South Korea Plans World’s Largest Semiconductor Manufacturing Base

SOUTH KOREA REPORT
Akihiro Komuro
Akihiro Komuro

The South Korean government announced a plan for a semiconductor industrial park in which Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix will invest a total of 622 trillion won (approx. $470 Billion). With Japan and Taiwan aggressively investing in the semiconductor industry, the government aims to compete with them by establishing the world’s largest base and stabilizing the supply of semiconductors to Korea.

According to the plan announced by the government, Samsung Electronics and SK Hynix plan to invest 500 trillion won and 122 trillion won, respectively, by 2047. In addition to the existing 21 factories, 13 new semiconductor factories and 3 research facilities will be built. The semiconductor industrial park, which stretches from Pyeongtaek to Yongming, is expected to become the world’s largest manufacturing base with a monthly production capacity of 7.7 million wafers by 2030.

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Kia Plans Customer Specific EVs

FAR EAST: SOUTH KOREA REPORT

Kia is pursuing its own EV strategy centered on specific applications such as delivery vehicles and cabs. The company is jointly developing delivery vehicles with Korea’s largest online retailer, Coupang, and customer specific EVs will account for 1 million of the 1.6 million EV sales target for 2030. A dedicated plant will also be built in the suburbs of Seoul.

The company and Coupang will develop vehicles with increased cargo capacity and refrigerated and frozen interior equipment, with the assumption that only one driver will be on board. Coupang will have its own distribution center and delivery vehicles for high-speed delivery and will hire drivers directly. Coupang has indicated that it plans to operate 10,000 EV delivery vehicles in the future.

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TSMC Plans Plant in Japan, Operation Set for 2024

FAR EAST: JAPAN REPORT

TSMC, the world’s largest semiconductor foundry, has announced that it will build a new plant in Japan, with plans to begin construction in 2022 and mass production in 2024. The Sony Group and Denso Corporation are expected to participate in the construction of the new plant.

The new plant will produce logic semiconductors with a circuit line width of 22 to 28 nanometers. They are generally used in signal processing that requires large amounts of data, and in high-performance microcomputers used in car control. TSMC envisions the site adjacent to the Sony Group’s image sensor plant in Kumamoto Prefecture as the planned construction site.

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John Deere Plans Construction Equipment Plant

Fabio Ferraresi
Fabio Ferraresi

John Deere has just announced an investment of US$ 35 million (R$ 190 million) in the production facilities for its Construction Division, two manufacturing units located in Indaiatuba, in the interior of São Paulo. The goal is to expand capacity to meet the growing demand for machines and to implement its Smart Connected Factory program, or Industry 4.0, which encompasses technologies to increase efficiency, quality in processes and reduce operating costs.

Source: Investe São Paulo  Read The Article

PSR Analysis: John Deere is reaching production capacity with the huge growth of demand for Construction Equipment in Brazil in recent years. This demand should continue and should keep increasing with the planned Infrastructure Investments and the continued expansion of the Mining business. Moreover, the strategy of localization, making products in Brazil rather than importing, making Brazilian plants a hub for exports, needs continued investment.   PSR

Fabio Ferraresi is Director Business, Development South Americafor Power Systems Research

2019 GIE+Expo Posts Strong Growth. Battery Technology Continues Hot

GIE+EXPO: The Green Industry & Equipment Expo

GIE+EXPO is the annual gathering for all segments of the outdoor power equipment and lawn and landscape industry. The event is sponsored by the Outdoor Power Equipment Institute, the Professional Grounds Management Society and the National Association of Landscape Professionals.

This year, the show drew more than 26,500 people from around the world. The indoor exhibit floor and the Outdoor Demonstration Area covered 24,000 net sq. ft. more than last year.

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Kubota Plans To Produce Batteries for EV AG Equipment

JAPAN REPORT

Kubota is considering in-house production of batteries for electric agricultural equipment. It is considering developing and designing its own batteries and building a new plant in Japan.

The company intends to launch electric tractors and mowers in Europe and the United States by 2030. Kubota is preparing for increased demand in Europe, the U.S., and other markets by establishing a system for in-house production of batteries, which determine the running time of electric agricultural machinery.

Kubota currently manufactures diesel engines for agricultural machinery, mainly in Thailand and Japan and ships them to the United States and Europe for final assembly. Regarding batteries, which are a key component of electric agricultural machinery, President Kitao said, “As with engines, we would like to be able to produce batteries for Asian markets in Thailand, and those for Japan, Europe, and the United States in Japan.”

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Nikola Plans To Develop Hydrogen Fuel Network

The lack of a refueling infrastructure is one of the largest challenges facing H2 development, so Nikola plans to start building a hydrogen fuel network. The network would make it possible for H2-powered vehicles to refuel conveniently, particularly when those vehicles are the company’s own trucks.

The company has already started the construction of H2 plants in order to produce the H2 necessary to supply the hydrogen fuel network. Once those are in place and the refueling stations are built, it will become feasible for companies to begin including H2-powered trucks in their fleets.

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Toyota Launches India’s First Flex Fuel Hybrid

INDIA REPORT 

Aditya Kondejkar

Toyota has launched  the Corolla Altis, India’s first flex-fuel engine. This car will be able to run on petrol or ethanol as well as electric power. It is part of a pilot project developing Flexi-Fuel Strong Hybrid Electric Vehicles in India.

Source: Hindu Times    Read The Article

Because of the great diversity in India’s consumer population, especially its per-capita income disparity, and multiple applications of vehicles, India might not use one technology but might use a combination of technologies involving various fuel types.

The Indian market can’t simply shift from petrol/ diesel engines to EVs over the next few years. Hence, many OEMs are working on CNG/ hydrogen/ hybrid vehicles.  Toyota has launched this new vehicle for the Indian market as part of these efforts.

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Suzuki Moves Aggressively To Regain India Market Share

INDIA REPORT
Aditya Kondejkar

A key portion of Maruti Suzuki’s mid-term goal to achieve 50% overall PV (passenger vehicle) market share by becoming the number one SUV seller in the country. This is important for Maruti Suzuki because even though the automaker’s market share in the non-SUV segments is more than 65%, its SUV share was only 10.5% in 2022.

Source: The Times of India    Read The Article

Capacity Expansion.

The company is planning to invest Rs 18,000 crore for the Kharkhoda facility in Haryana. This will increase the capacity by one million units. Further, by the end of the decade, Maruti Suzuki plans to invest over 45,000 crore to quadruple production capacity to four million vehicles in order to meet domestic consumer demand and increase exports from India.

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