Category: clean transportation

For Today: EVs cheaper than conventional in a decade, Trump budget cutting Clean Cities

EV battery costs dropping:  A new study by Bloomberg New Energy Finance indicates that declining battery costs will mean electric vehicles will also be cheaper to buy in the U.S. and Europe as soon as 2025. In EVs, batteries make up about half the cost. The study predicts that prices will fall by about 77 percent between 2016 and 2030. French carmaker Renault predicts total ownership costs of electric cars like its Zoe will be conventional to gasoline-engine cars by the early 2020s.

RNG in Metro buses:  Clean Energy Fuels Corp. announced that the Los Angeles County Metropolitan Transportation Authority (Metro) has awarded Clean Energy a renewable natural gas (RNG) contract to fuel its fleet of transit buses with Redeem brand renewable natural gas. The fueling contract begins with a one-year pilot where Clean Energy will provide Redeem to one of Metro’s eleven compressed natural gas stations, which are currently operated and maintained by Clean Energy. Each station provides fuel for approximately 200 CNG buses. That may lead to the company providing its RNG to the entire Metro fleet of 2,200 natural gas buses for four more years.

Tucker Perkins new CEO:  The Propane Education & Research Council has named industry veteran Thomas “Tucker” Perkins as its next president and chief executive officer, said PERC Chairman Thomas Van Buren, who also led the executive search team. Perkins, 60, joined PERC in 2012 as Chief Business Development Officer and most recently served as Chief Operations Officer. Current president and CEO Roy Willis, 67, who has led the PERC staff since operations began nearly 20 years ago, recently announced that he will retire on July 31, 2017. Willis will serve in a supporting role for a limited time to help with the transition.

Big cuts in Trump’s DOE budget: The Trump administration is proposing dramatic cuts to the Department of Energy budget for the 2018 fiscal year, which begins October 1. Funding would be cut entirely for the Clean Cities program and the DOE’s Vehicle Technologies Program would see huge cuts. You can view the proposed DOE budget here with details on the cuts presented on pages 28, 47, and 48 in PDF document pages; these three pages can be seen on pages 22, 41, and 42 in the report’s page numbers at the bottom of each page of the Congressional Justification document.

Weeks ago, news came out that Trump’s 2018 budget proposed eliminating the DOE’s Advanced Technology Vehicle Manufacturing Program (ATMVP) and Advanced Research Projects Agency-Energy (ARPA-E). Trump would like to see a $54-billion increase in defense spending that would be offset in cuts to other departments. DoE would see a $1.7 billion cut for the next fiscal year. Of the $28 billion in the DoE’s budget funding, about $1.4 billion will be increased for the National Nuclear Security Administration.

For Today: More on the all-new Nissan Leaf, Qualcomm and Mercedes moving forward on wireless charging

All-new Leaf reveal:  A Nissan executive says that the next-generation Leaf will be unveiled on Sept. 6 in Tokyo. Pierril Pouret, Senior VP in Europe, confirmed the date and that the 2018 Leaf be an all-new offering. “This will be a brand new model, designed from a blank sheet, that will make sure we are still in the front,” he said. The company put out a teaser photo yesterday of the new headlights and announced that more will be revealed this summer. The automaker said that the Leaf is the world’s best-selling electric vehicle with more than 260,000 on the road globally.

Qualcomm and Mercedes bringing wireless charging forward:  Qualcomm is getting ready to bring wireless electric vehicle charging (WEVC) to market in a big way, starting next year with Daimler. Mercedes-Benz S550e plug-in hybrid drivers can park over a charging pad where charging begins automatically once the plug-in hybrid is close enough to the charging platform. It’s meant to take away the problem of plug-in vehicle owners forgetting to charge. The Qualcomm Halo division has designed WEVC units that use resonant magnetic induction to transfer energy. The WEVC system will be manufactured by an automotive electronics supplier which has licensed the technology Qualcomm Halo. Qualcomm worked with Mercedes on the FIA Formula E. Besides running the Qualcomm Safety Car with wireless charging, the company has worked with the Mercedes factory Formula One team, Mercedes AMG Petronas.

Uber gets into trucking:  Uber announced yesterday that it’s bringing its role as a third-party broker matching customers to drivers over the freight hauling business. Uber Freight is now available to large trucking firms and smaller independent operators nationwide; a test version had been run in Texas since September. It will be separate from its Otto driverless truck business, which has been at the center of a lawsuit by Google’s Waymo against an Uber employee who’s been accused of stealing its self-driving car technology.

Solar energy storage:  Mercedes-Benz Energy and Vivint Solar will bring the Mercedes-Benz customizable home energy storage system to the U.S., starting in California. It will offer cost savings to homeowners on energy bills, backup energy during blackouts, and clean energy for those driving electric cars. Vivint Solar is one of the largest solar providers in the U.S and will bring its experience installing solar at more than 100,000 homes across the country.

RNG academic research center:  The University of California, Riverside and Southern California Gas Co. this week announced the establishment of a new Center for Renewable Natural Gas. The Center is the first academic establishment in the U.S. dedicated to the study and applied research of renewable gas technologies. It was funded in part by SoCalGas with a matching donation from the South Coast Air Quality Management District and the National Center for Sustainable Transportation. It’s part of UC Riverside’s Center for Environmental Research & Technology (CE-CERT). “Renewable gas can play a key role in reducing greenhouse gases and meeting California’s renewable energy goals,” said Lisa Alexander, vice president of customer solutions and communications for SoCalGas.  “In California, the agriculture and waste industries produce a great deal of methane that could – and should – be used as renewable gas to heat homes, and fuel power plants and near-zero-emissions trucks.”

 

RNG Will Be Important Part of Hitting Port Clean Truck Goals

There’s a lot happening right now as the largest port in the U.S. moves farther toward clean transportation.

 

Earlier this month at ACT Expo, the California Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition (CNGVC) announced submission of the Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT) Now Plan to the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach. The coalition is giving input as the ports adopt the 2017 Clean Air Action Plan (CAAP), the next phase of the clean truck program. They want to see emissions further reduced from the 13,000 heavy-duty trucks that currently serve the ports.

 

The ACT Now Plan encompasses all zero- and near-zero emission technologies and fuels, including natural gas, propane, battery electric, hydrogen fuel cell electric, and others that meet a 0.02 g/bhp-hrNOx standard and can achieve a minimum 40% reduction of greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions using renewable fuels or energy.

 

For now, port commissioners are showing more interest in electrified transportation in hitting emissions targets. While that would more than meet these emission reduction targets, it will take several years for the heavy-duty electric trucks to become available at that scale. Renewable natural gas could serve as an ideal bridge fuel during that time, according to members of the coalition.

 

Currently, the ports have about 700 natural gas-powered trucks serving them, according to the Southern California Gas Co. All of these trucks operating in the region currently have access to RNG, also known as biomethane, through natural gas fueling stations. Southern California has been the hub of these natural gas fueling stations, which will help drayage and carrier truck companies convert over to the fuel.

 

The benefits of using RNG in trucks equipped with natural gas-powered engines are becoming well known among fleet managers. In a 2011 study of RNG production methods (PDF), Argonne National Laboratory concluded that all RNG methods show significantly less GHG emissions and fossil fuel consumption than conventional fossil natural gas and gasoline.

 

Both of the ports are reviewing the ACT Now Plan as part of the process, with more expected to be decided upon this summer. You can read the announcement here, find a summary here, and the see the plan here.

 

For those interested in learning more about the port’s clean truck program and the role ACT Now Plan will play, attending the upcoming FuturePorts 2017 Annual Conference would be ideal. Conference speakers will be looking at the 10-year mark since the Clean Air Action Plan was implemented at the ports; and some of them have been involved in bringing clean trucks to the ports. The conference “will focus on the trends in energy, port operations and efficiency that are disrupting historical business models and setting the course for a competitive future.” It’s taking place Thursday, June 22, 2017, 8:00 a.m. to 3:00 p.m. at the Hyatt Regency Long Beach.

For today: Lift joins up with Waymo, Musk boring underground LA

  • Lyft partners with Waymo: Ride-hailing firm Lyft has forged a partnership with the Waymo self-driving car firm. The partners will work on pilot projects and product development in self-driving car technology, with the end goal of bringing needed transportation to fast-growing cities. The timing of the deal comes about as Waymo has taken ride-hailing giant Uber to court over allegedly stealing that technology. Uber had acquired the Otto startup, which led Waymo filing the lawsuit based on claims of intellectual property theft. Yesterday, the federal judge ruled that Uber must return Waymo documents. The judge also said that Uber can continue working on self-driving car technology, but Anthony Levandowski must be removed from any work relating to a key automated technology called lidar. Levandowski had been a leader in Google’s self-driving car research and a founder of the Otto self-driving truck firm.
  • Boring in LA: In a set of photos and video on his Instagram page Friday, Tesla CEO Elon Musk showed what’s been happening with The Boring Company concept. What started in late 2016 as a set of Twitter posts about his frustrations being stuck in traffic while driving to Hawthorne (SpaceX HQ and Tesla service center), shows an “electric sled” that can go up to 125 mph through an underground tunnel somewhere in Los Angeles. The word “Boring” has to do with boring a tunnel underground. Musk has been secretive about where it’s located, and how much ground it covers. The tunnel has got to be at least a mile long, if you watch the videos. Musk said that the tunnel will run from Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) to Culver City, Santa Monica, Westwood, and Sherman Oaks. There will be more tunnels, and they’ll cover all of the greater Los Angeles area, he said. No word yet on whether Musk has regulatory approval to continue the track – or Boring Machine 1, which he’s nicknamed Godot.
  • Chinese EV plant: Guangzhou Automobile Group, or GAC Group, has started building a vehicle assembly plant in China’s southern Guangdong province that will have the capacity to product up to 200,000 electric cars a year by the end of 2018. It should cost the company about $700 million to get there. The company’s first electric car, the GE3, was introduced at the 2017 Detroit auto show in January. Its new plug-in hybrid sedan, the GA3S, and plug-in hybrid SUV, the GS4, were unveiled at the Shanghai auto show in April.
  • Propane fueling acquisition: Agility Fuel Solutions’ Powertrain Systems unit has acquired the assets of CleanFUEL USA and some of its employees. The company will add business locations in Wixom, Mich., to focus on fuel systems, and Georgetown, Texas to focus on refueling equipment. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Powertrain Systems will be able to offer complete propane fuel systems for commercial vehicles based on patented liquid propane injection technology. The company said it will be able to offer “turnkey propane fueling packages for both private fleet and retail locations, enabling a complete propane solution for commercial fleets globally.”
  • Renewable diesel station: Ryder System has begun to offer renewable diesel (RD) fuel at its San Francisco fueling facility, located at 2700 3rd Street. With this implementation, Ryder customers will be better able to address their sustainability goals of reducing greenhouse gas emissions while still utilizing diesel vehicles. Based on production levels and availability of RD, Ryder will continue to monitor other markets with plans for expanding this offering. The company also plans to analyze market opportunities that would benefit its customers to have RD available for their fleets.
  • GM’s sustainable tires: General Motors Co. is taking on another corporate sustainability drive by changing over to tires made from sustainable natural rubber. The automaker is working several tire suppliers to create an industry first. The definition of sustainable tires includes that the natural rubber “did not lead to deforestation,” was harvested to aid an area’s economic and social development, and is “managed in a transparent and traceable manner.” This will apply to about 49 million tires that the Detroit automaker buys each year. GM is also known for its going “landfill-free” at its facilities around the world, with all waste from daily operations recycled, reused or converted to energy.

Clean Fuels and Energy: What happened to big carmakers endorsing LCFS?

If you take a take a look at a letter sent last week to California officials supporting extension of the Low Carbon Fuel Standard, you’ll see an impressive list of sustainable transportation stakeholders.

 

Calstart played a role organizing representatives of 155 vehicle fleet operators, vehicle manufacturers, fuel producers, and industry groups to endorse a letter last week that was sent to Gov. Jerry Brown, Kevin De León, Senate President Pro Tempore, and Anthony Rendon, Assembly Speaker. The group supports LCFS, which is aimed at reducing the carbon intensity of California’s transportation fuels 10% by 2020, and at a higher level by 2030.

 

Stakeholders want their say in Sacramento as policymakers consider extending the state’s comprehensive climate change laws going back to AB 32 in 2006. LCFS came about in 2009 and was first implemented in 2011. It’s said to have increased the use of clean fuels in the state by 57% between 2011 and 2016. The carbon intensity standards take into account every step of producing, transporting, and consuming the fuel. It’s fuel-neutral, which means it doesn’t favor any one fuel but opens the door for those using the fuels to choose from the best, economical, low-carbon options.

 

The endorsement list provides a comprehensive look at leaders in the clean transportation sector, with most of them playing a visible role earlier this month at ACT Expo 2017 in Long Beach, Calif. Medium- and heavy-duty vehicle makers are well represented, but what’s missing is light-duty vehicle manufacturers. Tesla and BYD, leaders in plug-in electrified vehicles, are the only two carmakers on the list; however, BYD isn’t currently selling any cars in the U.S., just electric buses and trucks.

 

So what happened to automakers that have been selling a lot of green vehicles in California? General Motors, Nissan, Ford, Toyota, and Honda should be on the list – especially given that they’ve sold a lot of vehicles across the spectrum of fuels – GM and Ford with CNG and propane conversions of trucks and vans, and all five offering electrified vehicle options.

 

On the federal level, these automakers and several others have called out to President Donald Trump to extend the fuel economy and emissions public comment periods; and some, especially Ford CEO Mark Fields, would like to see the mandate softened up.

 

What’s the deal with California? Could it be related to the state’s zero emission vehicle mandate, that several automakers don’t see viable for being able to meet? Is it too California-centric, giving the state even more influence over future policies nationwide?

 

Any thoughts? Then email me.

Green Auto Market switching from weekly to daily newsletter

Hello,

Starting tomorrow, Green Auto Market will be emailed out to readers daily. News coverage will be shared along with a central topic for the day significant in clean transportation.

The newsletter had originally been published monthly, and went weekly in the summer of 2013 once the website was launched.

As media colleagues have suggested, going daily is necessary. Daily content is needed to stay current and informed on the issues – and to stay relevant with readers.

The challenge for media sources, and for those receiving the information, is to not be consumed with information overload these days. We’re receiving a high volume of emails, newsletters, pings on our smartphones, and aggregated newsfeeds from Google, Amazon, Apple, and specialized sources.

The good news is that we have a lot more options to customize our interests and news sources. That helps readers stay informed and use their time well.

Green Auto Market will have news summaries and a focal point for the day:

  • Vehicle Launches & Demonstrations
  • Clean Fuels & Energy
  • Regulatory Climate
  • Fueling Infrastructure
  • Mobility & Innovation

Coverage will also explore critical developments in key global markets outside North America, including Europe, China, Japan, Korea, and India. Automakers, fuel and energy producers, technology companies, and policymakers, continue to see their approach shaped by economic globalization, trade agreements, corporate merges and joint ventures, and technology advancements shared across borders.

Thanks to those of you who leave comments, even if the article’s factual accuracy is questioned. Good to know, and your feedback is appreciated. To leave a comment, just click on the title and scroll down below the article for the Leave a Reply – Comment box.

The subscriber edition, Green Auto Market – Extended Edition, will continue to be published. It will go out at two-times-per week intervals. It provides readers with news analysis and market data trends covering hybrid and electric vehicle sales, fuel prices, regulatory issues, global market developments, and other topics. Those interested can subscribe here.

You can also follow Twitter and Facebook pages.

Thanks for being part of the readership.

Jon LeSage
Editor and Publisher
Green Auto Market

This Week’s Top 10: Congresswoman challenges Trump’s EPA budget cut, Toyota Prius Prime takes top spot in April

by Jon LeSage, editor and publisher, Green Auto Market

Here’s my take on the 10 most significant and interesting occurrences during the past week…….

  1. Challenging EPA cuts: President Donald Trump’s proposed cuts to the Environmental Protection Agency’s budget will shut down the Ann Arbor, Mich., vehicle emissions testing lab and put 435 employees out of their jobs, according to U.S. Rep. Debbie Dingell, D-Mich. Dingell toured the National Vehicle and Fuel Emissions Laboratory on Monday, which is part of her congressional district. She’d been denied access to visiting the site in April. Trump’s 31% budget cut to the EPA would be the biggest cut to any federal agency; the Ann Arbor lab has been the home base for vehicle emissions testing in the U.S. “This is extremely troubling and raises serious questions about the executive branch closing access to government facilities and preventing members of congress from conducting necessary oversight,” Dingell wrote in a recent letter to Trump.
  2. PEV sales in April: The Toyota Prius Prime took top spot for the first time, nudging out the Chevy Volt at 1,819 units sold versus 1,807. Another interesting one was seeing the Bolt move up higher in the rank to No. 3 with 1,292 sold, up 32.1% over March sales. Overall plug-in electrified vehicle sales in the U.S. were up 7.82% over April 2016 and down 25.6% from March, according to HybridCars’s Dashboard. For hybrid vehicle sales, the Toyota Prius moved back to No. 1 in April, beating out the Ford Fusion Hybrid 5,802 versus 4,509. Overall hybrid sales were down 3.3% from March and up 6.8% from the previous year.
  3. Softening subsidies hurt BYD: The world’s leading seller of electric vehicles has taken a dive in China since government subsidies have been reduced. BYD saw its sales drop 34% during the last quarter. BYD had seen double-digit sales growth, driving China to the global lead in EV sales. The company is now looking at how to cut costs in producing cars without cutting into profits. The Chinese electric carmaker had been seeing 45% annual sales growth in recent years. That led the Chinese EV market to see more than 500,000 in sales last year.
  4. Q1 PEV sales: The U.S. and Europe saw a great first quarter for sales of plug-in electrified vehicles. U.S. sales of PEVs jumped 49% during the first quarter, according to Bloomberg. That figure reached 40,700 units sold, which indicates sales will go up noticeably this year over last year. The European Automobile Manufacturers Association reported that sale of PEVs have increased by 37.6% compared to the first quarter of 2016. Battery electric vehicles saw a 49% increase and plug-in hybrids were up 13% in Europe during the first quarter.
  5. Uber supporting university AI project: Uber is taking a new tactic to affirm its place in the autonomous vehicle market, and stabilize that part of the business as the Waymo legal battle comes to a conclusion. The ride-hailing giant will be setting up a new artificial intelligence (AI) team in Toronto to improve its autonomous vehicle software and to tap into university resources. The Toronto office will be led by professor Raquel Urtasun of University of Toronto, an expert on the technology. Uber and Waymo are watching for a ruling by Judge William Alsup over a potential preliminary injunction, which could happen as soon as next week against Uber’s autonomous vehicle program. The Google self-driving car division has claimed that its former employee, Anthony Levandowski, stole files while he was working for Waymo and then brought them over to Uber. In related news, the city of Portland, Ore., is clamping down on Uber for using software called Greyball that helped its drivers evade local transportation regulators.
  6. India going electric: India appears to be leaning toward plug-in electrified vehicles over hybrids and traditional gasoline engine cars, according to a draft document from a government think-tank read by Reuters. Current incentives for hybrids may go away, as India appears ready to follow China’s lead in providing subsidies for plug-in vehicles while taking hybrids off the list. India is looking to cut oil imports by half and follow the Paris climate treaty.
  7. M-B offers energy storage: Mercedes-Benz is going into the energy storage business, starting in the U.K. with up to 20 kWh storage available to home residents. A commercial property program is also coming out in that country. It’s being tied into solar power, with alliances being worked out with partner companies. Daimler first started the energy storage unit in 2015, soon after Tesla did so. BMW and Nissan are also getting into this side of the business that tapes into the lithium-ion batteries going into their electric cars.
  8. Tesla goes to Mexico: Tesla held interviews in Mexico over the weekend to bring in more experienced manufacturing engineers to its Fremont, Calif., assembly plant. The electric automakers has big plans on the table, preparing to manufacture 500,000 units a year starting in 2018. Mexican engineers have a lot of experience working for automakers, with 19 automotive plants now open in Mexico. The Trump administration has different things in mind, not wanting foreign workers to come to the U.S., and not supporting the NAFTA free trade agreement with Mexico and Canada.
  9. Year of the plug-in hybrid: Automakers see plug-in hybrids as an important stepping stone toward all-electric vehicle sales, and will be rolling out quite a few of them this year. These will be price-competitive models such as the Kia Niro plug-in hybrid version compared to the gasoline-engine Niro crossover. Federal tax incentives are helping, with cars like the Chevy Volt getting the maximum $7,500 tax credit. State incentives are helping, too, with New York recently starting a $2,000 rebate program.
  10. What’s helped China PEV sales: While Chinese government subsidies are likely to see a cutback this year, they have been critical in getting China to where it is as the leading global PEV market. A new report from Oak Ridge National Laboratories took a wide-angle view, studying all of the incentive programs being offering by the national and local governments. One of these has been significant investment in the charging infrastructure and a diverse vehicle portfolio receiving subsidies. The government has been supporting electric buses and other fleet applications such as electric taxis. The boom in “new energy vehicle” sales has been a mix of electric small cars, luxury cars, and commercial vehicles.

ACT Expo 2017: Highlights from clean transportation show themes and new product launches

Electrified trucks and buses, the significance of renewable natural gas, and growing interest among users in mobility services and automated transport, were leading topics at ACT Expo 2017 in Long Beach, Calif. The exhibit hall was filled with the latest clean vehicles, drivetrain components, and fueling infrastructure dispensers and stations available to the fleet market.

Electrified vehicles:  While several prominent electric work truck makers went out of business not too long ago, fleets now have a diverse selection of offerings to choose from companies that look ready to stay on the market and service the vehicles long-term. Vehicles include buses, shuttles, port drayage trucks, work pickup trucks, and delivery trucks.

Workhorse Group unveiled its W-15 electric concept pickup. It can go 80 miles per charge through its 60 kWh battery pack. Buyers can also pay for an extended range plug-in hybrid version that can go a total of 310 miles on electricity and gasoline. As reported in Green Auto Market, the company is seeing a lot of interest in the market, with letters of intent received for the purchase of 3,000 units from a few utility and government fleets. It has a starting price of $52,000 and its platform was built on the E-Gen electric technology used in Workhorse medium-duty delivery trucks. Along with emissions reduction benefits, the company said it the W-15 has 460 horsepower with the ability to carry 2,200 pounds in payload and tow 5,000 pounds.

Renewable natural gas:  One fleet manager told me how RNG has been taking off in California for municipal fleets, with major gas suppliers now offering the clean fuel and state incentives backing it. His natural gas used in the fleet has been made up of about half traditional natural gas and half RNG. The Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas and the California Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition released a study forecasting the economic impact RNG is bringing to the state. Deploying trucks fueled by renewable natural gas could create up to 130,000 new jobs and add $14 billion to California’s economy. The ‘RNG Jobs Report’ says that a switch to renewable natural gas trucks could quickly help California achieve its air quality, greenhouse gas emissions, and climate change-related goals.

Award winners:  Fleet Owner’s Green Fleet of the Year: Walmart. The company, with its huge fleet of 6,400 tractors and 61,000 trailers, has seen several sustainability innovations adopted since Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Like several transport companies and vehicle makers, the strategy has been corporate-wide, with fleet vehicles on part of it. Recently, 75% of Walmart’s global waste is diverted from landfills and 25% of its operations are powered by renewable energy sources. Since setting its sustainability targets in 2005, the company has removed about 35 million metric tons of carbon emissions from its supply chain despite its continuing growth over that time period.

ACT Expo awards:
Leading Carrier Fleet:  Saddle Creek Logistics Services. The carrier has 550 tractors with 250 of them powered by CNG moving through the southeast U.S.

Utility Fleet:  ForticBC. The British Columbia electric power and gas distribution utility now operates about 600 CNG and LNG heavy duty vehicles. The goal is bringing the fleet up to 50% alternative fuels by the end of 2018. The utility operates 15 CNG and seven LNG fueling stations.

Transit & Mobility Fleet:  North Kansas City School District. So far, 159 Type C school buses have been converted to run on CNG.

Private Fleet:  Frito-Lay, Inc. The company currently has 580 CNG freight trucks, 17 CNG public fueling stations, and 200 electric vehicles; that makes for the largest commercial EV fleet in the U.S.

Public Fleet:  City of Los Angeles. The city reported that 2,041 of its vehicles have been displaced from traditional internal combustion engine vehicles. The fleet is now made up of hybrid vehicles, CNG street sweepers, LNG and CNG refuse trucks, 143 LNG and CNG heavy-duty trucks, and 100% of LA DOT’s buses are green.

“In It For the Long Haul” award:  Waste Management, Inc. The company reported having 5,791 of its collection vehicles running on natural gas. It has 95 CNG, LNG, and liquefied compressed natural gas (LCNG) fueling stations in place. About 40% of its natural gas vehicles are fueling by renewable natural gas coming from landfill biogas.

GM’s take on mobility:  General Motors is in a strong position to experience firsthand transportation trends of the next decade. In an interview, Alex Keros, manager and senior project engineer for Maven and GM, talked about what’s working with the Maven carsharing unit since GM launched it last year. About 60% to 70% of renters are members of the millennial generation who have less interest in owning a vehicle but do need to become acclimated to mobility options. GM is also in a good position to analyze data on the ridesharing side of the business through its investment in Lyft, which is also part of testing out self-driving Chevy Bolts. Lyft drivers and Maven renters are trying out driving the Bolt and the Chevy Volt. It’s turning into an excellent learning experience for users; the Lyft drivers are playing a role in sharing their experience with Lyft riders on what it’s like to drive an electric car. They’re not hearing complaints about the limited range issue, which has to do with the Bolt’s 238 miles and the Volt’s extended range. Even more important, Keros said, is drivers learning how to live with and respect the technology. They do adapt quickly to electrified mobility, he said. The company is working with EVgo on getting drivers set up to charge in their network. That’s also part of the learning experience with drivers finding out how long it takes; and how you can get away with taking a shorter charge to make a short trip, and then doing a full charge at night. Doing less than a 100% full charge is typical, he said.

In a separate interview, Mustafa Mohatarem, chief economist for GM, said that he doesn’t expect to see surging growth in ridesharing firms Lyft and Uber, and carsharing through Maven and Zipcar, along with the introduction of autonomous vehicles, to mean we’ll see a lot less vehicles on roads in the next 10 years. With drivers of these shared rides putting 25,000 to 50,000 miles per year on their cars, it will accelerate the replacement cycle, he said. Car sales aren’t likely to drop significantly.

Mohatarem doesn’t see EV sales skyrocketing in the near future. While diesel cars are going away in Europe since the Volkswagen scandal started, traditional engine vehicles won’t be going away anytime soon. With development of U.S. shale reserves, the supply will be plentiful and domestic for the foreseeable future, he said. Regulatory pressure in markets like Europe is a factor that will bring more EVs to market, he said. The chief economist doesn’t see EVs becoming viable until they make up at least 10% of new vehicle sales.

GM does see demand for natural gas and propane autogas vehicles growing among fleets. It’s also driven by overall fuel prices. Both of the alternative fuels are seeing a wider product range, which is helping with vehicle sales. The automaker is seeing demand for CNG-powered versions of the Chevy Equinox and Cruze and its pickup truck lineup. Good range and strong fuel economy are helping, Mohatarem said.

Cap and trade funds:  The California Air Resources Board announced at ACT Expo that California Climate Investments in zero-emission vehicles have reached $599 million since 2013. That’s supported putting hundreds of thousands of clean cars and zero-emission trucks and buses on California roads. That’s come from 115,000 light-duty zero emission vehicles including battery electric, plug-in hybrids, and fuel cell vehicles. On the commercial truck side, 46 Class 7 and 8 zero-emission trucks; 950 electrified delivery, utility, and refuse trucks; 407 zero emission transit buses, shuttles, and light-rail cars; 29 electric school buses; and 46 zero emission off-road vehicles, have received cap-and-trade funding from the state. Capital comes from the quarterly cap-and-trade auctions that came from the state’s AB 32 global warming law enacted in 2006. Some of the investment has supported demonstration projects of various specialty vehicles serving the ports and other applications.

And in other ACT Expo news………

  • BYD showcased its class 8 battery electric refuse trucks, which the company said is the first heavy-duty refuse truck built by an original equipment manufacturer that’s 100 percent battery electric. The Chinese automaker said that its North American division now offer these vehicles for purchase and delivery. BYD also announced that its first 60-foot articulated battery electric transit bus has been delivered to Antelope Valley Transit Authority. It’s part of the Los Angeles county-based transit agency’s goal to convert its bus fleet to electrification by 2018, and is the first of 13 60-foot electric buses that will end up with the transit agency.
  • Cummins Westport will make a new launch of near zero emissions vehicles in 2018, according to president Rob Nietzke. All three of its engines – the 6.7, 8.9, and 11.9 liter versions – will be renamed next year and will feature refinements from the Near Zero design launched in 2015. The 8.9-liter L9N and the ISX12N will be certified by CARB at just 0.02 grams of NOx per brake-horsepower hour, which is 90% cleaner than the current standard. The 6.7-liter B6.7N is to be certified at 50% cleaner than the current standard.
  • UPS will deploy a prototype fuel cell electric vehicle in its Rolling Laboratory fleet. UPS is working with the U.S. Department of Energy and other partners to design a first-of-its-kind, zero tailpipe emissions, Class 6 medium-duty delivery truck that meets the same route and range requirements of UPS’s existing conventional fuel vehicles. Unlike fuel cell auxiliary power units, this vehicle will use the onboard fuel cell to generate electricity to propel the vehicle. This project is an important step toward demonstrating the commercial viability of zero tailpipe emissions trucks to fleet operators and the developing FCEV supply chain, the company said.
  • Ryder System will be the strategic service partner for Workhorse Group. Ryder will be the exclusive maintenance provider for Workhorse’s entire light- and medium-duty range-extended electric vehicle fleet in North America and will provide a combination of warranty and maintenance services as part of Ryder’s SelectCare fleet maintenance portfolio. Ryder will also serve as the primary distributor in North America for Workhorse’s E-100 and E-GEN range-extended medium-duty vehicles, as well as the new W-15 electric pickup truck.

This Week’s Top 10: Low emission NGVs and RNG big at ACT Expo, Ports urged to clean up truck air pollution

by Jon LeSage, editor and publisher, Green Auto Market

Here’s my take on the 10 most significant and interesting occurrences during the past week…….

  1. Low emission NGVs and fuels highlighted at ACT Expo: A new jobs study was released on the opening day of ACT Expo 2017 in Long Beach, Calif., predicting that deploying trucks fueled by renewable natural gas could create up to 130,000 new jobs and add $14 billion to California’s economy. The ‘RNG Jobs Report’ examines the economic potential of fueling heavy-duty trucks with renewable natural gas produced in California, instead of being powered by petroleum-based diesel. The study was released jointly by the Coalition for Renewable Natural Gas (RNG Coalition) and the California Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition (CNGVC). A switch to renewable natural gas trucks could quickly help California achieve its air quality, greenhouse gas emissions, and climate change-related goals, the two coalitions say…….. Cummins Westport introduced new 2018 model year natural gas engines for regional haul truck / tractor, vocational and transit, school bus, and refuse applications. The new B6.7N, L9N, and ISX12N engines feature Environmental Protection Agency and California Air Resources Board Optional Low NOx certification, on-board diagnostics, closed crankcase ventilation (CCV) systems, and performance and reliability improvements. The new ISX12N features a redesigned fuel system with fewer parts and improved performance. All CWI engines offer customers the choice of using compressed natural gas (CNG), liquefied natural gas (LNG) or renewable natural gas (“RNG”) as a fuel.  Using low carbon intensity RNG fuel provides significant well-to-wheel GHG reductions and is an important aspect of a move to zero emissions strategy, the company said.
  2. ACT Now Plan: Members of the California Natural Gas Vehicle Coalition (CNGVC) yesterday urged the Ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach to develop and implement an aggressive clean truck program as part of the updated 2017 Clean Air Action Plan (CAAP). To accelerate the CAAP, the Coalition developed the Advanced Clean Trucks (ACT) Now Plan, which offers a cost-effective opportunity, using proven technology, to drastically and immediately reduce emissions from the 13,000 heavy-duty trucks serving the two ports. Coalition members outlined the ACT Now Plan at ACT Expo 2017. The plan calls on port leaders to immediately increase the number of zero- and near-zero emissions trucks to improve regional air quality, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and drive job growth. “The latest generation of low-NOx, zero-equivalent natural gas engines powered by renewable natural gas exceed the required air quality standard by 90 percent and they are available today,” said Thomas Lawson, president of CNGVC. “There is no reason to wait to clean Southern California’s air.”
  3. Tree planting for Earth Month: Ford and Zipcar planted 20,869 trees on Saturday through One Tree Planted as a result of their college Earth Month campaign. The program further encouraged the use of sustainable transportation on campus by committing to plant one tree for every reservation made in a Ford Zipcar, and an extra tree for students who carpooled and shared a picture using the hashtag #FordZipsters. The campaign was open to over 500 college and university campuses with existing Zipcar programs from April 13-23. The resulting trees were planted through One Tree Planted, a non-profit on a mission to reforest the planet and provide education, awareness and engagement on the importance of trees. The trees were planted in the Ochoco National Forest in Oregon as part of the McKay Creek Floodplain Reconnection Project. Zipcar members can reserve any of the company’s more than 12,000 self-service vehicles across the globe, including a variety of Ford models, by the hour or day, including the cost of gas, maintenance and insurance.
  4. Fuel cell delivery vans: UPS showed the world’s first hydrogen fuel cell Class 6 delivery truck today during ACT Expo. The van, developed as part of a $10-million federal Department of Energy program, is the first of 17 hydrogen fuel-cell vans the company will be deploying in the U.S. by the end of 2018. The initial van showed today at ACT Expo will start in service later this year serving the Sacramento market.
  5. EVs for Uber rides in Oregon: Uber drivers in Portland, Ore., are being encouraged to switch over to electric vehicles for rides. Similar to a program launched in London, this one will start in late May and taps into a combination of incentives and educational programs. Uber says it has about 6,000 drivers in Oregon now; while about 100 of them drive EVs now, the company wants to utilize the program to bring the number up to around 600 EVs by 2019. The company is working with Drive Oregon, a nonprofit dedicated to getting more EVs on the state’s roads. The organization will work with Uber drivers on how to share the benefits of EVs with their riders. In separate news, Drive Oregon announced that its name has been changed to Forth. After being a big part of helping bring together leaders for the state to become the nation’s “living lab” for electric mobility, the organization is expanding beyond its home state, expanding to other regions and incorporating smart, shared mobility technology. You can visit the new website to learn more about the new look, expanded mission, and new Go Forth Electric Vehicle Showcase.
  6. Audi’s sustainable suppliers: Audi AG introduced sustainability ratings for its automotive suppliers last month. The Volkswagen subsidiary is increasing its commitment to achieving a sustainable value chain. The ratings are based on checks carried out at the suppliers’ production plants as well as on company reporting. The premium car manufacturer is starting the ratings system with the selection of suppliers for the new Audi e-tron electric SUV and for the successor to the Audi A3.
  7. ZEV fees and fuel taxes jumping up in CA: California will raise $52.4 billion over the next decade to repair its roadway infrastructure through zero emission vehicle fees and raising taxes on gasoline and diesel. Owners of all-electric, plug-in hybrid, and fuel cell vehicles will have to pay an annual $100 fee to the state starting on July 1, 2020. That’s expected to raise $200 million for the state funding program. Gasoline taxes will go up another 12 cents a gallon from the current 30 cents per gallon as of Nov. 1, 2017. Diesel taxes will go up another 20 cents from the current 13 cents per gallon, and a sales tax for diesel vehicles will go up another 5.75% on that date. These tax increases are expected to bring in tax revenue of $24.4 billion, $7.3 billon, and $3.5 billion, respectively. Funds from the new Road Repair and Accountability Act just signed into law by Gov. Jerry Brown will cover various projects such as $15 billion in “Fix-It-First” local road repairs, including fixing potholes; $7.5 billion to improve local public transportation; and $4 billion in bridge and culvert repairs.
  8. Tesla dealing with safety rating ding: Tesla started an over-the-air update to reinstate the emergency automatic braking (AEB) feature in all of the Model S and Model X vehicles produced since late October without AEB. The company started adding it fully autonomous vehicle technology and had temporarily set aside AEB and other functions. Consumer Reports has dropped the Model S sedan’s overall score to 85 from 87, down from the top of the luxury vehicle list into third place behind the BMW 7 Series and Lexus LS. The Tesla Model X also took a hit, dropping from 58 to 56, putting it near the bottom of the midsized luxury SUV segment. Consumer Reports says that Tesla had been making promises to upgrade the software and deal with the safety problem since late 2016, but had not yet taken action.
  9. Total SA sees EVs taking off: A leading oil producer predicts that electric vehicles could make up to 30% of global new vehicle sales by 2030. Speaking recently at the Bloomberg New Energy Finance conference in New York, Total SA’s chief energy economist, Joel Couse, predicted that EVs will make up 15 to 30 percent of global new vehicle sales by that year. Oil demand used in transportation will flatten out after 2030 and possibly even decline, he said. That’s the most aggressive forecast ever made by a major oil industry company, said Colin McKerracher, head of advanced transport analysis at Bloomberg New Energy Finance.
  10. VW settlement in California: Automakers have expressed concerns that Volkswagen is being give a competitive advantage in California over how the German automaker will be spending $200 million in the state through its diesel emissions settlement. The California Air Resources Board has taken public comments and is reviewing VW’s proposal on how the $200 million will be spent in the first 30 months on plug-in vehicle infrastructure and other zero emission vehicle projects. Competitor automakers said that VW has chosen several locations that already have many electric vehicles in place, and support should go elsewhere in California to spur more EV interest and sales. Toyota, Honda, and Hyundai also filed a statement asking the state to direct a “significant portion” of the funds into hydrogen fueling stations to meet zero emission vehicle goals. Sierra Club in its CARB filing asked the automaker to “rethink its infrastructure proposal to include more investments in community-based charging in disadvantaged communities.”

 

This Week’s Top 10: VW paying $4.3B in fines, Tesla speeding up Model 3 production

by Jon LeSage, editor and publisher, Green Auto Market

Here’s my take on the 10 most significant and interesting occurrences during the past week…….

  1. VW settles criminal charges:  Volkswagen’s guilty plea to three felonies in March resulted in the automaker being sentenced Friday to pay $4.3 billion in fines for importing 59,000 polluting diesel vehicles into the U.S. beginning in 2009. The charges were for conspiracy, obstruction of justice, and introducing imported merchandise into the U.S. by means of false statements. Without the plea deal, VW would have faced potential criminal fines in the cases of between $17 billion and $34 billion. In a federal courtroom in Detroit, U.S. District Judge Sean Cox called VW’s actions a “deliberate, massive fraud perpetrated by VW management. We don’t know how far up the corporate ladder it goes. Hopefully, the DOJ, and more hopefully, the German government, will continue to investigate and prosecute” those responsible. That ends prosecution by the federal government, but buybacks aren’t yet completed and civil suits continue in the U.S.; criminal investigations continue in other countries, including Germany.
  2. Speeding up Model 3 production:  Tesla will begin volume production of the Model 3 in September by streamlining the tooling process, which runs the risk of facing recalls or warranty repairs. On an investor conference call last month, CEO Elon Musk said the company would skip the usual auto manufacturing procedure, which he called “beta,” to speed up production. Musk said he would instead use “advanced analytical techniques,” which are computer simulations, to speed up the process. Automakers usually test a cheaper prototype model to make sure parts and components fit correctly, adding time and cost to the process but also guaranteeing a higher level of vehicle reliability. Musk has promised to ramp up vehicle production fivefold next year, producing and selling 500,000 vehicles a year by 2018 as the Model 3 enters the market.
  3. More Pacifica plug-ins going to Waymo:  Fiat Chrysler Automobiles is providing another 500 Chrysler Pacifica plug-in hybrid minvans to Waymo’s self-driving vehicle test project. Last year, FCA delivered 100 of these vehicles that Waymo that both companies equipped with its autonomous technology. Waymo had worked with FCA engineers at a Michigan facility to modify the vehicle’s with the technology. Waymo is also planning on opening up test rides to the public, starting in Phoenix.
  4. Amazon goes autonomous:  Amazon is entering the autonomous technology sector by testing out applications to make its product deliveries become faster and more convenient for customers. Details aren’t coming out yet on what the team of a dozen employees is working on but it could be an autonomous fleet of delivery trucks. The internet giant is interested in autonomous trucking for its own deliveries and possibly to sell transport services to other companies such as UPS and FedEx. In January, the company secured a patent for a network that helps autonomous vehicles adjust in changing driving environments.
  5. AAA study on EV interest:  A new AAA study found that 30 million Americans say they’re likely to buy an electric vehicle, with members of the Millennial generation especially interested with 20% wanting to go that route. But the study also found that the interest level hasn’t yet turned into EV sales for most of them. AAA said that concerns include range anxiety, lack of charging stations, and running out of battery power before the end of their drive. Low ownership costs and emerging technologies will improve their sales in the future, according to AAA.
  6. EV Roadmap in Portland:  EV Roadmap 10 invites participants to “test drive the future,” learning from industry leaders as well as the leading communities and regional markets. The conference will be held June 20-21 in Portland, Ore., and will be organized around three tracks: Cars, focusing on the accelerating adoption of electric cars and other EVs. Charging infrastructure, which is evolving quickly to meet the needs of millions of new electric vehicle drivers. Community will focus on the broader “ecosystem” needed for the market to expand. Sessions will include an in-depth discussion of the Electrify America plan, programs designed to bring electric mobility benefits to underserved communities, and analysis of how electric vehicle adoption can lower electricity rates. You can register for the event online.
  7. Penske again named to SmartWay winners:  Penske Truck Leasing has, for the fifth straight year, been given the SmartWay Affiliate Challenge Award by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA). Penske is one of nine organizations to receive this honor. The SmartWay Affiliate Challenge is a national challenge developed by the EPA to acknowledge organizations that are contributing to a clean energy economy by reaching out to inform and educate businesses, their communities, truck drivers and other stakeholders about steps they can take to reduce freight emissions and their other environmental impacts. Here’s the list of winners. “EPA commends the SmartWay Affiliate Challenge honorees for their extraordinary level of commitment and enthusiasm in supporting more efficient and sustainable business practices in moving goods,” said Christopher Grundler, director of the EPA’s Office of Transportation and Air Quality. “These organizations represent diverse industry sectors and stakeholders who believe that American prosperity can be preserved while protecting the environment.”
  8. Next Generation Mobility Challenge:  Toyota and Net Impact announced three finalist groups for the Next Generation Mobility Challenge, which focuses on developing solutions for critical mobility needs in local communities around the world. The winning team will be announced in early summer, and finalists were named to the list based on project design, feasibility, and social impact. The finalists are: “The Hub” – a carpooling concept based in school communities that would be more efficient than public transit and allow commuting parents to spend more time with their families, featuring students from California College of the Arts and UC Berkeley; “Project Mobius” – a company-sponsored employee transportation system for low-income individuals to help them acquire and retain jobs while boosting employee loyalty and reducing environmental impact, featuring students from University of Colorado; and “Para Pickup” – a service that gives people with disabilities safe, affordable and flexible ways to get home, improving on current options which can be inflexible and slow, featuring students from Georgia Tech.
  9. Fuel cell truck test:  Toyota announced “Project Portal,” a hydrogen fuel cell system designed for heavy duty truck use at the Port of Los Angeles. The zero-emission truck proof of concept will take part in a feasibility study examining the potential of fuel cell technology in heavy duty applications. The study will begin this summer and contribute to the Port’s Clean Air Action Plan, which has dramatically reduced harmful emissions from operations at the Ports of Long Beach and Los Angeles since 2005.
  10. Propane autogas in Europe:  European Alternative Fuels Observatory (EAFO) published a special edition of its report on the role propane autogas vehicles have played in the region in recent years. It’s the most widely used alternative fuel in Europe now with more than 12 million passenger vehicles placed in fleets as of 2015. Turkey has 35% of these vehicles with over four million vehicles. Italy and Poland join Turkey in being the only countries with over one million propane-powered passenger vehicles on their roads. Turkey also has the largest number of propane fueling sites, with over 10,000 stations. Germany has the second highest number of propane autogas stations despite having only the fourth largest propane-powered fleet in the region.