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[Due to the increasing size of the archives, each topic page now contains only the prior 365 days of content. Access to older stories is now solely through the Monthly Archive pages or the site search function.]
Fiat Group and Guangzhou Automobile Group Creating JV for Chinese Market
July 07, 2009
| The agreement was signed in Rome by Zhang Fangyou, Chairman of GAC Group, and Sergio Marchionne, CEO of Fiat Group, in the presence of the President of the People’s Republic of China, Hu Jintao, and the Prime Minister of Italy, Silvio Berlusconi. Click to enlarge. |
Fiat Group and Guangzhou Automobile Group Co. Ltd. (GAC Group) signed a Framework Agreement to establish a 50/50 joint venture for the production of cars and engines for the Chinese market.
The models produced will be equipped with the latest in engine and transmission technology in response to the Chinese government’s requirement to develop fuel-efficient, low-emission vehicles. The first model to be launched will be the C-segment Linea sedan. The first engines will be the Fire 1.4L 120 hp and 150 hp T-Jet.
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ECOtality Establishes Joint Venture to Manufacture and Distribute Electric Vehicle Charging Systems in China
July 06, 2009
ECOtality, Inc. has signed a letter of intent to enter into a joint venture with Shenzhen Goch Investment, Ltd. that will provide US$15 million to establish manufacturing and distribution operations for electric vehicle (EV) charging systems in China.
To support the Company’s anticipated expansion, ECOtality received a combined US$2.5 million direct investment from Shenzhen Goch and existing ECOtality institutional shareholders.
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Ricardo to Develop 8-Speed Automatic Transmission with China’s Weifang Shengrui
June 24, 2009
Weifang Shengrui Power Machinery Technology Company has contracted Ricardo to collaborate on developing a technically advanced and globally competitive 8-speed automatic transmission (8AT) for manufacture in China. The team of Ricardo and Weifang Shengrui engineers will be based on site both at Ricardo Shanghai and Ricardo’s UK Midlands Technical Centre.
Weifang Shengrui Power Machinery Technology Co Ltd is a successful independently held supplier of engine components to the automakers and engine builders in the domestic Chinese market as well as to the leading manufacturers of Europe. The company has set its strategy of expansion into transmissions and hybrid powertrain components and systems.
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Coda Automotive to Bring China-Built Electric Mid-size Sedan to California Market in 2010; New JV with Lishen for Automotive Li-ion Systems
June 03, 2009
| Components in the Coda. Click to enlarge. |
Coda Automotive, a new company formed and developed under the stewardship of entrepreneur Miles Rubin (known for his marketing and sales of low-speed, electric fleet vehicles under the Miles Electric Vehicles brand), will introduce an affordable, full-performance all-electric sedan built by Hafei in China to the California market in 2010.
Additionally, the company, which has an existing long-term sourcing contract with Tianjin Lishen Battery Joint-Stock Co., Ltd., (Lishen) for lithium-ion batteries used in the Coda, announced the establishment of a global joint venture with Lishen to design, manufacture and sell transportation and utility power storage battery systems. Coda will own 40% of the JV, with Lishen holding 60%.
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Orbital Corporation and Changan to Develop Concept Engine
May 01, 2009
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| The ChangAn CA18 FlexDI Concept Engine shown at Auto China 2008. Click to enlarge. |
Orbital Corporation Limited and Chongqing Changan Automobile Co., Ltd, China’s fourth largest automotive manufacturer, have entered into a joint development contract for a concept engine. The development will be carried out on Changan’s current gasoline engine platform with an objective to achieve a significant fuel economy benefit utilizing Orbital’s FlexDI technology. (Earlier post.)
The program is focused on fuel economy improvement while achieving Euro IV emissions level. Orbital was selected as the technology with the best potential to meet the aggressive targets required for the program.
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Buick Mild Hybrid Business Concept Vehicle Unveiled in Shanghai
April 21, 2009
| The Buick Business Concept Vehicle. Click to enlarge. |
The Buick Business Concept, a new mild hybrid concept vehicle designed to showcase Buick’s future vision of “business class on the road,” made its global debut at Auto Shanghai 2009.
The multi-purpose vehicle (MPV) was developed in China by the Pan Asia Technical Automotive Center (PATAC), a design and engineering joint venture between General Motors and Shanghai Automotive Industry Corporation (SAIC), with global design input.
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Renault-Nissan Alliance Partners with China Ministry of Industry and Information Technology on EVs
April 10, 2009
The Renault-Nissan Alliance has entered a partnership with the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology of China (MIIT) for Zero-Emission Mobility, a first step in bringing Zero Emission Vehicles (ZEVs) to China.
Nissan will provide MIIT with electric vehicle (EV) information and propose a comprehensive plan, including a blueprint for a battery-charging network and programs for mass-marketing EVs. The Chinese government has launched a pilot program of “new energy vehicles” to be rolled out to the public transport sector in 13 cities.
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China’s 2005 Carbon Emissions Almost Twice As Much As 2002 Emissions
February 28, 2009
by Jack Rosebro
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| Carbon emissions associated with increased exports from China (left), as part of a more systematic view of increased national emissions (right), 2002 to 2005. Guan et al. (2009) Click to enlarge. |
Energy efficiency gains in a rapidly modernizing China “cannot cope” with skyrocketing emissions caused by increased exports as well as domestic consumption, according to the paper “Journey to world’s top emitter,” published 27 February in Geophysical Research Letters. Researchers from Norway, the United Kingdom, and the United States, estimated in the study that China’s 2005 carbon emissions were 80.59% or more higher than 2002 emissions.
“It is easier to understand the growth in China’s carbon emissions,” note the authors of the paper, “by considering which consumption activities—households and government, capital investments, and international trade—drive Chinese production and hence emissions.”
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Chery Launches S18 Electric Vehicle
February 19, 2009
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| The S18 EV. Click to enlarge. |
China automaker Chery has begun introduced the S18 EV, an all-battery electric vehicle it developed in-house. The S18 electric vehicle has a range of 120 to 150 km (75 to 93 miles) when fully charged, with a top speed of 120 km/h (75 mph.).
The S18 features a 336V 40 kW electric drive system, powered by a battery pack built with 40 Ah lithium-ion iron phosphate batteries. At 220V, charge time is 4-6 hours. Fast charging will provide 80% of pack capacity in 30 minutes.
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Study of In-use Vehicle Activity and Emissions in Tianjin, China Yields Fleet and Emissions Profiles, Policy Implications
February 18, 2009
From March 2005 to December 2006, a research team headed by the Energy Technology Innovation Policy research group at Harvard University and in collaboration with the China Automotive Research Center, Tsinghua University (the Department of Environmental Science and Engineering), and the International Sustainable Systems Research Center (associated with University of California, Riverside), carried out a project in Tianjin, China to study emissions from on-road vehicles.
Similar studies by the partners are being done in Beijing and Shanghai. Data gathering for the Beijing study was completed in 2008. Tianjin is the third-largest city in China, behind Beijing and Shanghai.
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Novozymes, COFCO and Sinopec to Partner on Cellulosic Ethanol from Corn Stover in China
February 02, 2009
Novozymes and its Chinese partner COFCO have entered a new partnership with major Chinese oil and energy company Sinopec to develop a commercial-scale process for producing cellulosic bioethanol from corn stover.
Together, the three partners cover the entire value chain of bioethanol production and distribution.
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China-based Battery Maker Takes Stake in US PHEV Conversion Company
December 22, 2008
Gold Peak Industries North America, a subsidiary of China-based GP Batteries International, has acquired an equity stake in Plug In Conversions Corp. (PICC), a designer, developer and marketer of kits that allow hybrid owners to convert their cars to plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs).
Founded in May 2007 with an initial target of Prius conversions, PICC currently offers a 6.1 kWh NiMH replacement pack kit—using GP batteries—for the Toyota OEM 1.3 kWh NiMH pack. The PHEV kit sells for $12,500, including installation.
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Dimethoxymethane (DMM)/Diesel Blends as a Low-Cost Approach for Emissions Control
November 17, 2008
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| Relationship between NOx and smoke of the DMM blends under one set of speed and load conditions. Click to enlarge. Credit: ACS |
Researchers at Xi’an Jiaotong University in China have investigated the combustion, performance, and emissions of a direct-injection (DI) diesel engine fueled with dimethoxymethane (DMM)/diesel blends, with DMM content ranging from 0 to 50%.
Their results showed that, with no changes to the fuel injection system or modifications to the engine, smoke and CO emissions decrease and NOx remains almost unchanged, while hydrocarbons (HCs) increase. Brake-specific fuel consumption (BSFC) is higher (DMM has a smaller lower heating value than diesel), while thermal efficiency increases a little. A diesel engine fueled with a 30% DMM blend can deliver both satisfactory fuel efficiency and emissions levels, they conclude. A report on their study was published online 14 November in the ACS journal Energy & Fuels.
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GM and Coskata Highlight Cellulosic Biofuels Opportunity in China; Estimates of 45-49 BGPY Market by 2030
October 25, 2008
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| China biofuel potential: technical, economic and business-as-usual scenarios. Click to enlarge. Source: GM, Tsinghua University |
China has the potential to produce about 45-49 billion gallons per year (BGPY) of cellulosic biofuels by 2030, given appropriate supporting economic incentives, according to presentations by both General Motors and Coskata at the 4th World Biofuels Symposium at Tsinghua University in Beijing, 19 - 21 October, 2008, organized by BBI International and with COFCO as the title sponsor.
Coskata, a thermo-biochemical cellulosic ethanol company (and a strategic partner of GM, earlier post) based a 49 MGPY estimate on data from the USDA, UN FAO and its own production experience, said Wes Bolsen, the company’s Chief Marketing Officer and VP of Business Development. The 49 billion gallon number does not include landfill gas, municipal waste, steel mill gas, or any coal gasification that could add billions more, Bolsen added.
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China’s R&D Efforts on Li-Ion Batteries for Transportation
September 18, 2008
China, already a global center for lithium-ion battery component production and battery manufacturing, is ramping up its research and development efforts in the field, both within the private sector and with government support.
At the 1st International Conference on Advanced Lithium Batteries for Automobile Applications, organized by Argonne National Laboratory, Dr. Jiqiang Wang of the Tianjin Institute of Power Sources (TIPS) provided an overview of the government-supported R&D projects for lithium-ion batteries for transportation, which are now focusing on two primary cathode materials: manganese spinel (LiMn2O4) and iron phosphate (LiFePO4).
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Altona Resources Signs MOU with CNOOC on Arckaringa CTL Project in South Australia
August 19, 2008
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| The Arckaringa CTL and cogen project is situated close to a major rail line and highway, and is targeting exports to Asia as well as domestic use. Click to enlarge. |
Altona Resources Plc, an Australia-based energy company, has signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) with CNOOC (Beijing) Energy Investment Co., Ltd, a subsidiary of China National Offshore Oil Corporation, towards the development of the 10 million barrel per year (30,000 barrels per day) coal-to-liquids (CTL) and 560 MW co-generation Arckaringa Project in South Australia. CNOOC is one of the three largest State-owned oil companies in China.
Altona envisions a future expansion of the more than A$3 billion (US$2.6 billion) Arckaringa project to increase production to 45,000 barrels per day and 840 MW of export power as markets develop.
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Chery Partnered with Ricardo on A5 Hybrids
August 06, 2008
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| A Chery A5 ISG Hybrid of the type being provided for the Olympics. |
China’s Chery Automobile Company Ltd. partnered with Ricardo on the development of its A5 hybrids, 50 of which it is providing for the Beijing Olympics. Chery has developed two new hybrid models based on the existing A5 sedan.
The first is a stop-start micro hybrid based on a 12-volt belt starter-generator (BSG) linked to a 1.6-liter gasoline engine with a 5-speed manual transmission. The second is a more comprehensive mild hybrid based on the same vehicle but equipped with a 1.3-liter gasoline engine and a 12 kw crankshaft-mounted 151-volt integrated starter-generator (ISG). (Earlier post.)
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Nissan, BTIC Launch Traffic Information-Based Car Navigation System in Beijing
July 24, 2008
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| Star Wings navigation screen. Click to enlarge. |
Nissan Motor Co., Ltd. and Beijing Transportation Information Center (BTIC) launched the first commercial application of the Star Wings project in Beijing. (Earlier post.) The new Nissan Teana sedan now offers the smart route-guidance navigation system as a standard feature on the 3.5L model and as an optional feature on the 2.5L model.
Jointly administered by BTIC, Nissan, Beijing University of Technology and Hiroshima University, the Star Wings project simulates traffic flow using information on drivers’ behaviors coupled with real-time traffic information for Beijing. With a 30% utilization rate of the navigation system, the average commute time could potentially decrease by up to 16% percent by navigating a route less congested, according to the modeling results.
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Westport Innovations in Alt-Fuel Vehicle JV with China’s Largest Heavy-Duty Engine Manufacturer
July 16, 2008
Westport Innovations Inc.; Weichai Power Co. Ltd, China’s largest heavy-duty engine manufacturer; and Hong Kong Peterson (CNG) Equipment Limited have formed a joint venture—Weichai Westport Inc. (WWI)—to research, develop, design, manufacture, market, distribute and sell advanced, alternative fuel engines (plus relevant parts and kits) for use in automobiles, heavy-duty trucks, power generation and shipping applications.
Westport supplies a range of systems such as HPDI (earlier post) and H2DI (earlier post) enabling engines to operate on cleaner-burning gaseous fuels such as compressed natural gas (CNG), liquefied natural gas (LNG), hydrogen-natural gas blends (HCNG), hydrogen and biofuels such as landfill gas. Westport’s joint venture with Cummins Inc.—Cummins Westport Inc.—manufactures and sells low-emissions alternative fuel engines for commercial transportation applications such as trucks and buses.
