Union Minister Jitendra Singh unveils India's first Hydrogen fuel cell bus

Union Minister of State (Independent Charge) Science & Technology Jitendra Singh launched India's first indigenously developed Hydrogen Fuel Cell Bus developed by KPIT-CSIR in Pune on Sunday.

At the event, Singh called Green hydrogen an excellent clean energy vector that enables deep decarbonization of difficult-to-abate emissions from the refining industry, fertiliser industry, steel industry, cement industry, and also from the heavy commercial transportation sector.

The minister informed the gathering that the fuel cell utilizes Hydrogen and Air to generate electricity to power the bus and the only effluent from the bus is water which could be the most environmentally friendly mode of transportation to date.

For instance, a single diesel bus plying on long-distance routes typically emits 100 tons of CO2 annually and there are over a million such buses in India.

Fuel Cell vehicles also give zero greenhouse gas emissions in stark contrast to diesel-powered heavy commercial vehicles which account for 12-14% of CO2 and particulate emissions.

He believes Hydrogen fuelled vehicles provide an excellent means to eliminate the on-road emissions from the heavy commercial transportation sector.

Singh further added the high efficiency of fuel cell vehicles and the high energy density of hydrogen ensure that the operational costs in rupees per kilometre for fuel cell trucks and buses are lower than diesel-powered vehicles and this could bring freight revolution to India.

Singh says India can pole-vault from being a net importer of fossil energy to becoming a net exporter of clean hydrogen energy and thus, providing global leadership in hydrogen space by becoming a large green hydrogen producer and supplier of equipment for green hydrogen.

Source:Livemint

L&T commissions a green hydrogen plant

 Indian engineering firm Larsen & Toubro (L&T) has commissioned a green hydrogen plant at its AM Naik heavy engineering complex in Hazira, Gujarat.

L&T informed that the production of green hydrogen based on an alkaline electrolysis process started on 20 August. The plant will produce 45 kilograms of green hydrogen per day, which will be used for captive consumption in the company’s Hazira manufacturing complex. 

The Green Hydrogen Plant is designed for an electrolyser capacity of 800 kilowatts (kW) comprising both Alkaline (380 kW) and PEM (420 kW) technologies. It will be powered by a rooftop solar plant of 990kW peak DC capacity and a 500kWh battery energy storage system (BESS).

As part of the first phase of the project, 380 kW alkaline electrolyser has been installed, while the 420 kW PEM electrolyser along with solar plant capacity augmentation to 1.6 MW peak DC, will be part of future expansion. 

Subramanian Sarma, whole-time director & senior executive vice president (Energy) at L&T, said: “We are proud that our engineers have set up the green hydrogen generation plant at Hazira complex and integrated it with the existing manufacturing shops for use of the green hydrogen.” 

“This initiative is in line with L&T’s climate leadership targets of Lakshya-2026 that will help reduce greenhouse gases footprint for us as well as our clients by approximately 300 tonnes/annum. We believe that green hydrogen is a promising alternative fuel, and this plant is a testimony that we are committed to creating a greener tomorrow.” 

The first phase of the project has been installed, tested, and commissioned. The scope involves the generation of high-purity green hydrogen (99.99 percent) and oxygen, and their captive consumption in the manufacturing shops. A blend of 15 percent hydrogen with natural gas will be used as a fuel, and oxygen will supplement the existing usage in cutting and welding applications. 

As part of its ESG commitments, L&T has pledged to achieve water neutrality by 2035 and carbon neutrality by 2040. Making green hydrogen an integral part of its clean fuel adoption policy. 

L&T’s climate change, energy efficiency, and renewable energy programs are aligned with the National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC), released by the Government of India. The company’s programs are also being aligned to the Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs) ratified by the Government of India during the COP 21 – Paris Agreement.

Source:Offshore Energy

Shell Chemicals to Build Pyrolysis Oil Upgrader for Bio-based Feedstocks

Shell Chemicals announces a new investment that supports its plan to transition the chemicals park into a site able to serve the changing needs of our customers. Customers want more low-carbon products and products made using recycled material.

The investment marks the first major step in transitioning the park, within ten years, by increasing the use of circular and bio-based feedstocks, growing its offer of low-carbon products, and becoming net-zero emissions through the application of hydrogen and CCS.

Investment for Circular Chemicals:

To achieve these ambitions, Shell intends to invest billions in Shell Moerdijk's chemical complex over the next decade, subject to investment decisions and within existing capital allocation frameworks.

"As our customers demand more low-carbon and circular chemicals we are seeing the reinvention of the chemical industry. At Shell Moerdijk and across our global chemicals business, Shell is investing to be ready to meet our customers’ needs as they change," said said Robin Mooldijk, executive vice president, Shell Chemicals and Products. Shell Moerdijk will build a new pyrolysis oil upgrader unit that improves the quality of pyrolysis oil, a liquid made from hard-to-recycle plastic waste and turns it into chemical feedstock for its plants.

“We are working together to deliver on shared decarbonisation and sustainability goals,” added Mooldijk. “This pyrolysis oil upgrader investment is part of our commitment to developing the chemical recycling industry, which can turn hard to recycle plastics into new and useful products, helping society tackle the key issue of plastic waste.”

The new pyrolysis oil upgrader unit treats liquid made from plastic waste that cannot be mechanically recycled and would otherwise be incinerated. Expected to start production in 2024, the unit will have a capacity of 50,000 tonnes per annum, which is the equivalent to the weight of about 7.8 billion plastic bags; and supports Shell’s ambition to recycle one million tonnes of plastic waste in its chemicals plants by 2025. Shell will use the treated pyrolysis oil to produce circular chemicals which are the ingredients used in many end products that are all around us. The investment responds to growing customer demand.

"Shell Chemicals Park Moerdijk wants to accelerate the energy transition, be a leader in the transformation of the Dutch chemical industry and grow by making more circular, low-carbon products for our customers and society. This comes with three major goals: net zero emissions within ten years, increasing the use of circular and bio-based feedstocks and doubling the number of chemical products by investing in new product lines.

Source: Shell Chemicals

Hyundai Motor among big three carmakers for first time

Hyundai Motor Group said Monday it ranked third globally in car sales in the first half of this year -- a first feat for the nation’s largest carmaker.

According to its sales data, Hyundai Motor Co., its luxury Genesis brand, and its smaller affiliate Kia Corp. sold a total of 3.299 million vehicles in global markets in the January-June period.

The sales figure is the third largest following Toyota Motor Group’s 5.138 million units and Volkswagen Group’s 4.006 million units.

Hyundai’s ranking jumped from No. 5 a year ago, outpacing Renault-Nissan-Mitsubishi Alliance and Stellantis Group which sold 3.14 million units and 3.019 million units in the first half, respectively.

While its global rivals were hit hard by chip shortages, Hyundai is said to have pulled through the crisis as it was able to secure enough chip supplies. Adding to that, the robust sales of its luxury Genesis cars and new electric vehicle launches also helped drive overall sales.

Genesis sold a total of 25,668 units in the US alone during the first six months, the brand’s best-ever sales in the all-important market.

Its EV models, including Hyundai Ioniq 5 and Kia EV6, performed well. Hyundai became the second-largest EV maker in the US with 27,000 units sold in the January-May period after Tesla, the world’s bestselling EV brand.

Despite its stellar performance, Hyundai’s first-half sales dropped 5.1 percent compared to a year ago, possibly due to supply chain disruptions and weaker consumer demands. Still, the drop was less severe considering its bigger rivals Toyota and Volkswagen saw 6 percent and 14 percent drops in sales during the same period. The Renault-Nissan alliance and GM also suffered 17.3 percent and 18.6 percent on-year losses in sales.

Source: Korean Herald

BMW fuel cell SUV to enter mass production as soon as 2025

BMW will start mass-producing and selling fuel cell vehicles developed jointly with Toyota Motor as early as 2025, sales chief Pieter Nota told Nikkei, outlining the German automaker's push into greener cars amid increasingly strict environmental regulations in Europe.

BMW unveiled the fuel cell iX5 Hydrogen concept car at the International Motor Show Germany in September 2021. Small-scale production of the sport utility vehicle will begin before the end of 2022, the company had previously announced.

FCVs can be refueled in three to four minutes -- much faster than a battery electric vehicle. Though BMW has not revealed the iX5's range, the model is equipped with two roughly 6-kilogram tanks to allow for long-distance travel.

"We see that hydrogen fuel cell technology is particularly relevant for larger SUVs," Nota said.

The iX5 is based on BMW's X5 SUV. BMW and Toyota have also jointly developed sports cars since partnering in 2013, released as the BMW Z4 and the Toyota Supra in 2019.

"We have various projects we work on with Toyota," Nota said, hinting at further collaborations with the Japanese automaker.

BMW will also accelerate its shift toward electric vehicles. It currently aims for 50% of groupwide new sales -- also including the Mini and Rolls-Royce brands -- to be electrics by 2030. EVs have been making up a larger portion of sales than expected, and "maybe if the current speed stays, we can reach that 50% one or two years earlier," Nota said.

Gasoline engine vehicles, including hybrids, are still expected to constitute around half of the group sales in 2030. "We are also keeping up our investment on the combustion engine side," Nota said.

"We do believe in the importance of various technologies -- battery electric vehicles, also hydrogen and efficient combustion engines -- because we don't want to put all our investment in one area," he said.

A protracted parts shortage looms large over BMW's strategy. EVs require more chips than engine vehicles, and automakers across the board are under pressure to secure enough of a supply.

BMW is responding to the challenge by securing long-term contracts to source chips used by its parts suppliers. It signed a contract with Inova Semiconductors and GlobalFoundries in late 2021 for smart-LED chips.

BMW is believed to be guaranteed millions of units a year under the deal. BMW plans to expand this approach both in terms of total volume and in the variety of semiconductors.

Big auto suppliers like Bosch and Continental have traditionally held significant buying power in Europe. But given the global semiconductor shortage, automakers cannot secure enough chips by relying solely on these suppliers, Nota said, explaining BMW's push to expand its own supply chains.

Source: Asia Nikkei

Type 4 composite CNG/H2 Cylinder Project report is available

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China’s CATL cements car battery dominance with €7bn Hungary plant

The manufacturer will start construction on the second European factory in Debrecen this year

China’s CATL will build a €7.3bn battery plant in Hungary, increasing its foothold in Europe and cementing its status as the world’s largest car battery manufacturer. Construction on the factory in the eastern city of Debrecen will start later in 2022, CATL said on Friday. It has a planned capacity of 100GWh a year, which would make it the largest “gigafactory” in Europe. CATL, which supplies batteries to Tesla and Volkswagen among others, did not specify when that target would be reached, but a company filing posted on the Shenzhen Stock Exchange showed that it expected to complete the Hungary factory within five-and-a-half years. Supplies from the 221-hectare site — CATL’s second in Europe — will be delivered to European carmakers, almost all of which have existing supply deals with the company.

Mercedes will initially be the largest single customer. “The greenfield project in Hungary will be a giant leap in CATL’s global expansion,” said founder and chair Robin Zeng. “There is no doubt that our plant in Debrecen will enable us to further sharpen our competitive edge, better respond to our European customers, and accelerate the transition to e-mobility in Europe.” Hungarian foreign affairs and trade minister Péter Szijjártó welcomed the development and said it would be “the biggest-ever greenfield investment in the history of Hungary”.

It is also Hungary’s largest-ever single foreign investment and will create 9,000 jobs. Thanks to hundreds of millions of euros in subsidies, Hungary has already attracted investment from Korea’s SK, which is building two vehicle battery plants in the country, and Samsung’s SDI. Japan’s GS Yuasa also produces batteries in Hungary. BMW is building a factory in Debrecen that will produce mainly electric vehicles. CATL, which is already building a European site in Erfurt, Germany, is by far the largest car battery producer, with a 35 percent market share in the first six months of this year, according to SNE Research. The top 10 manufacturers worldwide are all in Asia.

However, European companies have plans to catch up, most notably Volkswagen, which wants to build six car battery plants in Europe, starting with sites in Germany, Sweden, and Spain. Mercedes also has a deal with Stellantis and energy company Total to build factories that will provide 120GWh of battery capacity by the end of the decade. Later entrants also face a battle to secure raw materials such as lithium, which have soared in cost over the past year.

Source: Financial Times