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Electric Light-Duty Trucks Must Meet 5% METI Goal by FY2030
FAR EAST: JAPAN REPORT
Akihiro Komuro The Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) now requires shippers that transport a large volume of freight to set a target of using 5% electric light-duty trucks by FY2030, which includes EVs and fuel cell vehicles (CVs), but not hybrids.
They will also be required to submit periodic reports on their progress toward this target. If the efforts are significantly inadequate, the committee can make recommendations to shippers and publicly announce the names…
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Honda To Produce FCVs in the U.S. in 2024
FAR EAST: JAPAN REPORT
Akihiro Komuro Honda announced that it will produce electric fuel cell powered vehicles in the U.S. in 2024. They will also be equipped with a plug-in function that allows them to be recharged externally. Honda has set a goal that all new vehicles sold by 2040 will be either EVs or FCVs.
In North America, its main market, Honda will offer FCVs as an option. The new FCV to be produced is based on the CR-V SUV model and will be manufactured in small quantities at the Performance…
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Agri Week 2022 Report: Drones Become Popular
FAR EAST: JAPAN REPORT
Akihiro Komuro Agri Week 2022 is a comprehensive exhibition on agriculture, livestock, and horticulture. It is held twice a year in Kyushu and Kanto. Agricultural materials, smart agriculture products, livestock materials, and products related to industrialization are exhibited. Agriculture Week consists of the following four exhibitions: AGRI TECH (Material & Technology), AGRI NEXT (Next Generation), AGRI PROCESS (Farmer‘s Processing), LIVESTOCK (Livestock Supply & Equipment)
Source: Official HP
PSR Analysis: The drone market is seeing an increase in the number of new entrants. Currently, the market size is estimated to be around 300 billion yen, but some say it will grow to nearly 800 billion yen in five years. This is because the revision of the Civil Aeronautics Law to be implemented this December will lift the ban on Level 4 unassisted visual flights in manned areas. Until now this has been limited to Level 3 unmanned areas. Currently, the use of drones is mainly for spraying chemicals, but it is also being considered for logistics, inspections, civil engineering, and construction.
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Honda To Discontinue Two-Wheeled Gasoline Vehicles
FAR EAST: JAPAN REPORT
On Sept. 13, 2022, Honda announced it will eliminate gasoline-powered motorcycles by the mid-2040s. All new vehicles will be EV motorcycles; 3.5 million, or 15% of global sales, are to be EV motorcycles by 2030. Honda has already declared that all its four-wheeled vehicles will be EVs by 2040, but this is the first time the company has laid out a concrete strategy for decarbonization on two wheels.
From now on, Honda will pursue electrification exclusively with EVs. First, it will launch at least 10 EV motorcycle models by 2025. Since investment in new vehicle development and production facilities will be a heavy burden, Honda will use a common platform for batteries, motors, and other components for three large motorcycle models to be launched in Japan, the United States, and Europe between 2024 and 2025.
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Hino Motors’ Engine Fraud Covers 560,000 vehicles
FAR EAST: JAPAN REPORT
Akihiro Komuro Hino Motors has announced that the falsification of diesel engine emission values, which was previously announced in March, had been taking place since at least 2003 or earlier. The company had previously stated that the fraud began in the fall of 2016. In 2016, the company also revealed that it had falsely reported to the MLIT (Ministry of Land, Infrastructure, Transport, and Tourism) in response to its request for a fact-finding survey on exhaust gas and fuel efficiency tests.
Source: The Nikkei
PSR Analysis: Although I do not wish to make such negativity a theme, I cannot overlook this issue. The impact on the industry of the fraud at Hino, which has the top share of the medium- and heavy-duty truck sector in Japan, is significant. Isuzu has suspended shipments of four bus models that use Hino engines. Not limited to the automotive field, Tadano cranes, Kobelco hydraulic excavators, Hitachi Construction Machinery wheel loaders, and Kato rough terrain cranes have also been forced to suspend shipments after the problem came to light.
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Venture Firm Raises 4.2 Billion Yen for Electrification Projects
FAR EAST: JAPAN REPORT
Akihiro Komuro PowerX, Inc. says it has raised 4.15 billion yen in funding for two electrification projects: one is to develop its own “Power ARK,” a ship that carries electricity, and the other is to build a large-scale storage battery factory in Japan.
The idea behind the Power Transfer Vessel is to store electricity in container-shaped storage batteries and transmit it by ship, with an eye toward the expansion of offshore wind farms. Conventionally, power is transmitted from offshore wind farms to land via submarine cables, but the aim is to develop the Power Transfer Vessel that can replace submarine cables. This will make it easier to construct power plants offshore in windy distant seas. The construction of submarine cables that pass high-voltage electricity is environmentally hazardous, but the Power Transfer Vessels are cheaper than cables and will enable power transmission to be realized sooner.
Power Ark 100. The first vessel, the “Power ARK 100,” will have a length of approximately 100 meters and will be equipped with 100 storage batteries in the form of shipping containers, enabling it to store 220 MWh of electricity. This is roughly equivalent to one day’s worth of electricity for one city (22,000 households). In the event of a large-scale power outage or other disaster, the ship will serve as a contingency power source. Larger vessels are also planned, and a 220-meter-long vessel capable of carrying 3,000 containers would be able to transport 5,660 MWh of electricity.
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MEGURI2040: The Fully Autonomous Ship Program
FAR EAST: JAPAN REPORT
Akihiro Komuro The Nippon Foundation, Mitsubishi Heavy Industries Group company Mitsubishi Shipbuilding Co., Ltd., and Shin Nihonkai Ferry Co., Ltd. have successfully completed a demonstration test of the world’s first fully autonomous ship navigation systems on a large ferry, conducted on the Iyonada Sea from Shinmoji, Kitakyushuu City, in January.
This demonstration was part of MEGURI2040, a fully autonomous ship navigation project launched by The Nippon Foundation in February 2020.
Japan’s declining birthrate, aging population, and shrinking population have resulted in labor shortages in many fields. Seafarers in coastal shipping, which requires hard work on board, are no exception. More than half of the seafarers in coastal shipping are over 50 years old, which poses a major challenge.
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Yanmar Makes Major Battery Buy
FAR EAST: JAPAN REPORT
Yanmar Holdings Co. Ltd. announced it has acquired a majority share in ELEO Technologies B.V., a battery technology company based in Helmond, the Netherlands. By integrating ELEO’s advanced, scalable, and modular battery technology, Yanmar said it will further its electrified powertrain capabilities with customized solutions for off-road applications.
After joining the Yanmar Group as part of Yanmar Power Technology Co., Ltd., ELEO will continue to operate as a stand-alone entity under its own brand at its current location in Helmond, the Netherlands.
Founded in 2017, ELEO Technologies develops and produces advanced modular battery packs which are differentiated by their proprietary battery management system (BMS) and thermal management technologies. The company is near completion with a new advanced production facility that will increase its annual battery production capacity to 500 MWh, equivalent to approximately 10,000 battery packs.
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Yanmar Acquires Fast Growing Battery Technology Firm
EUROPE REPORT
Natasa Mulahalilovic Yanmar Holdings Co. Ltd, the multi-billion dollar multinational company headquartered in Osaka, Japan, has acquired a majority of shares of a young and fast-growing ELEO Technologies B.V. from theNetherlands, this month. The acquisition has been completed through European’s subsidy, Yanmar B.V. An earlier investor, Lumipol Group, has entirely exited the company.
As a part of Yanmar Power Technology Co, Ltd, Eleo will continue operating as an independent entity under its existing brand and with production located in their current site in Helmond, the Netherlands.
ELEO Technologies B.V. was founded in 2017 to design and produce innovative modular electric batteries systems for use in marine, industrial machine, e-mobility, commercial vehicles or specialized recreational product applications.
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Yamaha Motor To Launch Electric Motorcycles in Europe
JAPAN REPORT
Akihiro Komuro Yamaha plans to launch a series of electric motorcycles in Japan and overseas this spring. Electric motorcycles with an engine displacement equivalent to 125cc will be leased and sold on a trial basis in Europe, Japan and other countries. In response to the global trend of decarbonization, Yamaha has set a goal of reducing CO2 emissions to virtually zero by 2050. The 125cc equivalent electric motorcycle has been on the market in Taiwan, but this is the first time it has been offered in Europe and Japan.
The motorcycle has been developed based on the E01 concept vehicle, which was unveiled at the 2019 Tokyo Motor Show. The company avoided mentioning specifics about the range and other specifications but said that the E01 would be equipped with a high-powered fixed battery that can run at high speed while meeting the range requirements for daily use, and that it would support quick charging as well as normal charging.
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