Yue Yue Global(2022.01.28)
Honda aims to sell 800,000 electric vehicles in China by 2030
Japan Economic News reported on the 28th that Honda will fully launch its pure electric vehicle (EV) business in China. In an interview with Nihon Keizai Shimbun, the company's top leader and China head, Katsushi Inoue revealed that he "aims to sell 800,000 pure electric vehicles by 2030."
Honda plans to make all-electric vehicles account for 40% of new vehicle sales in China and hybrid vehicles (HVs) account for 60% by 2030. Overall, we will strive to increase sales by 30% over 2021 to 2 million units. Inoue stressed, "If you can't win the competition in China, which is promoting electrification, you will be eliminated by the world." We want to change all areas. The next five years will be decided."
The key is the first pure electric vehicle "e:N" in China to be labeled as a Honda brand with an "H" logo. The company plans to launch 10 models over the next five years, and as the first batch, the "e:NS1" and "e:NP1" SUVs will be launched in the spring of 2022.
One of the characteristics of e:N is the use of the in-vehicle system "Honda CONNECT" developed in conjunction with the companies of Neusoft Group, a Chinese IT company. The display in front of the driver's seat is divided into three parts, and it is possible to use the map and various applications and operate the air conditioner through the screen. Voice operations are also possible, and many Chinese dialects such as Cantonese are supported.
In terms of production, the joint ventures Dongfeng Honda and Guangqi Honda will build new pure electric vehicle plants and strive to put them into operation in 2024. The plant is expected to achieve an annual production capacity of 240,000 units in the first two plants.
Regarding the in-vehicle battery, which is the core component of pure electric vehicles, the company will deepen cooperation with China NINGDE Times, the world's largest manufacturer, which is the target of investment.
AutoStore and Ocado's "Robot Wars" spread to Germany
Reuters reported on the 28th that the stock price of Norwegian warehouse robot manufacturer AutoStore rose by 15%, after the company issued a statement saying that a court in Munich had stopped the lawsuit filed by Ocado to prevent AutoStore from selling one of the robots in Germany.
Ocado hit back, saying the Norwegian company had only provided part of its litigation record and that the case was still pending.
AutoStore said: "The Munich District Court yesterday suspended Ocado's lawsuit over an order to block the sale of autoStore B1 robots in Germany, noting that Ocado's utility model intellectual property in the lawsuit may be invalid. ”
The Court held that although Ocado made significant changes to its utility model claims at the last minute, those claims were likely to be invalid.
The court said this was because the claims covered more than was disclosed in the utility model application originally filed, and told Ocado that it was trying to claim a technology that it had not invented.
But Ocado said the case would resume at a later date.
"Infringement proceedings against the AutoStore continue, but will have to await confirmation of the validity of Ocado's utility model rights, which will be heard by different courts in accordance with German standards," Ocado said.
Ocado shares fell 5.5 percent in London trading.
Both companies, which provide labor-saving storage technology to the fast-growing online shopping industry, have been mired in a series of legal battles over intellectual property (IP) issues for years.
Another patent case between the two rivals is still ongoing in the UK.
Last month, a U.S. court rejected AutoStore's claim that Ocado infringed patents in the country.
Sweden has approved the construction of an underground facility that can safely store spent nuclear fuel for 100,000 years
Lianhe Zaobao reported on the 28th that the Swedish government approved the construction of an underground facility that can safely store spent nuclear fuel for 100,000 years.
Since the world's first nuclear power plants appeared in the 1950s and 1960s, how to safely dispose of nuclear waste has been a thorny issue. The International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) estimates that about 370,000 tons of highly radioactive spent nuclear fuel are currently stored in temporary storage facilities worldwide.
Swedish Environment Minister Strandhall recently said that this is a 40-year research result that can ensure the safe storage of spent nuclear fuel for 100,000 years.
"With this final solution for storing spent nuclear fuel, we will be able to gradually transition from existing nuclear energy to the world's first fossil fuel-free developed country," Hall said. ”
Since they began operations in the 1970s, Sweden's nuclear power plants have produced about 8,000 tons of highly radioactive nuclear waste, including spent nuclear fuel.
Sweden is planned to bury nuclear waste 500 meters beneath bedrock near the Forsmark nuclear power plant. About 70 years later, when the storage site tunnel is filled, authorities will seal the facility with bentonite clay to prevent water from seeping into it.
Today's picture
Image source: Visual China
On January 27, 2022, local time, lohitzun Oyhercq, southwest France, at a local farm, workers were culling and transferring poultry. The French government said on Jan. 20 that it would culle more than 1 million poultry in the coming weeks in response to outbreaks of bird flu on poultry farms.
(This article is compiled from Nihon Keizai Shimbun, Reuters, Lianhe Zaobao)
Economic Observation Network intern reporter Zhou Yuqing sorted out