Japan Sets Target of 300,000 EV Chargers by 2030

News: Power Systems Research

2023-09-16

Japan Sets Target of 300,000 EV Chargers by 2030

FAR EAST: JAPAN REPORT
Akihiro Komuro
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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Australian Mining — Can It Power All The New EVs?

Australia is already the largest exporter of lithium in the world and has the largest lithium mine in the world. Each quarter, the Australian government produces a report from the Department of Industry Science and Resources which discusses Lithium and most of the other minerals needed to support the EV revolution.

The report is 175 pages long and this article focusses on the sections dealing with copper, nickel, zinc, and lithium.

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Black Mass, Black Gold, And the Truth About EV Battery Recycling

“Black mass” is a term used to refer to the residual compound formed by shredding of li-ion batteries that have reached the end of their usable life cycle. It is a huge task and challenge to recover the valuable cathode elements (lithium, nickel, manganese, and cobalt) entwined within the battery and upcycling them into usable battery materials.

RecycLiCo is among the first companies to turn that black mass into what is referred to as “black gold.” They do this by recovering almost all of the cathode materials within black mass and upcycling them into battery-grade precursor cathode active material (pCAM) and lithium that can be used again in the battery manufacturing process.

Source: CleanTechnica: Read The Article

PSR Analysis:  EV detractors are quick to point out the massive cost of mining the battery metals (lithium, nickel, cobalt, and manganese) that make up the core of modern li-ion car batteries. This is a cost that may take tens of thousands of miles to get ahead of. But those detractors are missing a critical bit of information: battery recycling, and if it can be done effectively and in a low cost manner, it will go some way to alleviating the shortages of these materials.   PSR

Guy Youngs is Forecast & Adoption Lead at Power Systems Research

Redesigned Zinc-Air Batteries ‘Better’ than Lithium, say Researchers

Researchers at Edith Cowan University in Australia have redesigned zinc-air batteries and have found the technology to be preferable to lithium-ion batteries – even for electric vehicles, and they claim to have overcome the technology’s notorious power output limitations.

Zinc-air batteries consist of a zinc negative electrode and an air positive electrode. The chemistry holds promise and is significantly more sustainable than lithium-based counterparts, but the poor performance of air electrodes and short lifespan has limited the technology’s power output.

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2023-09-15

Strong E-Bike Market Growth Seen

The pandemic bike boom boosted e-bike sales 145% from 2019 to 2020, more than double the rate of classic bikes, according to the market research firm NPD Group.

Research by Power Systems Research estimates the global e-bike market size at US$ 23.2B in 2022 and expects the market to reach US$ 78B by 2030, exhibiting a CAGR of 10.5%.

E-bikes are bicycles equipped with electrical motors for transforming electrical energy into mechanical energy to assist pedaling. They use rechargeable batteries that require minimum maintenance and provide power to the motor.

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Hydrogen Fuel Cell MH Commercial Vehicle Update

Chris Fisher
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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2023-09-05

Companies Support Government Fleet Renewal Program

Fabio Ferraresi
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 for the incentives program of up to 1 Billion Reais, (US$ 200 M) was announced.

Source: G1      Read The Article

PSR Analysis: The total of resources and mechanisms to allow the access to the resources still are not sufficient for the program to impact the market significantly. However, the small inroads demonstrate the desire of Government and private entities to make changes and should impact the market going forward. More deployments and adjustments in the program should come in the medium term. We will keep monitoring and adjusting our short-medium term forecast as it progresses.   PSR

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

Brazil Motorcycle Production To Reach 1.5 Million in 2023

In the first seven months of 2023, manufacturers affiliated with Abraciclo assembled 887,000 motorcycles, up 14.3% over the same period in 2022. Registrations totaled 903,200, up 21.4%, including imports and sales from automakers not yet linked to the association, such as India’s Bajaj and Royal Enfield, which began production in Brazil at the end of last year. The entity’s expectations for 2023 are for expansion of 10.4% (1.56 million units) in production and 10.9% (1.51 million motorcycles) in licensing.

Source: Valor      Read The Article

PSR Analysis: In 2011, Brazil produced 2 million units, its best year in the history of the segment. However, this year was the beginning of consecutive annual declines that reduced production to 890,000 motorcycles in 2016. The start of the rebound in 2018 was interrupted in 2020 by the shutdown of factories brought on by the pandemic. The industry finally looked to the future again in 2023 and expects to reach a volume of 2 million motorcycles within five years.   PSR

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

BEV Demand Boosts Brazil Mining Investment

The increase in global demand for clean energy is accelerating investments in the exploration of reserves of so-called critical or strategic minerals in Brazil. Over the next five years in Brazil, companies are expected to invest approximately US$ 8 billion in key strategic minerals. In copper the expectation is that the resources will reach US$ 4.47 billion, while nickel is in second place, with investments of US$ 2.3 Billion forecast.

Source: Valor      Read The Article

PSR Analysis:  A significant part of the investment will take place in Construction and Mining Equipment such as Hydraulic Excavators, Heavy Duty Wheel loaders and Graders that helps to sustain and increase the growth in the segment in Brazil.   PSR

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