Scooter sharing floats: German Floatility has convinced Singapore to launch a pilot with its solar-powered stand-up scooters at its development partner Autodesk. Their staff will kick about the facility on the partly 3D-printed, three-wheeled and self-balancing EVs, that come with custom-built docking stations to charge. Another pilot is due to start in Vienna in the coming weeks, when tourists will be asked to float around town. hardwarezone.com.sg, electrive.net (Austria pilot, in German)
Swapping a battery in India shall become most easy as Sun Mobility plans to work together with various OEMs to integrate their solution into electric cars, buses but also scooters and rickshaws. So far, only Ashok Leyland is on board but further steps are to be announced later this year. ndtv.com, business-standard.com
Hybrid bus order: Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) expects the delivery of 345 new buses of which 156 will be diesel-electric and 175 CNG. Overall, they will replace a third of the fleet with cleaner options once they arrive next month and shall make the system more reliable, esp. in winter. bostonglobe.com, metro.us
Ballard scores again: The fuel cell specialist received an order from the SunLine Transit Agency for five FCveloCity systems to power hydrogen buses in Palm Desert, California. The 150 kW systems are expected to be shipped in 2017 and Ballard here works with ElDorado National and BAE System. greencarcongress.com, ariva.de
Accelerating times ahead: Le Mans will have new rules for its hybrid racers for the 2020 season, essentially turning them into proper plug-in hybrids. A pit stop thus must include a rapid battery refill but also each PHEV will need to run the first kilometres after the break all-electrically. On top of that, the LMP1 competitors must cross the finish line in electric mode as well. electricautosport.com
Ballard to take flight: Ballard subsidiary Protonex has written an order from FlyH2 Aerospace, a developer of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) for commercial applications based in South Africa. It seeks to power its three UA Alpha flagships in the making with Protonex’ fuel cell propulsion system and FlyH2 gears for a 30 kilo utility aircraft with 9-hour flight endurance. greencarcongress.com
Bio battery: Californian BioSolar has come to an agreement with Top Battery from Korea. The latter will utilise BioSolar’s silicon alloy nanocomposite anode material in its Li-ion batteries. The material is said to deliver high capacity at low cost. altenergymag.com
EV acoustics: Hybrid-Acoustics ECO+ is Autoneum’s is not to have EVs make noise but to drown out sounds previously covered by an engine’s hum such as fans and pumps. The noise and heat protection components include carpets made from a novel and environmentally-friendly fibre. automotiveworld.com
Paris – Amsterdam in 30 min? Europe shall see the first Hyperloop by 2021 if plans by Hardt Global Mobility come to pass. The Dutch start-up had won the Hyperloop competition and has since completed a first test track with backing from the Technical University of Delft, Dutch railway company Nederlandse Spoorwegen, and construction company BAM. The real thing shall start within the next 4 years and could reduce travel time between the Dutch and French capital to 30 minutes. thenextweb.com
Norwegian dreams: The ‘Future of the Fjords’ is an all-electric ferry destined to move in and out the cliffs from April next year. Two 300 kW motors powers the catamaran currently under construction. Upon completion it will be able to carry 400 passengers at 16 knots. thelocal.no
Ballard convinces China: A new bulk order from Chinese Broad-Ocean has been received in Canada. The contract is worth 18m dollars for Ballard and includes fuel cell systems to electrify buses and trucks. The first part of the order had already been received last February, when the partners agreed on 200 FCVeloCity system. Now, another 400 will follow. greencarcongress.com, newswire.ca
More hydrogen truck news reach us from Scania who scored a (much smaller) contract with Asko from Norway. The grocer now officially ordered four trucks with HyPM-HD90 system, which will be tested on routes over 500 km (we reported). greencarcongress.com, globenewswire.com
Hyundai to develop solid-state batteries? The Korean car manufacturer readies battery tech based on solid rather than liquid electrolytes, Korea Herold reports referring to insider information. Hyundai apparently operates pilot production facilities already but does not intend to go serial before 2025. Also Samsung SDI und LG Chem are said to research solid-state batteries as well as Toyota and BMW. theinvestor.co.kr
Amazon tasks Plug Power: Plug Power gains a new order of no other than Amazon, who plans to deploy a fleet of H2 forklifts in 11 of its logistics centres. Delivering the corresponding tech, PlugPower estimates Amazon will spend 70m dollar on the deal in 2017 and likely twice that next year. Furthermore, Amazon is authorised to acquire 23% of the company if spending exceeds 600m dollars. reuters.com, ir.plugpower.com
11m dollar deal for Ballard: Canadian Ballard Power Systems signed an 11m dollar order for 200 FCVeloCity systems to be delivered this year for the Chinese market. Buyer is Broad-Ocean, who intends to use them for demonstrations of H2 buses and industrial vehicles in China. ballard.com
18 rotor drone production ready: German start-up e-volo has readied its 18 rotor electric VTOL and hopes it will be launched and authorised for commercial passenger transport soon. On top, the two-seated model shall serve the air sport market. A four-seater model is planned, too. theverge.com
LG to break ground: Korean battery maker LG Chem plans to expand its Michigan facility this March to fulfil surging demand for EV batteries. The Holland facility produces cells and powerpacks for the Chevy Volt and Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid among others. The 9,300 square meter addition will create 150 more jobs once it goes online in August. mlive.com, wzzm13.com
Insights from a hybrid hype: Aston Martin names suppliers for its hybrid racer AM-RB 001 it is developing together with Red Bull. From Croatian Rimac comes the battery system and Bosch is on the controls for the drive. Only 150 road-going AM-RB 001s will be made, but Aston Martin will produce an additional 25 track-only versions. First deliveries are set to start in 2019. electrek.co, astonmartin.com
Stronger does it better: The fun EV eRod by Kyburz just got even more fun. The eRod Race ist 150 kW more powerful than all other versions. Plus, the fun lasts for 220 km delivered by a 39 kWh battery pack. Costs are 88,000 CHR as DIY version and 107,000 CHF when complete. auto-wirtschaft.ch (in German)
Ballard becomes ever bigger in China as it just made a 5 year deal with Chinese Broad-Ocean to produce and sell 30 and 85kW fuel cell systems in three strategic regions in China, including Shanghai. The contract is estimated to be worth 25m dollars in revenue to Ballard. greencarcongress.com
EV only zones in Poland? Poland’s Ministry of Energy is looking into introducing ‘low-emissions zones’ in cities, a Polish newspaper reports. This may be a push for coal as much as for green transport as the country relies on carbon sources for its energy needs, while the ruling party PiS pushes back more sustainable alternatives. cleantechnica.com, parlamentarny.pl (in Polish)
Ten electric buses have been acquired by the Dutch town of Utrecht, where they replace ten older diesel vehicles. The 12 metre models will serve an entire line by spring next year and have been bought in a joint effort by the Utrecht public transport bus provider, Qbuzz, the municipality, and the province. eltis.org
Supercharging Ireland: Tesla is to expand to the republic with a new store, likely in Dublin, as well as EV charging stations by 2017. Ireland is the last Western European country missing on the Tesla map and was due to be connected already this year. electrek.co
Clean fleet cooperation: Leasing company Venson Automotive Solutions partnered with charging infrastructure provider EO Charging, to help fleet providers switch to electric. They set up the ‘CleanFleet‘ service, which uses GPS data to see if a more electric and/or hybrid fleet is feasible. businesscar.co.uk, fleetnews.co.uk
Ballard bus update: Ballard Power Systems is to deliver technology for 300 fuel cell buses in the Chinese cities of Foshan and Yunfu reportedly. The latter has now taken delivery of ten such hydrogen buses, while Foshan received the first twelve earlier this month. renewable-energy-industry.com
Kandi is to sell 50,000 EV over 5 years through Shanxi Coal, a strategic cooperation agreement sets out. Kandi says the agreement is to stabilise the firm’s EV business in times of varying subsidy policies. streetinsider.com
The Gigafactory will be set in motion by “hundreds” of Panasonic employees from Japan this autumn. They are there to help to start the production of lithium-ion batteries at what is to become the biggest battery plant to date. In the wake of the expected boom in lithium demand, Albemarle and FMC are considering to set up dedicated factories for lithium production for the Gigafactory. reuters.com (Panasonic), detroitnews.com (FMC, Albemarle)
Ballard Systemsclosed deals over 10 million dollars with Chinese Nantong Zehe New Energy Technology and Guangdong Synergy Hydrogen Power Technology. Ballard is to deliver its fuel cell technology for 33 buses which will be deployed in Rugao and Yunfu by 2016. greencarcongress.com, prnewswire.com
XL Hybrids expands: The company now introduced the GM Cutaway/Cab Chassis into the product lineup and is thus able to retrofit the Ford E350and the new Ford Transit passenger van among others with its XL3 Hybrid Electric Drive System. The XL3 can be installed as a retrofit or a new upfit. greencarcongress.com
– Feedback –
Most clicked link on Monday was Zero Motorcycles announcing that more than 50 police departments across the States are now using the company’s electric motorcycles for patrols. insideevs.com
EU supports H2 buses: Belgium bus OEM Van Hool has signed an agreement with the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Joint Undertaking (FCH JU), which is financing the deployment of 21 fuel cell buses. These will be powered by Ballard Ballard FCvelocity-HD7 modules. greencarcongress.com, ballard.com
E-Buses and chargers for Sweden: Siemens and Volvo have signed a deal, saying they will work together to supply electrified bus systems to cities. In 2015, Volvo will deliver hybrid and all-electric buses to the Swedish cities of Stockholm and Gothenburg, while Siemens will set up fast-chargers there with a charging capacity of up to 300 kW. volvogroup.com
Electric scooter sharing in Berlin: Berlin-based start-up eMio will kick off its electric “Share-a-Scooter” programme in the German capital in March. Following the testing phase, 200 electric scooters will be up for sharing in the centre of Berlin. The two-wheelers can be booked per app and are free floating. emio-sharing.de, emo-berlin.de (articles in German)
New electric Smarts for San Diego: Carsharing provider Car2go is renewing and increasing the size of its fleet in the Californian city, bringing in 400 new electric Smarts. These will replace 350 models from 2010. According to the company, it counts over 33,000 customers and over 1 million trips in San Diego since the scheme launched in 2011. timesofsandiego.com, cnn.com
“Get Current” will be the name of a new initiative launched in Georgia, USA. Utility provider Georgia Power Co. has earmarked 12 million dollars that it will spend on erecting 50 new public charging stations, as well as on subsidies for the installation of private chargers. bizjournals.com
San Diego wants cleaner cabs: The U.S. city launched a 360,000 dollar incentive programme to get taxi drivers to switch from petrol to hybrid. Taxi owners will receive up to 4,000 dollars for the purchase of a new hybrid or alternative fuel vehicle and will also pay reduced airport fees. kpbs.org
Plug-in gas truck: Efficient Drivetrains, Inc. (EDI) and Greenkraft announced they will work together on a plug-in hybrid CNG powertrain for medium-duty trucks. Meanwhile, the California Energy Commission awarded EDI 900,000 dollars in funding to support the development of the parallel-series multi-mode truck. greencarcongress.com
Ship-through funding: Motiv Power was able to raise 7.3 million dollars in funding to further develop their so-called ship-through modification sets. These upgrades enable truck and bus builders to install electric drivestrains with minimal effort in their existing vehicles. insideevs.com, finance.yahoo.com
Test track for wireless charging: Utah State University plans to build a 446-square-metre facility including an oval-shaped track to test wirelessly powered vehicles ranging from regular cars to full-sized buses. Construction could start as early as this autumn. news.hjnews.com, miamiherald.com
Fuel cell business: Ballard Power Systems licensed its intellectual property to the Taiwanese M-Field Energy Corporation for their operations in Europe. Ballard will also provide engineering services and become the exclusive supplier of fuel cell stacks for M-Field’s material handling solutions. greencarcongress.com
– Feedback –
Most clicked Link on Monday: Audi to go global with plug-in hybrid. autonews.com
Hybrid refrigerator truck: Jointly developed by Hino Motors and Denso Corp., the ‘Hino Profia’ heavy duty truck uses energy from its hybrid system solely to power its refrigeration system. The power is generated while driving or regenerated from the hybrid unit. The refrigerator truck comes with a stand-by unit that can be plugged in to keep the fridge running when the motor is turned off. greencarcongress.com, densomediacenter.com
Fuel cell range extender: Ballard Power Systems will supply its FCvelocity-HD7 fuel cell module to Solaris Bus & Coach from Poland. The fuel cells will charge the batteries of Solaris’ electric buses to be deployed to Hamburg, Germany later this year. greencarcongress.com, ballard.com
Turbulences in the battery industry: Polypore’s subsidy Celgard filed a complaint against LG Chem, alleging a patent infringement of Celgard’s separators for high-energy li-ion batteries. At the same time, Celgard announced a long-term supply agreement with Samsung, which will use Celgard separators for the EV batteries. Samsung also recently invested in XG Sciences, a graphene manufacturer. greencarcongress.com (Celgard vs LG Chem), greencarcongress.com (Celgard & Samsung), greencarcongress.com (Samsung & XG Sciences)
Diesel-hybrid boat: Slovenian company Greenline Hybrid just presented its latest addition to its ‘Greenline’ series of hybrid yachts. Greenline 48 is the largest in the range. Its electric motor offers 20 nautic miles of range at four knots (4.6 mph). The 46 kWh battery can be supplemented with solar panels on deck. technologicvehicles.com
Accelerating times ahead: Le Mans will have new rules for its hybrid racers for the 2020 season, essentially turning them into proper plug-in hybrids. A pit stop thus must include a rapid battery refill but also each PHEV will need to run the first kilometres after the break all-electrically. On top of that, the LMP1 competitors must cross the finish line in electric mode as well.
Norwegian dreams: The ‘Future of the Fjords’ is an all-electric ferry destined to move in and out the cliffs from April next year. Two 300 kW motors powers the catamaran currently under construction. Upon completion it will be able to carry 400 passengers at 16 knots.
Hyundai to develop solid-state batteries? The Korean car manufacturer readies battery tech based on solid rather than liquid electrolytes, Korea Herold reports referring to insider information. Hyundai apparently operates pilot production facilities already but does not intend to go serial before 2025. Also Samsung SDI und LG Chem are said to research solid-state batteries as well as 
LG to break ground: Korean battery maker LG Chem plans to expand its Michigan facility this March to fulfil surging demand for EV batteries. The Holland facility produces cells and powerpacks for the Chevy Volt and Chrysler Pacifica Hybrid among others. The 9,300 square meter addition will create 150 more jobs once it goes online in August.
Stronger does it better: The fun EV eRod by Kyburz just got even more fun. The eRod Race ist 150 kW more powerful than all other versions. Plus, the fun lasts for 220 km delivered by a 39 kWh battery pack. Costs are 88,000 CHR as DIY version and 107,000 CHF when complete.
Plug-in gas truck: Efficient Drivetrains, Inc. (EDI) and Greenkraft announced they will work together on a plug-in hybrid CNG powertrain for medium-duty trucks. Meanwhile, the California Energy Commission awarded EDI 900,000 dollars in funding to support the development of the parallel-series multi-mode truck.
Hybrid refrigerator truck: Jointly developed by Hino Motors and Denso Corp., the ‘Hino Profia’ heavy duty truck uses energy from its hybrid system solely to power its refrigeration system. The power is generated while driving or regenerated from the hybrid unit. The refrigerator truck comes with a stand-by unit that can be plugged in to keep the fridge running when the motor is turned off.