Learn more about the latest in new battery technology and discover the next generation in battery and energy storage with expert analysis by Power Systems Research analysts.
Toyota Motor Corporation has announced that it will invest 1.5 trillion yen in automotive batteries by 2030. Of this amount, 1 trillion yen will be used to increase the production capacity to 200 GWh, 33 times the current level. This is an increase of more than 10% over the previous target.
The company also announced that it will invest 500 billion yen in research and development, with the goal of reducing the cost of batteries per electric vehicle by more than half. As demand for electric vehicles is sure to grow, the battle for leadership among manufacturers will intensify.
Toyota’s investment in batteries was 80 billion yen in the fiscal year ended March 31, 2021, and it is calculated to continue to exceed 100 billion yen per year until 2030. The total amount of capital investment is expected to be 1.35 trillion yen in the fiscal year ending March 2022, of which more than 10% will be allocated to batteries.
Automaker VinFast is partnering with China’s Gotion High-Tech to research and produce batteries for electric vehicles as part of its vision to become a global brand.
According to a statement released by Vingroup, VinFast’s parent company, the two companies are planning to build Vietnam’s first lithium iron phosphate (LFP) battery plant. LFP is an iron-based battery that does not rely on rare raw materials such as cobalt or nickel. That makes LFP batteries much cheaper, although they have lower energy density than nickel-based chemistries.
According to Vingroup, Gotion is the leading manufacturer of LFP batteries in China, with eight research and development centers worldwide and 10 manufacturing facilities in China. Thai Thi Thanh Hai, vice chairman of Vingroup, said the partnership is key to VinFast’s ability to achieve supply chain autonomy.
The way we deliver products from point A to point B is changing. This transformation is creating new partnerships, with implications affecting more than just the transportation industry.
Our team at Power Systems Research provides market intelligence to companies working in and around transportation and mobility functions.
Ford Motor Company, Argo AI, and Walmart are working together to launch an autonomous vehicle delivery service in Miami, Austin, Texas, and Washington, D.C. — Walmart’s first multi-city autonomous delivery collaboration in the U.S. The last-mile delivery service will use Ford self-driving test vehicles equipped with the Argo AI Self-Driving System to deliver Walmart orders.
The collaboration brings together a self-driving technology provider with an automotive manufacturer able to integrate that technology with vehicles at scale, plus the world’s largest retailer.
Hyundai Motor and LG Chem have announced they will build a battery plant for EVs in Indonesia. The investment of $1.1 billion will be shared equally. The plant will mass produce batteries in Indonesia, which has the world’s largest reserves of nickel, and supply them to Hyundai Motor and Kia’s complete vehicle plants around the world. The new plant will be established on a 330,000 square meter site in an industrial park in the Karawang region, about 65 kilometers southeast of central Jakarta. Construction will begin by the end of this year and mass production will begin in 2024.
The plant will have an annual production capacity of 10 gigawatt-hours, enough to supply batteries for 150,000 EVs. Hyundai and Kia have a plan to launch a total of 23 new EV models in the next five years. In order to expand the range to include sedans, SUVs, and the Genesis luxury brand, stable procurement of batteries, a key component, has been an issue. The company’s first joint venture plant will lead to a long-term shift to EVs.
The amendments to the FAME-II electric vehicle policy were rolled out in the last month and manufacturers have lauded the efforts in adopting EV mobility in the country.
The government partially modified the Faster Adoption and Manufacturing of Electric Vehicles in India Phase II. Further, it has included an additional demand incentive for electric two-wheelers to ₹15,000 per KWh from an earlier uniform subsidy of ₹10,000 per KWh for all EVs, including plug-in hybrids and strong hybrids except buses.
This decision will increase subsidies for such vehicles by 50% under the FAME II scheme and be a game-changer in adopting EVs.
South Korean automotive battery giants are moving into the U.S. market, with SK Innovation teaming up with Ford and LG Chemical with GM to promote the construction of an automotive battery plant. SK plans to invest about 300 billion yen in the plant to produce 22 gigawatt-hours of automotive batteries, enough to power 220,000 EVs a year, and in a joint venture with Ford, the two companies will invest 600 billion yen to build a giant 60-gigawatt plant.
SK’s annual production capacity as of 2019 is only 5 gigabytes at its Korean plant. The capacity is expected to increase to 30 gigawatts in 2020 with the launch of plants in China and Hungary, to 85 gigawatts in 2023 with the addition of the US plant, and to exceed 185 gigawatts in 2025 with the addition of the joint venture with Ford. SK, a late entrant to the market, ranks sixth with a 5% share of the global market in 2020.
TAIPEI–The acquisition of a 60.5% stake in ENGIE EPS by Taiwan Cement Corporation (TCC) was finalized and completed in July.
The deal, which was announced in April, saw the Italy-headquartered stationary storage and e-mobility solutions subsidiary of French multinational Engie taken over by TCC subsidiary Taiwan Cement Europe Holdings.
What both parties get out of the deal
In a press release, TCC said it has now become a “major player” in electric vehicle charging infrastructure as well as its newly acquired capabilities in building large-scale battery storage systems and microgrids.
TAIPEI. As electric vehicle (EV) development becomes a global effort, batteries that play a vital role to EVs’ cost-performance ratios are a focus to manufacturers with ambitions to expand in the EV market…
Taiwan’s battery industry may not be backed by well-known brands and abundant natural resources. Nevertheless, a large part of Taiwan-based battery suppliers have been assembling battery modules for Taiwan’s ICT industry. For example, Simplo, Dynapack and Celxpert with a long-term focus on manufacturing battery modules for consumer electronics such as notebook only started to set foot in EV battery solutions in recent years…
The Mayor of Rio de Janeiro has announced a package of alternative power measures and goals with two important milestones for 2030 and 2050. Here are the main goals affecting the mobility and transportation industry:
2030
Replace 20% of Public Service of Bus Transportation by Zero Emission Vehicles.
Reduce by 10% the average time of commuting by public transportation.
Increase by 400% the number of trips by bicycle.
Reduce by 20% the emission of GHG.
Reach 100% of city regions with selective refuse collection.
We have heard during the past few years that battery electric commercial trucks will ultimately replace the diesel-powered internal combustion engine for commercial trucks. At some point in the future this might be true for short and regional haul freight carriers, but what about the long-haul heavy truck segment?
Currently, the lack of charging infrastructure, range anxiety and the extreme weights associated with the batteries will be a significant deterrent to mass adoption of long-haul battery electric trucks.
