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https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Companies/Toshiba-s-megawatt-fuel-cells-have-enough-juice-to-power-a-factory?utm_campaign=RN%20Subscriber%20newsletter&utm_medium=JP%20update%20newsletter&utm_source=NAR%20Newsletter&utm_content=article%20link&del_type=4&pub_date=20200722090000&seq_num=10&si=%%user_id%% Toshiba's megawatt fuel cells have enough juice to power a factory Hydrogen system bolsters Japan's efforts toward renewables Toshiba looks to expand the market for its hydrogen power systems. TAKAYUKI YAO, Nikkei staff writerJuly 22, 2020 05:13 JST TOKYO -- Toshiba is set to roll out a hydrogen-powered fuel cell system capable of generating enough electricity to power 1,000 homes, or an entire factory or hospital in a boost to a government push of the zero-emission energy source. Toshiba Energy Systems & Solutions has developed a 1 megawatt system consisting of at least 10 of its existing 100kW hydrogen fuel cells and will start selling it as early as this fiscal year. A megawatt equals 1,000kW. Other than Canada's Ballard Power Systems, there is no other supplier of hydrogen fuel cells with such capacity, according to the Toshiba subsidiary. Factories and hospitals generally require power capacity of 1MW to 2MW to operate. Japan has been pushing hydrogen as a more environmentally friendly alternative to carbon-based fuels. Hydrogen can supplement solar and wind power supply, which tends to be unstable, generating electricity at night for those who rely on solar during the day, for instance. Another idea is to produce hydrogen using solar energy and generate power from that hydrogen later. Because hydrogen can be stored, it can be an emergency power source. One issue is cost. Electricity produced by hydrogen fuel cells for industry users costs about 40 yen (37 cents) per kilowatt-hour by one estimate, roughly twice as expensive as conventional electricity. That figure is also higher than rechargeable batteries. Factories where hydrogen is created as a byproduct can use it as fuel. Efforts are underway to build hydrogen fuel infrastructure in Japan. Trials have begun at a hydrogen production facility in Namie, Fukushima Prefecture, one of the world's biggest such plants. The project, which involves Toshiba Energy Systems and local utility Tohoku Electric Power among others, will produce and store up to 900 tons of hydrogen a year. Increased use of hydrogen could help bring down the cost of power generation. With the shift away from coal and toward renewables, use of hydrogen is expected to grow. The hydrogen fuel market in Japan is set to undergo explosive growth from 7.3 billion yen in fiscal 2018 to 408.5 billion yen in fiscal 2030, according to projections by research company Fuji Keizai.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bowkytZAVdw After Ford, Hyundai is the next car maker to apologise over a controversial commercial. The video, created by agency, Innocean Europe for Hyundai UK, shows a man trying to attempt suicide in his garage by hooking up the exhaust pipe to the cabin of his Hyundai ix35 Fuel Cell. The attempt failed as the ix35 only emits water vapours and not carbon monoxide which blocks the transport of oxygen to the brain, heart, and other vital organs in the body. Hyundai issued an apology statement that read, "Hyundai Motor deeply and sincerely apologises for the offensive viral ad. It runs counter to our values as a company and as members of the community. We are very sorry for any offense or distress the video caused. More to the point, Hyundai apologises to those who have been personally impacted by tragedy." Hyundai has removed the YouTube video after widespread criticism on social media. However, the video has been uploaded by other netizens.

Almost a year ago, BMW and Toyota signed a memorandum of understanding which will see both auto companies working together on lithium-ion battery development. A few months later, they expanded that agreement and part of it includes the architectural development of a new lightweight sports car. Just recently, both companies have officially confirmed that they will collaborate on a mid-size sports car. Other parts of the expanded agreement also include the development of a fuel cell system and research on lightweight technology. Both companies hope to complete these researches and developments by the year 2020 and with a prototype by 2015. If the research done on the lightweight technologies goes well, the new mid-size sports car might be the first to get such technology, which includes reinforced composite. The recent collaboration between Toyota and Subaru yielded the rear wheel driven Toyota 86/Scion FR-S and the Subaru BRZ. With this new collaboration with BMW, we might just see a new Supra and this new model will obviously be marketed above the 86/BRZ segment. As for BMW, they are busy with its electric i cars, the i3 all electric city car and the i8 sports coupe, which are slated to release in the near future. Toyota is well known for its hybrid and fuel cell technologies while BMW is known for being experts in sports cars development. And it is clear that both companies could benefit from each other

[extract] Nissan has developed a fuel cell vehicle known as the Terra SUV concept that opens a path to zero-emissions future. The compact SUV exterior design expresses athletic eco-appeal with 'Modern Toughness' that the company is very much confident would appeal buyers, no matter for off-road or urban use. The Terra SUV concept is set to be unveiled at the upcoming 2012 Paris Motor Show on Sep 27. The concept combines two of Nissan

Swiss watch maker, Swatch, is known for its colourful and quirky-looking wrist watches. But did you know that they have tried their hand in the automotive industry and one of their projects in 1993 resulted into a car that looks way-out just like their watches? The first picture you see here is the Swatchmobile. Looks familiar, right? That is because the Swatchmobile project eventually led to the first generation Smart car. Since then, Swatch has not participated in the automotive industry. But the company recently announced that they are currently working on a eco-friendly car project. Currently named ELV2, it might enter mass production in four to five years. Swatch CEO Nick Hayek, who is also the son of the company

[extract] The 2011 Seoul Motor Show that runs in South Korea from March 31 to April 10 plays host to the world premiere of the all-new Hyundai Blue2 concept study. The name, which is to be read