Higer Azure Electric Bus Debuts in São Paulo

News: Regions

2023-10-24

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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2023-10-23

2023 Cannes Yachting Festival Sets Records

EUROPE REPORT
Natasa Mulahalilovic
Natasa Mulahalilovic

The 46th Cannes Yachting Festival was the largest one ever, hosting 610 exhibitors and 705 boats. The Cannes Yachting Festival remains the largest and the most visited European pleasure boat show organized on the water.

The show’s organizers said the event has never hosted that many motor and sailing, mono and multi hulls, outboard boats, ribs and semi-rigid boats, tenders, electric, hydro-foiling, and other types of boats. 

The show ran Sept. 12-17, offering six days of meetings and exchange with boat builders, engine and equipment manufacturers, designers and architects and other professionals from the pleasure marine industry.

The event hosted by a beautiful Mediterranean Cannes attracted 55,000 visitors coming from more than 130 worldwide countries. As usual, it was organized in two locations in the city, Vieux Port and Port Conto des Cannes. Motorboats and yachts in all sizes and with all propulsion types were displayed at the Vieux Port and sailing yachts and catamarans at the Port Canto des Cannes.

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Global Economy Seeing Modest Growth with Positive Outlook

GLOBAL REPORT
Jim Downey

SUMMARY. Many factors are pointing to modest growth in Q3 2023. This should lead to total production globally growing at +2.4% in 2023 vs 2022 (it was 2.6% in Q2 2023), and the outlook for the next few years remains positive with growth accelerating from 2025.  Apart from Russia and Ukraine, the main countries to show a decline are South Korea, Slovakia, Netherlands. However, the segment picture shows some differences.

Several drivers are influencing the global economic picture.

  • Fuel prices eased earlier this year, recently they have grown slightly and are no longer showing signs of easing. This remains a serious issue.
  • Supply chains remain constrained and show no signs of improving.
  • The war in Ukraine shows no sign of a speedy conclusion, despite recent successes by Ukraine.
  • Ukrainian exports of wheat, other grains and fertilizer have declined massively following Russia’s ending on the Grain Deal. Alternative routes (overland, and via the Danube) simply don’t have the necessary capacity.
  • Inflation is easing, but it continues to be a major concern for central banks as they consider raising their interest rates. This will pose a risk to economic growth in all regions. Inflation and price increases are putting OEMs in a difficult situation.
  • Risk of recession continues in the background for several countries, notably China, USA and Germany, and this could drag other countries into recession.
  • Covid is still lingering with global deaths now at over 6.9 million, and a new variant has the medical world concerned.
  • Latent demand for machinery keeps building, which is a positive sign.
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Tesla Breaks Ground for Diner with Theater and Supercharger

Guy Youngs
Guy Youngs

Tesla has broken ground on the site of its planned futuristic diner with a drive-in theater and Supercharger station. This project has been in the works for several years. In 2018, Elon Musk said that Tesla planned to open an “old school drive-in, (with) roller skates & rock restaurant at one of the new Tesla Supercharger locations in Los Angeles.”

A few months later, Tesla applied for building permits for “a restaurant and Supercharger station” at a location in Santa Monica. However, the project stalled for a long time, apparently due to local regulations. Nevertheless, Tesla still moved forward with a Supercharger at the location, but it had to move the diner project to Hollywood. Last year, Tesla filed the construction plans with the city, giving us the first look at what the automaker intends to build.

Source: Electrek: Read The Article

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Lithium Deposit In Nevada Could Be World’s Largest

The Chinese were way ahead of the rest of the world when it came to recognizing the value of lithium. While most nations slept, China was busy identifying lithium deposits around the world and either buying them or negotiating deals with those who may not have fully appreciated lithium’s value.

It incentivized others to seek alternatives. New companies sprang up to extract lithium from salt brine, especially in the Salton Sea area of California. But these are years away from being able to supply America’s and the world’s needs.

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EU May Impose Tariffs on Chinese EVs

In her annual State of The EU address on Sept. 13, 2023, European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen suggested that Chinese manufacturers are dumping Chinese EVs on EU customers that are priced below what domestic manufacturers charge.

She suggested that the root cause of the problem is the heavy subsidies provided to Chinese automakers by the central government — subsidies that allow them to sell Chinese EVs at artificially low prices to the detriment of domestic companies. If so, she warned the EU would consider imposing new tariffs on Chinese cars to level the playing field.

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2023-10-14

DataPoint: North America Production of Scooters              

DataPoint Scooters – Oct 2023Download

197,500 units is the estimate by Power Systems Research of the number of Scooters expected to be produced in North America in 2023.

Scooters are motorized 2-wheeled vehicles used primarily for recreational.

Production climbed sharply in 2022, increasing by 24,686 units, or 14.6%, from 2021. We expect production to climb in 2023 as well, growing by about 3,725 units or 2%.

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2023-09-21

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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Zepp Gets Financial Boost To Build State-of-the-Art Fuel Cell Systems Factory

Dutch company Zepp.Solutions, one of Europe’s leading hydrogen fuel cell system suppliers, has secured €1.98 million ($2.16 million) grant funding from the European Just Transition Fund (JTF) to develop a cutting-edge fuel cell systems factory in the Netherlands.

Zepp’s goal is to speed up the energy transition and foster reliance in the labor market with support from the Ministries of Economic Affairs and Climate and Social Affairs and Employment, and the municipalities in the Dutch Greater Rijnmond area.

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