2024-11-11
The November 2024 issue of the Alternative Power Report published by Power Systems Research includes articles on battery development and discussions on the declining costs of battery power for EVs. Reduced battery costs means reduced costs for EVs, too. An article discusses the outlook for clean energy in the U.S. now that Trump has regained the White House. PSR
Guy Youngs is Forecast and Technology Adoption Lead at Power Systems Research
2024-10-15
There’s plenty of news on battery development of EVs in the October 2024 issue of the Alternative Power Report published by Power Systems Research. You can also read about VW’s plans to restructure its labor force, as well as several articles on hydrogen power. PSR
Guy Youngs is Forecast and Technology Adoption Lead at Power Systems Research
2024-10-12
Ballard Power Systems, a large hydrogen fuel cell making company from Canada, has announced a massive overhaul that will slash its spending by 30%, including huge job cuts
According to Ballard CEO Randy MacEwen, there has been a notable slowing in both the development of clean hydrogen fuel production capacity, and the infrastructure used for the distribution of H2
Source: Hydrogen Fuel News Read The Article
PSR Analysis: Ballard has long been one of the leading Fuel Cell companies globally and the action of cutting costs by 30% and putting its entire China strategy at risk, will echo throughout the fuel cell industry. This is yet another body blow to this industry. PSR
Guy Youngs is Forecast & Adoption Lead at Power Systems Research
2024-09-23
Volvo has announced plans to begin on-road testing of trucks equipped with hydrogen powered internal combustion engines starting in 2026 with the commercial launch planned towards the end of this decade. Trucks that run on green hydrogen provide a significant step for Volvo to achieve its net zero goal and support customers to reach their decarbonization targets.
Trucks that run on green hydrogen instead of fossil fuels provide one way to decarbonize transport. Hydrogen trucks will be especially suitable over longer distances and in regions where there is limited charging infrastructure, or time for, recharging of batteries.
The hydrogen-powered combustion engine trucks will complement Volvo’s offering of other alternatives, such as battery electric trucks, fuel cell electric trucks and trucks that run on renewable fuels, like biogas and HVO (Hydrotreated Vegetable Oil).
I traveled recently in the Toyosu area of Tokyo, an upscale residential area, and while there I stopped at a Hydrogen refueling station. While there, I spoke with one of the station’s staff, and I found his comments interesting.
He told me that the only FCVs on the market in Japan are the Toyota MIRAI sedan and Crown FCEV. Honda used to sell the Clarity FCV, but it has been discontinued and few are seen on the road. There are also no FCVs in trucks. There are about 80 hydrogen buses in Tokyo, but they don’t stop at this station because there is a hydrogen station is in the bus company’s office.
On weekends, maybe four or five cars come to the station each day, but on weekdays there are often days when not even one car comes. It’s very quiet. Filling up with hydrogen requires a person with a national qualification, so it’s not possible to operate it like a self-service gas station.
2024-08-27
A number of people who own and lease the Toyota Mirai hydrogen car have filed a class action lawsuit against the automaker because of their dissatisfaction with the vehicle.
According to the lawsuit, the automaker misled Toyota Mirai customers when it came to the reality of owning the hydrogen powered vehicle. The complaint states that the Japanese company and its sales teams led potential customers of the fuel cell cars to believe that “hydrogen refueling is available, seamless, and comparable to refueling with gasoline.” The complaint also states that this was not the experience of those customers.
2024-08-24
The August issue of PSR’s Alternative Power Report includes several articles on battery development, including ones describing news at Tesla. This month’s report also includes news on hydrogen power and the decline in diesel sales. PSR
Guy Youngs is Forecast and Technology Adoption Lead at Power Systems Research
2024-07-14
Canada is preparing to join the tariff war against Chinese EVs, according to a report in the July 2024 issue of the Alternative Power Report prepared by Power Systems Research. Another article in the report notes that even thought EV sales are lagging, they’re positioned for long-term growth. And there’s plenty of battery news in this report prepared by PSR analyst Guy Youngs. PSR
2024-06-18
RIKEN Center for Sustainable Resource Science (CSRS) researchers in Japan have announced that they may have discovered the secret to being able to produce hydrogen fuel far more cheaply than the currently used methods by using 95% less Iridium.
Iridium is used as a catalyst in the production process of hydrogen, and we would need to allocate over 40 years of Iridium production in order to make the necessary hydrogen. Iridium is one of the rarest elements in Earth’s crust, with estimated annual production of only 15,000 pounds in 2023.
China may place 25% tariffs on EVs in retaliation for similar moves by the US and the European Union. Read about this as well as articles on new battery development, the decline in diesel sales and a new battery from CATL in the June 2024 Alternative Power Report from Power Systems Research. PSR
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