Bloomberg The landlords of as many as 40 Travelodge hotels are planning to replace them with a serviced apartment operator following a bitter row with the budget hotel chain over rent cuts, according to the Daily Telegraph. Various unnamed landlords are in discussions with Room2, which wants to launch a low-cost version of its “hometel” concept, which combines serviced apartments …

Bloomberg Cars aren’t going away any time soon. So the ultimate green move will be combining two emerging technologies: autonomous driving and fully electric cars. Autonomy brings efficiency in driving and battery use, while electric cars drastically cut emissions, fuel costs and maintenance. Even so, a rift has developed within the automobile industry about the best way to move forward. …

Bloomberg Tesla Inc.’s promotion of its driver-assistance system Autopilot is under scrutiny in Germany, where a court is scheduled to rule next week on whether the carmaker is misleading consumers. The maker of the Model 3 sedan says that Tesla vehicles have full potential for autonomous driving. The company also has promoted its cars as having the ability to perform …

Bloomberg Amazon.com’s plan for a fleet of 3,236 communications satellites won the backing of the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC) chairman, who said he had asked fellow commissioners to approve the venture. “Satellite constellations like this aim to provide high-speed broadband service to consumers in the US and around the world,” Ajit Pai said in a tweet. Pai added that …

Bloomberg Google has won a multi-year deal to store Renault SA’s manufacturing data, marking the US tech company’s first major industrial cloud deal in France. The Alphabet Inc. unit will gather data from Renault factories, robots and supply chains, the companies said. Google called the contract the largest of its kind globally, though both businesses declined to comment on how …

Bloomberg Daimler AG plans to sell its factory in Hambach, France, as the maker of Mercedes-Benz cars pursues deeper-than-expected restructuring to overcome the fallout of coronavirus pandemic. The move to unload the home of the Smart two-seater will result in a negative one-time effect of roughly $562 million in the second quarter, Daimler said. It doesn’t expect an impact on …

Bloomberg Oil traded near $41 a barrel in New York as coronavirus cases continued to surge globally, casting doubt over the market’s rebounding consumption. US crude traded lower, while Brent edged higher. Goldman Sachs recommended buying global benchmark futures over WTI as American inventories grow. US crude stockpiles rose last week, according to government data, but gasoline demand recovered to …

Bloomberg India is considering a plan to raise as much as 200 billion rupees ($2.7 billion) by selling stake in the world’s largest coal producer, and a bank to fund a stimulus program aimed at boosting the virus-battered economy, officials with knowledge of the matter said. The proposal involves a share sale depending on market sentiment, said the officials, who …

Bloomberg As the European Union launches a new push to make hydrogen one of the clean fuels of the future, two French industrial giants say they’ve found the right project to rapidly scale up the nascent industry. Engie SA and Air Liquide SA want to build solar farms big enough to power 450,000 homes in France’s sun-drenched Provence region, with …

Bloomberg The Japanese government was expected to finalise a policy review on Thursday that sustains some support for new overseas coal-power projects, according to people with knowledge of the situation. In a concession to climate-change concerns, the new policy will include for the first time a requirement that recipient countries commit to long-term “decarbonisation” plans, according to the people, who …