacturing in Donfeng Renault's Wuhan plant. Read more at Hybrid Cars.

California has issued self-driving vehicle testing permits to Valeo and Wheego. The permit allows a company to test an autonomous vehicle without a driver, steering wheel, brake pedal, or accelerator at specific, private business parks at speeds of up to 35 mph. Parts supplier Valeo has previously tested its Cruise4U autonomous test car in Paris. Wheego and Valeo bring the number of autonomous test permits in California up to 17. Read more at Hybrid Cars.