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Southeast Asia’s infrastructure development has begun to stall. China, which has been supporting the project, has been unable to proceed with its Belt and Road initiative for a broad economic zone due to restrictions on movement caused by the new coronavirus.
Akihito Komuro
Southeast Asian countries also are prioritizing infection control and curbing the funds and human resources they invest in development. A major delay in the construction of infrastructure, which is the foundation of growth, could force foreign investors to reconsider their investment plans.
In Indonesia, work on a high-speed railway (about 140 kilometers) linking the capital Jakarta with the major city of Bandung was recently halted. The project is financed by a Chinese bank, and the state-owned company is involved in the construction. The opening is expected to be postponed from the scheduled 2021.
According to the Hyundai Motor Group, both Hyundai and Kia plan to offer 44 eco-car models by 2025, more than half of which will be dedicated to EVs (23 models).
Akihito Komuro
Hyundai revealed in its 2025 strategy announced at the end of last year that it would increase EV and FCV sales to 560,000 and 110,000 units respectively. Kia has set a goal of selling 500,000 EVs and 1 million eco-cars by 2026, with 11 EV models available across all vehicle classes by 2025.
PSR Analysis: At present, both vehicle production and exports fell significantly in April due to the impact of COVID-19. In April, production fell 22.2% YOY and exports fell 44.3% YOY. But when we look at eco-cars, exports and domestic sales increased by 11.5% and 28.3% respectively.
Even during the predicament caused by the new coronavirus, the eco-car ratio is showing an increasing trend. Exports of EVs jumped 94.6% to a record 9,761 units. Of course, the entire South Korean auto industry is badly hurt by the ongoing corona shock.
However, even against this huge drop, Korean-branded eco-cars, including EVs, may be beginning to gain international recognition. Growth in external demand for these eco-cars will be a prerequisite for the recovery of Korean automobile production in the future. PSR
Akihiro Komuro is a Research Analyst, Far East and Southeast Asia, for Power Systems Research
The development of fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) that use hydrogen as a fuel for heavy-duty trucks is accelerating. Since the start of 2020, major manufacturers such as Hino, Isuzu, and Daimler have been announcing cooperation with other companies one after another.
Akihito Komuro
In April, Daimler and Volvo announced that they would establish a 50-50 joint venture to develop and mass produce fuel cell heavy-duty trucks.
Due to the spread of COVID-19, Japanese automobile OEMs have stopped production in Indonesia. Isuzu stopped operating its plants April 1, and Honda and Suzuki stopped April 13.
Doosan Infracore announced on March 24 that “the share of product marketing and customer support using live content broadcasting on SNS is growing in China.” The company has conducted more than 20 live machine maintenance training sessions through SNS, and the total number of users has reached about 7,300, with 140,000 followers on WeChat.
More than 1,200 machines were sold through such online marketing, and the sales of parts sold on WeChat reached 10 billion won.
Japanese OEMs are struggling to adapt to the COVID-19 problem. Plants are being temporarily shut down and production adjustments are being made.
Akihiro Komuro
While domestic plants are generally operating quietly, overseas bases are being affected in various ways, depending on the country. Here is a summary of announcements by the major companies.
April 17, 2020–Taiwan reported no new coronavirus cases on April 14, 2020, marking the first-time authorities there have reported zero new cases in more than a month. It’s also the latest achievement for a health system that first acted to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in December.
Erik Martin
With a population of around 23 million, Taiwan has only 393 confirmed COVID-19 cases; six people have died from the disease. The last time Taiwan’s Central Epidemic Command Center announced no new cases was on March 9 – 36 days ago.
ST. PAUL, MN–A team of international analysts from Power Systems Research (PSR) analyzed the impact of COVID-19 on the global production of Off-Highway Equipment and MH-Duty Vehicles in several regions today.
The team examined the impact of the coronavirus in North America, Europe, Asia, India, and South America for the remainder of 2020 and into Q1 2021. Download your copy of the presentation here.
At Power Systems Research our business is based on being informed: Globally, and in several important industry segments.
Even as the coronavirus affects markets and industries and companies worldwide, we’re continuing to work effectively for our clients. We’re adjusting our operations hourly to meet the changing needs caused by coronavirus. Our IT staff has adapted PSR systems so our analysts around the world can work at home and communicate easily and effectively with each other and with the home office.
This article appeared in the March 2020 issue of PowerTALK™ News
March 23, 2020–Komatsu has launched the SMARTCONSTRUCTION Retrofit kit, the add-on kit to offer ICT capabilities, such as 3D machine guidance and payload measurement, to conventional construction equipment in Japan in late April through LANDLOG Ltd.
Akihito Komuro
Conventional construction equipment with no ICT capabilities
account for over 98% of all construction equipment working on construction
sites in Japan. When the SMARTCONSTRUCTION Retrofit kit is added to
conventional equipment, it will enable the equipment to use ICT functions, such
as 3D machine guidance and payload measurement, about on par with ICT-intensive
equipment.
