TRATON-Navistar Merger Impacts Engine Development

Chris Fisher
Chris Fisher

In November, Volkswagen’s TRATON group and Navistar announced a merger agreement in which TRATON will acquire all outstanding shares of Navistar.  Previously, TRATON held 16.7% of Navistar’s common shares.  The deal is valued at $3.7 billion and is expected to be finalized in mid-2021.

Navistar has been in collaboration with TRATON’s brand MAN for a number of years, primarily with regard to engine development.  PSR believes additional engine offerings will be one of the primary goals to improve profitability and long-term market share improvement within the class 8 truck segment.

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Navistar Introduces S13 Engine Platform

Chris Fisher
Chris Fisher

Navistar says it plans to introduce the Navistar 12.7 liter S13 engine platform in the fourth quarter of 2023.  The S13 engine is based upon the Scania DC13 engine and will supersede the current 12.4 liter A26 engine platform starting next year.  The initial engine installations will be standard on the LT and RH truck platforms and will be introduced to the HV and HX platforms in 2024.  The order books are expected to open in October.

The S13 engine will be paired with the new International T14 automated manual transmission.  The T14 is a 14 speed AMT which is the first transmission offered by the company.

The current A26 engine platform is based upon the MAN D26 engine platform and will be superseded by the S13 engine over the next few years.  Navistar will continue to source the Cummins engine lineup for the foreseeable future.  According to Navistar, this will be the last engine upgrade for the company as they plan to focus on zero-emission vehicles.  Navistar says that half of all its new vehicles sold by 2030 will be zero-emission; it expects to reach 100% of sales in 2040. PSR

Source: International S13

Chris Fisher is Senior Commercial Vehicle Analyst at Power Systems Research

Volkswagen Truck and Bus and CBMM To Develop Niobium Battery for EV

Volkswagen Truck and Bus, part of the Traton Group, and CBMM, a Brazilian giant of niobium mining, announced an agreement to develop batteries with Niobium for Electric Vehicles. It promises to recharge a Truck Battery in less than 10 minutes and provide a traveling higher range. Volkswagen will start tests in 2022 to develop a functional vehicle with Niobium batteries by the end of 2022.

Source: Revista Oeste     Read The Article

PSR Analysis: Primarily used to improve the strength of high grade steels, Niobium is also used for super conductors and has been tested by CBMM and Toshiba in batteries for three years with positive results. The solution applied for MHV may put Brazil in a strong position in MHV EV segment, since 97% of the Niobium reserves in the world are in Brazil.

Fabio Ferraresi is Director Business Development , South America, for Power Systems Research

Caterpillar and NMG Sign Circular Supply Chain Deal

Nouveau Monde Graphite Inc. (NMG) and Caterpillar Inc. have signed agreements to provide a zero-exhaust emission fleet, supporting infrastructure, and service for NMG’s Matawinie Mine. Caterpillar will supply heavy mining equipment to transition from traditional models to Cat zero-exhaust emission machines.

Additionally, a non-binding memorandum of understanding (MoU) has been signed between the two companies to advance commercial discussions targeting NMG’s active anode material.

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XCMG Group, Toyota Sign Cooperation Pact

CHINA REPORT
Jack Hao
Jack Hao

XCMG Group and Toyota have signed a strategic cooperation agreement in the field of hydrogen energy. The companies will build a complete hydrogen energy machine and core component industry base centered around Xuzhou, which will drive development of the hydrogen energy industry in Xuzhou.

XCMG Group expects this contract to aid both parties to collaborate and innovate in cutting-edge technology research and development applications such as hydrogen vehicles, fuel cells, and core components.

Using hydrogen energy to change the future is the goal of Toyota and XCMG. The foundation for the development of Xuzhou’s green and low-carbon energy industry is solid.

Source: D1CM     Read The Article

PSR Analysis: XCMG Group and Toyota have strong complementary prospects, and huge potential for cooperation and development. Working together, they will accelerate the progress of off-road machinery from traditional fuels to electrification and finally to fuel cells.

Toyota has always been a major supporter of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles as an alternative to electric vehicles. Toyota will focus on selling hydrogen powered trucks and cars in Europe and China. In 2022, Toyota sold over 3,900 fuel cell vehicles, while its global sales are about 9.5 million units.

Toyota hopes to sell 200,000 hydrogen powered vehicles by 2030. The products of XCMG Group include five pillar industries: Construction Machinery, Lifting Machinery, Piling Machinery, Concrete Machinery, and Road Machinery, as well as strategic new industries such as Mining Machinery, Aerial Work Platforms, Environmental Industry, Agricultural Machinery, Port Machinery, and Rescue Support Equipment. It has over 60 enterprises under its jurisdiction, including mainframe, trade services, and new business models. This cooperation could have a major impact on both parties. PSR

Jack Hao is Senior Research Manager – China for Power Systems Research

VW To Inject €2.5 billion into Hefei Base

CHINA REPORT
Jack Hao
Jack Hao

Facing intense competition in China’s new energy vehicle market, Volkswagen has decided to increase investment in its Hefei base. On April 11, Volkswagen announced an additional investment of €2.5 billion in its production and innovation center in Hefei to further strengthen its local R&D capabilities.

It has been reported that this investment will also be used to accelerate the development and production of two Volkswagen brand smart electric vehicle models co-developed with Xiaopeng Motors. Volkswagen revealed that the first model, a mid-size SUV, is planned to enter production in 2026.

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2020, A Year to Forget for MHV; 2021 Is Looking Better

Chris Fisher
Chris Fisher

SUMMARY: In this article we provide a global overview on a regional basis of the medium and heavy commercial vehicle market (GVWR > 6 MT’s) along with current trends and OEM happenings in North America.

NORTH AMERICA. MHCV production in North America is expected to decline by 35% in 2020 compared to 2019.  However, orders for class 8 trucks improved significantly in Q4 2020 as large fleets placed their orders for a 2021 build.  This appears to signal an improvement in demand for 2021 as the market aligns itself with the expected freight level moving forward.  The consumer segment was strong during the last half of the year and the industrial segment is now expected to improve, as well. 

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VW Plans To Add €1 Billion for Electrics

Volkswagen’s commercial vehicle subsidiary Traton says its MAN, Scania and Volkswagen Caminhões e Ônibus (VWCO) brands plans to invest more than one billion euros in e-mobility by 2025.

“Our goal is to become the leading provider of e-trucks and e-buses,” explained Traton CEO Andreas Renschler, mostly through research and development. Traton is developing a common modular electric powertrain to be used by all brands, much like Volkswagen’s MEB platform.

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VW To Build $3 Billion EV Plant in East China

Jack Hao
Jack Hao

VW China has increased its share in the electric vehicle joint venture JAC Volkswagen to 75% and obtained joint venture management rights. At the same time, it has obtained a 26% stake in the EV battery maker Gotion High-Tech to support the future electrification of the group. The total investment of the above two projects is estimated to be about €2 billion.

The plant, which has an estimated investment of US$3.06 billion (20 billion yuan) from both Volkswagen and JAC Motors, will be finished by the end of 2022, and its first vehicle will roll off the assembly line in 2023.

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