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Brazil To Become Hub for EV Bus Chassis Production
BRAZIL/SOUTH AMERICA REPORT
Fabio Ferraresi Mercedes is exhibiting its electric bus chassis eO500U at Busworld in Brussels targeting other markets where the body is assembled over the bus chassis. Traditionally, the exports of Mercedes from Brazil are over 50% of the total production and it targets to expand this percentage with the new BEV, that has WEG drives, BorgWarner batteries assembled in Brazil with imported battery supplies.
Source: Valor Economico Read The Ar…
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Higer Azure Electric Bus Debuts in São Paulo
The Azure A12 BR electric bus, from China’s TEVX Higer, has started operating in the South Zone of São Paulo. The vehicle has been put into use by Transwolff. According to the company, the 12-meter-long vehicle was made especially for the Brazilian market. It has a low floor and a suspension “kneeling” system. This feature provides more safety, comfort, and ease when boarding and disembarking passengers.
The bus has wide aisles and an access ramp at the central door. Thus, there is more accessibility for people with special needs related to reduced mobility.
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Brazil’s School Bus Program Postponed
Initially scheduled to begin Sept. 12, 2023, the auction of the federal program “Caminhos da Escola” was postponed indefinitely. A new date has not been set. The new stage, which provides for the purchase of 163,000 buses was eagerly awaited by chassis and body manufacturers, would have been delayed until 2024 because of the time needed for the production.
The reason is technical: according to the bidding notice published at the end of last month, important chassis manufacturers as Volvo and Merecedes would be excluded from the bidding process due to new certification demanded.
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The Hydrogen Stream: Hydrogen Buses Less Efficient than Battery Models
Eurac Research scientists have analyzed data from 21 fuel cell electric buses (FCEB) and battery electric buses (BEB) in Italy, comparing efficiency, consumption, temperature sensitivity, distances, and cost, and they discovered that Hydrogen buses’ tank-to-wheel (TTW) efficiency is lower than battery electric buses, indicating higher consumption variation for BEBs.
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Daimler’s RIZON Electric Truck Feels like Driving a Car
Daimler recently launched a class 4-5 medium-duty electric truck brand, RIZON, and Electrek got a chance to kick the tires and drive one around. They were impressed at how well it drives (for an 18k GVWR vehicle) and how comfortable it feels like it would be on long shifts.
Rizon is a new brand from Daimler Trucks focusing entirely on zero-emissions in the class 4-5 space. Trucks of this size don’t require commercial driver’s licenses, and you’re more likely to see them around your neighborhood, doing local delivery tasks, equipment rentals, moving businesses, and the like. So, it’s nice to have clean, quiet operation instead of noisy and stinky diesel vehicles.
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Sany MOTA Launches Battery Rental Business.
CHINA REPORT
Jack Hao The Sany Group has taken a major step in the electrification of the heavy truck market segment with the launch on Aug. 30, 2023, of Sany Magic Tower Energy Co., Ltd. The business plan includes battery sales, battery parts sales, new energy vehicle waste power battery recycling and cascade utilization, artificial intelligence basic software development, data processing and storage support services.
The blue ocean market of new energy heavy-duty trucks is about to experience explosive growth. “Blue ocean” refers to a business approach that focuses on creating a new, uncontested market space rather than competing in an existing market, which is often saturated and competitive. In a blue ocean, the competition is irrelevant because the brand or company is establishing a market where none existed before or is radically differentiating itself in an existing market.
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Japan Sets Target of 300,000 EV Chargers by 2030
FAR EAST: JAPAN REPORT
Akihiro Komuro The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) has released draft guidelines for the installation of EV chargers, with a target of 300,000 units by 2030. This is double the previous target of 150,000 units and 10X higher than the current number of installations. The company is calling for the installation of chargers in commercial facilities.
The draft guidelines also call on operators to improve the speed of charging and the convenience of operation. To achieve decarbonization, the government is pushing to expand the installation of rechargers, which had only about 30,000 units as of March 2023.
The installation target includes 270,000 regular chargers at commercial facilities and 30,000 fast chargers on highways. The introduction of a new charging method called “plug-and-charge” will also be encouraged. This is a system in which vehicles can be authenticated and charged simply by plugging them into the charger; it has been adopted by Tesla in the United States. The system eliminates the need to hold a membership card over the charger or use a smartphone app to authenticate personal information.
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Bus Sector Bounces Back: EVs Fuel Post-Covid Growth
Aditya Kondejkar OEMs increasing their focus on the Bus sector to drive growth in the post-Covid period.
Ashok Leyland. One of India’s leading commercial vehicle manufacturers, Ashok Leyland has announced plans to invest ₹1,000 crore in setting up an integrated commercial vehicle (CV) and electric bus (e-bus) manufacturing plant in Uttar Pradesh. This plant is expected to have a planned production capacity of 2,500 buses annually, with the potential for expansion to 5,000 buses per year.
This significant investment is a strategic move for the company and carries several implications and opportunities. This critical analysis examines the key aspects of this investment decision.
“Contingent on market adoption and demand of alternative fuel vehicles in the state, Ashok Leyland intends to invest up to ₹1,000 crore in this new facility over the next few years,” says Shenu Agarwal, Ashok Leyland MD & CEO.
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Hydrogen Fuel Cell MH Commercial Vehicle Update
Chris Fisher With regards to zero-emission medium and heavy vehicles, 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. However, hydrogen fuel cell trucks for long-haul applications appear to be a viable option in this segment. Even though fuel cell trucks currently have a greater range and lighter weight than battery electric trucks, they have the same problem as electric trucks due to a lack of a power infrastructure.
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Companies Support Government Fleet Renewal Program
Fabio Ferraresi Gerdau, Vamos and Volkswagen Caminhões have formed a partnership to support the national fleet renewal program, aimed at removing from roads vehicles more than 20 years old.
The fleet renewal program provides for the purchase of low emission and more efficient vehicles by self-employed drivers and other operations. Under the plan, 140 acquired vehicles were sent to Gerdau’s headquarters in Araçariguama, which is responsible for their destruction and recycling.
At the same time, an extension…
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