ENERGY
Fortescue Future Industries | June 24, 2022
A leading group of German companies along with Australia's Fortescue Future Industries (FFI) has released a green hydrogen roadmap, outlining a set of recommendations for government and industry, to meet the ambitious target of importing large amounts of green hydrogen from Australia to Germany.
The Green Hydrogen Taskforce, created earlier this year, is a collaborative effort between FFI, and some of the strongest energy, industrial, and technology companies in Germany, including Covestro, E.ON, Linde, Luthardt, SAP, Schaeffler, thyssenkrupp Nucera and thyssenkrupp Uhde.
The green hydrogen roadmap developed by the Taskforce consists of a 10-point plan and a White Paper and is intended to outline a constructive pathway forward in Germany for business and government. The roadmap could potentially serve as an example for other nations looking for solutions at the upcoming G7 meeting. The G7 meeting will discuss hydrogen and has already developed a G7 Hydrogen Action Pact (G7 HAP) which will form part of the final G7 communique.
The companies in the taskforce are ready to move on green energy through serious investment and will work with Government to achieve these goals together. The recommendations to the German government include: developing subsidies and incentives to remove the "First Mover Disadvantage"; encouraging sources of low-cost capital to scale the industry, and underwriting equipment manufacturers expansion plans to meet developer's needs.
Climate change has become a dramatic reality of our times with visible impacts on all continents and all countries. The UN IPCC report has recommended reducing fossil fuel production to keep temperature increases under 1.5 degrees and halt the worst impacts of global warming. With this responsibility in mind, the industry stands ready to do its part.
The Russian war on Ukraine has in addition created a new reality. This must lead to an accelerated energy transition, especially regarding the development of a green hydrogen economy, which will help to decarbonise as well as to diversify energy supply.
"The future of energy needs the right partnerships and the right technologies. We bring our expertise in industrial-scale hydrogen applications like green ammonia for enabling the worldwide export/import of clean energy."
-Dr. Cord Landsmann, CEO of thyssenkrupp Uhde
"We are determined to implement the green transformation of the economy. For this, the development of a reasonable green hydrogen environment must be given priority. In the long term, this strengthens climate protection, independence from Russian gas and the competitiveness of our industries. This deserves a high level of political support."
-Patrick Lammers, COO at E.ON,
Juergen Nowicki, Executive Vice President Linde and CEO of Linde Engineering, said, "For an industrialized nation such as Germany it is of utmost importance to secure reliable and affordable energy. Clean hydrogen has an important role to play in the energy transition, but we need to have the right framework, incentives and infrastructure in place to make it actionable as a lever to decarbonisation. We are committed to supporting the effort to decarbonise Germany's economy by leveraging Linde's knowledge, experience and technology along the entire hydrogen value chain, from production and storage to transportation and application."
Dr. Klaus Schäfer, Chief Technology Officer and member of the Board of Management of Covestro, said, "Green hydrogen is a central building block for the transformation of the chemical industry towards climate neutrality. Covestro and other industry partners are in the starting blocks to get the hydrogen economy up and running. However, we also need the right framework conditions and political support to achieve this. Using the example of the partnership between Germany and Australia, this action plan shows which steps need to be taken in detail. It complements the ongoing HAP initiative and establishes an actionable plan which can easily be replicated amongst the G7 countries and beyond."
"This also includes the critical topic of tracking and tracing of green hydrogen and green ammonia through the complete value chain including the certificates of origin with the aim that the end customers will exactly know what they get," said Peter Koop, Global Lead for Energy Transition and Hydrogen at SAP.
Uwe Wagner, CTO of Schaeffler AG said, "the envisaged hydrogen partnership between Germany and Australia is a vital step to foster clean energy in Germany. To turn this goal into reality, quick industrialization of electrolysis and other hydrogen technologies will be crucial. We stand ready to speed up the energy transition with the supply of high-quality components for the large-scale production of electrolysers."
Dr. Andrew Forrest Chairman of FFI, said, "Germany and the European continent are facing stagflation for the first time in years. If structured appropriately, an accelerated uptake of green hydrogen also by means of green ammonia can be a powerful economic growth driver for Germany. Our White Paper estimates that for every €1 spent as a support mechanism by Government for green hydrogen, €10 is unlocked in private investment."
Global green energy company FFI and one of Europe's largest energy companies with focus on energy infrastructure and customer solutions, E.ON, recently announced a partnership with the goal to supply 5 million tonnes of green hydrogen a year by 2030 – the equivalent of one third of the calorific energy of natural gas Germany imports from Russia.
"Our message is very clear. The green energy industrial revolution is here. Do not allow the energy crisis to make the climate crisis worse. Germany can become a green energy superpower and we have outlined the pathway to make it happen, including the financial investment required by government. Business is ready."
Read More
ECONOMY
CATL | June 23, 2022
On June 23, CATL launched Qilin, the third generation of its CTP (cell-to-pack) technology. With a record-breaking volume utilization efficiency of 72% and an energy density of up to 255 Wh/kg, it achieves the highest integration level worldwide so far, capable of delivering a range of over 1,000 km in a breeze.
Focusing on the very nature of electrochemistry, CATL continues its endeavor to push beyond the boundaries of innovations in system structure. In 2019, CATL launched the world's first module-less battery pack CTP, taking the lead in achieving a volume utilization efficiency of over 50%. Together with overall breakthroughs in the core process, algorithm and materials, CATL redefines battery structure design with "Qilin," which is named after a legendary creature in Chinese mythology.
Function Integration. In the CTP 3.0 battery, the internal crossbeam, liquid-cooling plate and thermal pad have been integrated into a multifunctional elastic interlayer. It also features built-in micron bridges inside the interlayer, which flexibly accommodate the changes inside the cell, improving the battery reliability throughout its full life cycle. The integrated energy unit, which is composed of the cell and the multifunctional elastic interlayer, builds a more stable load bearing structure perpendicular to the driving direction, thus enhancing the shock and vibration resistance of the battery pack.
Reshaping system structure. Powered by its precise computing and AI simulation capabilities, CATL explores the boundaries of battery design involving the battery's full life cycle application scenarios. The ingenious bottom sharing design allows the smart arrangement of various components including structural protection, high-voltage connection and a protective vent for thermal runaway, further increasing the battery capacity by 6%. Meanwhile, the CTP 3.0 battery satisfies the criteria of the battery safety tests required by national standards such as the bollard test.
Disruptive Water Cooling Design . By placing liquid cooling functional parts between adjacent cells, the trailblazing large-surface cell cooling technology increases the heat transfer area by four times, cuts thermal control time in half, and supports a hot start in 5 minutes and fast charging in 10 minutes. It enables the cell to cool down rapidly in extreme circumstances, effectively preventing abnormal thermal conduction among cells. Moreover, it has achieved thermal stability and thermal safety for all chemical systems, making it compatible with materials with higher energy density.
From the material, cell to system structure, the systematic engineering mindset runs through the whole chain of research and development in CATL. Supported by the above-mentioned technological innovations, the CTP 3.0 battery can increase the energy density to 255Wh/kg for ternary battery systems, and 160Wh/kg for LFP battery systems. With the same chemical system and the same pack size, it can deliver 13% more power than the 4680 battery, accomplishing an all-round improvement in range, fast-charging, safety, service life, efficiency and low-temperature performance.
The CTP 3.0 batteries, or Qilin, are expected to be mass produced and come on the market in 2023. From simulated computing in the micro world to artful streamlining inside the battery structure, CATL remains focused on technological ingenuity and independent innovation, aiming to promote the overtaking of fossil fuel vehicles by electric ones.
Read More
ENERGY
Jabil | June 22, 2022
Jabil (NYSE: JBL) announced that it is teaming up with SolarEdge, a global leader in smart energy technology, to help change how power is harvested and managed in photovoltaic (PV) systems. A shared focus on manufacturing excellence and automation has led to the installation of more than 2.5 million intelligent power inverters and more than 60 million power optimizers in over 130 countries across five continents,
“We produce tens of millions of products every year, so high-volume, high-quality manufacturing is our lifeline to meeting aggressive growth demands and unrelenting product quality expectations, That is not an easy challenge for any manufacturer, but Jabil has delivered on our expectations during the ups and downs, and most challenging times. Because we are similar in attitude and company culture, we focus on execution and accomplish what we set out to do.”
-Zvi Lando, CEO of SolarEdge Technologies.
SolarEdge’s unwavering customer commitment has propelled the company to market leadership across its primary markets, comprising residential, commercial, industrial and utility sectors. The result is a steady stream of different products for residential and commercial customers, as well as continuous product modifications to meet emerging regulations around the world. Overall, SolarEdge’s products are quite complex to build, especially in such large volumes, some of which are made in quantities more commonly associated with consumer electronics and cellphone production.
Rigorous quality requirements demand fastidious tracking of every production step to identify any potential reliability issues or possible product defects, which are critical factors when building products with extended warranties. “We’ve done tremendous things together to create an optimum manufacturing environment,” said Scott Gebicke, Senior Vice President, Industrial Division, Jabil. “We deployed an automated solution that enables Jabil to operate in the leanest and most efficient way possible while decreasing manufacturing time by almost 50%. This makes a big difference when you’re making tens of thousands of products each week, if not millions in a month.”
Creating an Optimal Manufacturing Environment
Jabil and SolarEdge collaborate on all aspects of production, encompassing design for manufacturing, supply chain management, as well as manufacturing automation and scalability. To keep pace with SolarEdge’s aggressive market ramps, Jabil devised a dual-site strategy, mirroring its massive China production facility with a secondary site in Vietnam. In addition, the development of a multi-level vertical testing facility reduces the resources and floor space needed for product curing and testing while complete product traceability is aligned with stringent quality demands.
Minimizing Supply Chain Disruptions
Jabil also provides global supply chain assistance in every region supported by SolarEdge, with meticulous attention on each material and component needed for manufacturing. During the pandemic-related disruptions, Jabil leveraged its digital supply chain intelligence to forecast long-lead items, submit pre-orders and identify alternate suppliers when faced with component shortages. As raw material shortages, logistical challenges and factory closures intensified, Jabil qualified new components, modified product designs and moved production into different locations to mitigate the impact.
Driving the Green Energy Revolution
Together, Jabil and SolarEdge continue to combat the global climate crisis through the delivery of industry-leading solutions that maximize power generation while lowering energy costs. As SolarEdge evolves its product roadmap, Jabil keeps stride to support the introduction of new product offerings, from energy storage and backup to battery systems and uninterrupted power supply solutions. The addition of more intelligence to SolarEdge's products enables homeowners to manage solar energy production, consumption and backup storage in real time. Every step of the way, Jabil is there to bring SolarEdge’s new products to market quickly, efficiently and economically.
Supporting Quotes and Resources
“We are sure that Jabil will be with us through our journey to the next era. They have been with us hand-in-hand for more than 10 years, and they will be with us for the next 10 years, which is very important to us. That’s kind of the magic, the secret sauce that works between our two companies.”
-Uri Bechor, COO, SolarEdge
Bill Mitchell, Senior Business Unit Director, Power & Storage Sector, Jabil Industrial:
“There’s a continuous engineering effort on both sides to put out the best performing, competitively priced products. The value that Jabil brings to SolarEdge is excellence in execution of manufacturing and being hyper-focused on quality and cost.”
About Jabil:
Jabil (NYSE: JBL) is a manufacturing solutions provider with over 260,000 employees across 100 locations in 30 countries. The world's leading brands rely on Jabil's unmatched breadth and depth of end-market experience, technical and design capabilities, manufacturing know-how, supply chain insights and global product management expertise. Driven by a common purpose, Jabil and its people are committed to making a positive impact on their local community and the environment. Visit www.jabil.com to learn more.
Read More