SUMMARY: Gen-set sales in North America climbed 6% in Q3 2018 over Q2 2018, with the focus switching from larger industrial standby’s and construction site power generation earlier in the year to residential standby sales as part of winter-preparedness.
This report comes from General Director of GAZ Power Aggregate division Konstantin Rukhani. “After 18 months we shall complete the tests, after about 2.5 years, we’ll come to mass conveyor production,” he told Ruhani. He added that the design of the new hydrogen engine will be similar to its gas reciprocating engine.
“We consider that at the moment, if we come to the strategy of use gas piston engine working on hydrogen, we can get vehicle with a price of 30-34% higher than current ones. The engine will be less demanding for the purity of hydrogen fuel,” he added.
Foxconn, Taiwan’s leading electronics contract manufacturer, has received regulatory approval for its plan to invest $246 million in two new projects in Quang Ninh Province in northern Vietnam. The projects, to be carried out by a subsidiary of Foxconn Singapore, will focus on the manufacturing and assembly of telecommunications equipment and electric vehicle components.
This will bring Foxconn’s total investment in Vietnam to approximately $3 billion. Of the new investment, $200 million will be invested in a factory to produce EV chargers and components, which is expected to begin production in January 2025 and employ an estimated 1,200 workers.
Research by IDTech predicts that by 2044, hydrogen fuel cell cars will represent only about 4% of the total zero-emission passenger vehicles market. While the research predicts that hydrogen fuel cell cars would be a “very small portion” of the car market, IDTech also forecasted that about one fifth of zero-emission trucks would run on hydrogen.
Greater upfront costs for FCEVs over both combustion engine vehicles and BEVs, and increasing running costs makes an fuel-cell car a hard sell for consumers. IDTech cited lack of hydrogen refueling as a significant factor holding back FCEV
VW Truck and Bus has announced a new cycle of investment in Brazil operations of US$ 400 Million, for the period 2021 to 2025. This is higher than the last investment cycle, that was US$ 300 million that ended in 2020. This investment will be allocated in new products, mainly in alternative propulsion systems, such as electric, and improvements in the production facilities.
Source: AutoData Read The Article
PSR Analysis: The investment reinforces VW’s Truck and Bus focus in the Brazilian market. Product development for Proconve P8 in January 2023 will use a significant part of the investment; investments also will be made in facilities adjustments for higher volumes of production in the coming years. PSR
Fabio Ferraresi is Director – Business Development, South America, for Power Systems Research
The joint venture of KAMAZ and ZF Friedrichshafen AG is going to establish mass production of 12-speed automated gearboxes Traxon for trucks, buses and special machines with 44-80 ton capacity. At the moment, the JV is offering mechanical transmissions only. According to the plan, the production of gearboxes will be localized on 24%, power steering, by 10%, suspensions, by 40%. New products will be supplied to KAMAZ trucks, as well as to other OEMs – MAZ-MAN, Ural, Isuzu, etc.
The total budget of the new project will be US$ 15 million (1.1 billion Rubles). About half of it will be provided by the Industry Development fund as a privileged loan.
The privileged loan will be provided by the fund on 1-3% interest rates for up to seven years.
PSR Analysis: There is a long history of co-operation between KAMAZ and German ZF. Now, with the State support, they are going to offer to the market brand new equipment, which was not available on domestic trucks before. PSR
Maxim Sakov is a Market Consultant – Russia Operations with Power Systems Research
SUMMARY: Our PowerTrackerTM survey of dealers and distributors reported that overall gen-set sales increased in Q3 2021 up 4.3% from Q2 2021 levels. This builds on a sales increase of 6.8% in Q2 2021 and a slower start to the year of -7.4% in Q1 2021 as sales were constrained by availability and supply issues.
This quarter’s results were based on interviews with 110 gen-set dealer and distributor respondents based in North America. The overarching theme in the third quarter was a continuation of sales growth being constrained by the availability and supply of gen-sets. Longer lead times for dealers to receive shipments is limiting their sales – even though demand from end users remains at high levels.
The data comes from the proprietary PowerTrackerTM series of syndicated surveys conducted each quarter by Power Systems Research. Each quarter we interview gen-set dealers and distributors and other businesses across North America to maintain a pulse on the sales channels as well as monitor the ongoing needs and plans for businesses to purchase standby gen-sets to support their business operations.
Hyundai Motor Company is getting serious about developing the software needed for automated driving, etc. It has decided to invest $14.7 billion by 2030 and has begun building a development structure and embarking on M&A.
Hyundai Motor Company has achieved record profits through a shift in strategy in conjunction with a generational change. The company plans to further improve profitability in the software field, where customers can add functions to their cars after purchase. But acquiring human resources will be an immediate challenge for Hyundai.
The “Over the Air (OTA)” function, which updates the latest software via the Internet, will be standard on all new models released in 2023 and after. The plan is to establish a system that allows users to be charged according to function updates. The company will first introduce content such as car navigation systems, audio, lighting, and remote-control functions, and then expand into peripheral areas such as auto insurance policies, to diversify and upgrade services in response to customer needs.
Honda said it plans to produce a motor-driven electric motorcycle for individuals in Japan by the end of 2023. This will be the first time Honda produces a product for the public in Japan.
Overall, Honda said it plans to launch more than 10 models of electric motorcycles worldwide by 2025. Their goal is to increase overall sales, including pedal-powered and electric bicycles, mainly in China and India. The company plans to increase its sales to 3.5 million units worldwide by 2030, more than 20 times the 2021 level.
The EM1e electric scooter was unveiled March 17, 2023, in Japan. It has a cruising range of approximately 40 km and uses replaceable batteries. The price is expected to be higher than gasoline-powered scooters with a displacement of about 50 liters. The company plans to launch the moped equipped with pedals that can be pedaled with the feet, and five other motorized bicycle models in China, Southeast Asia, Europe, and Japan by 2024.
Electric motorcycles face the problem that on-board batteries are expensive and production costs are more than 50% higher than those of internal combustion engine models. Honda plans to increase its global sales to 1 million units by 2026, and further to 3.5 million units by 2030. However, demand for internal combustion engines is strong in emerging countries, and Honda intends to maintain its annual production capacity of 20 million two-wheeled gasoline vehicles until 2030.
Source: The Nikkei
PSR Analysis: Honda is finally bringing an electric model to the consumer market. Yamaha already sells the E-Vino to individuals. Harley is spinning off its electric motorcycle division to attract investment, and India’s Hero will release its VIDA electric motorcycle in 2022 and is working with a U.S. company to develop new products.
All companies are very ambitious about electric motorcycles, but there are still many challenges to be overcome before they become widespread. As a first mover example, Taiwan’s Gogoro is doing well by developing a network of battery exchange stations. Honda’s EM1e is equipped with a single replaceable battery, and by taking the battery pack home after use and recharging it at a power outlet at home, the vehicle can start running the next day with a fully charged battery.
The handle makes the battery look easy to carry, but at 10.3 kg, it may be difficult for women to accept it. The spread of battery exchange station networks like those in Taiwan has just begun in Japan, and charging stations in urban areas are still in their infancy. PSR
Akihiro Komuro is Research Analyst, Far East and Southeast Asia for Power Systems Research
South Korea’s SK Group has announced plans to build a 140,000 square meter hydrogen fuel base in Ulsan. A liquid hydrogen production plant will be built, and a hydrogen-fueled power plant will also be constructed.
With the participation of Lotte Chemical, the project aims to promote the accumulation of hydrogen-related industries in the city. SK Gas will be the main proponent of the project. The company plans to invest 2.2 trillion won (about 216 billion yen) over the next five years to build infrastructure for the generation, storage, and transportation of hydrogen energy in anticipation of its widespread use, and has also announced plans to build 100 hydrogen filling stations in South Korea by 2030.
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