B.C. firm, Toyota launch North America’s first hydrogen-powered courier fleet
On the heels of the crop26 summit on climate change, a B.C. company and an international automaker struck a deal announced Thursday that will see the vehicles fueled by hydrogen.
By: Norris McDonaldNovember 16, 2021
On the heels of the crop26 summit on climate change, a B.C. company and an international automaker struck a deal announced Thursday that will see the vehicles fueled by hydrogen.
GeaZone Eco-Couriers announced the launch in Vancouver of North America’s first hydrogen-powered courier fleet, which consists of 40 new Toyota Mirai fuel-cell electric vehicles that produce one tailpipe emission: water.
“In places where the fueling structure exists (only B.C. and Quebec, at the moment), hydrogen-powered FCEVs are the perfect zero-emission solution for organizations with fleets of high-use vehicles,” said Stephen Beatty, vice-president, corporate, at Toyota Canada Inc.
“We commend GeaZone for taking this bold and innovative step for their business,” Beatty added in a release, “and we hope their fleet of Toyota Mirai will help demonstrate the value of FCEVs to other fleet owners who are looking to reduce their carbon footprint.”
Beatty’s praise was echoed by Canada’s Minister of Energy, Bruce Ralston, who said the B. C. announcement “will help other businesses and communities reach their own climate change targets.”
A Toyota spokesman said that with infrastructure only recently being developed, sales of FCEVs like the Mirai have just started. With limited fueling infrastructure in place, sales are currently focused on fleet operators with vehicles based in parts of Canada where hydrogen fueling infrastructure exists, such as Quebec and B.C.
For example:
– Toyota Canada delivered 50 hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles to its first Canadian customer – the government of Quebec – in early 2019, making the company the first automaker to bring hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicles to Canada en masse.
– In July 2019, Ballard Power Systems, a global fuel-cell pioneer based near Vancouver, announced the purchase of a fleet of the Toyota Mirai zero-emission FCEVs.
– In February 2021, Toyota announced a partnership with ridesharing application Lyft, providing a fleet of hydrogen-powered, zero-emission Mirai for its drivers in the Metro Vancouver area.
Toyota continues to work with key hydrogen stakeholders to put in place the necessary fueling infrastructure to make FCEV adoption a reality across Canada, and recently, the federal government released its Hydrogen Strategy for Canada, setting an ambitious framework to make Canada a global hydrogen leader.
Meantime, GeaZone has big plans to expand and will go with hydrogen when it’s possible. Meantime, they’ll stick with good ol’ electricity. Said Andrew G. Mitchell, president and CEO:
“GeaZone Eco-Courier is looking to expand throughout Canada, and as of late we’ve had a lot of requests from our existing client base to do so. We are currently working to raise the investment capital needed for this growth.
“In areas where hydrogen is not available, we would use our 100 per cent electric delivery fleet, similar to what we’ve done prior to our latest enhancements with hydrogen vehicles. If the investment we’re seeking comes about, we could absolutely be operating our emission-free final mile delivery business in Ontario by 2022.”
B.C. firm taps hydrogen-powered fleet in what it calls a first for North American couriers
Geazone turning to Toyota for fuel-cell electric vehicles
By Tyler Orton | November 15, 2021,
Victoria-based Geazone's new fleet of hydrogen-powered electric vehicles | submitted
A Victoria-based courier service is expanding its fleet of zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs), this time opting for hydrogen-powered vehicles rather than the more common battery-electric vehicles.
Geazone Strategic Ecopreneur Group Inc. said Monday it plans to build a 40-car fleet of fuel-cell electric vehicles, marking what it calls a first for North American courier services.
While charging stations for traditional electric vehicles are fairly ubiquitous across the province — ranging from public stations to plug-in options in private homes — only four hydrogen fuelling stations have launched in B.C. Another 10 are planned for the coming years via $10 million from taxpayers.
But Geazone is receiving provincial government rebates under a program focused on hydrogen-powered vehicles, which offers fleet operators $8,000 up to a maximum of 35% the selling price of a fuel-cell electric vehicle.
To date, the company has purchased nine of the Mirai models from auto giant Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) and has secured $72,000 in rebates from the province.
Geazon ultimately plans to build a fleet of 40 such vehicles.
EV expert Matthew Klippenstein, a regional manager with the Canadian Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Association, told BIV following the announcement that the prospect of new fuelling stations coming online makes launch of the fleet “terrifically exciting.”
Last month the provincial government unveiled its new CleanBC plan, which aims for 100% of new passenger vehicles sold in B.C. to be ZEVs by 2035.
Those ZEVs may either be battery-electric or hydrogen-powered electric vehicles.
“Incentives can help,” Klippenstein told BIV in October.
“There is also the matter of the zero-emissions vehicle mandate.”
Prior to last month’s unveiling of the CleanBC plan, the province was trailing other jurisdictions when it came to ZEV mandates.
The administration of President Joe Biden wants ZEVs to account for 50% of new vehicle sales in the U.S. by 2030, but B.C.’s 2019 legislation aimed for just 30% by that same year. The province’s new mandate now aims for 90% of new vehicle sales to be ZEVs by 2030.
Meanwhile, Ottawa’s newest targets, announced in June, call for ZEVs to represent 100% of new vehicle sales by 2035. That aligns with the province’s recent announcement.
And as ZEV mandates put additional pressure on manufacturers in the coming years, B.C. firms have been announcing plans over the past few months to shoulder part of the burden.
Vancouver-based ElectraMeccanica Vehicles Corp. (Nasdaq:SOLO) revealed in March that it had selected Mesa, Arizona, as its home base for manufacturing in North America.
The American plant is expected to begin producing the distinctive three-wheeled, single-passenger Solo vehicles next year, and the company already has one manufacturing facility in China.
Electric-motorcycle maker Damon Motors Inc. officially broke ground last month on its manufacturing hub in Surrey, where up to 40,000 motorbikes are expected to be produced annually once the plant opens in about a year’s time.
torton@biv.com
Geazone turning to Toyota for fuel-cell electric vehicles
By Tyler Orton | November 15, 2021,
Victoria-based Geazone's new fleet of hydrogen-powered electric vehicles | submitted
A Victoria-based courier service is expanding its fleet of zero-emission vehicles (ZEVs), this time opting for hydrogen-powered vehicles rather than the more common battery-electric vehicles.
Geazone Strategic Ecopreneur Group Inc. said Monday it plans to build a 40-car fleet of fuel-cell electric vehicles, marking what it calls a first for North American courier services.
While charging stations for traditional electric vehicles are fairly ubiquitous across the province — ranging from public stations to plug-in options in private homes — only four hydrogen fuelling stations have launched in B.C. Another 10 are planned for the coming years via $10 million from taxpayers.
But Geazone is receiving provincial government rebates under a program focused on hydrogen-powered vehicles, which offers fleet operators $8,000 up to a maximum of 35% the selling price of a fuel-cell electric vehicle.
To date, the company has purchased nine of the Mirai models from auto giant Toyota Motor Corp. (TYO:7203) and has secured $72,000 in rebates from the province.
Geazon ultimately plans to build a fleet of 40 such vehicles.
EV expert Matthew Klippenstein, a regional manager with the Canadian Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Association, told BIV following the announcement that the prospect of new fuelling stations coming online makes launch of the fleet “terrifically exciting.”
Those ZEVs may either be battery-electric or hydrogen-powered electric vehicles.
“Incentives can help,” Klippenstein told BIV in October.
“There is also the matter of the zero-emissions vehicle mandate.”
Prior to last month’s unveiling of the CleanBC plan, the province was trailing other jurisdictions when it came to ZEV mandates.
The administration of President Joe Biden wants ZEVs to account for 50% of new vehicle sales in the U.S. by 2030, but B.C.’s 2019 legislation aimed for just 30% by that same year. The province’s new mandate now aims for 90% of new vehicle sales to be ZEVs by 2030.
Meanwhile, Ottawa’s newest targets, announced in June, call for ZEVs to represent 100% of new vehicle sales by 2035. That aligns with the province’s recent announcement.
And as ZEV mandates put additional pressure on manufacturers in the coming years, B.C. firms have been announcing plans over the past few months to shoulder part of the burden.
Vancouver-based ElectraMeccanica Vehicles Corp. (Nasdaq:SOLO) revealed in March that it had selected Mesa, Arizona, as its home base for manufacturing in North America.
The American plant is expected to begin producing the distinctive three-wheeled, single-passenger Solo vehicles next year, and the company already has one manufacturing facility in China.
Electric-motorcycle maker Damon Motors Inc. officially broke ground last month on its manufacturing hub in Surrey, where up to 40,000 motorbikes are expected to be produced annually once the plant opens in about a year’s time.
torton@biv.com
As autos go electric, Toyota chases hydrogen dream
Tim Kelly and Maki Shiraki
Mon, November 15, 2021,
Toyota Motor Corporation’s hydrogen engine racing car driven by the company’s President Akio Toyoda is surrounded by pit crew members in Mimasaka, Japan
Toyota Motor Corporation’s hydrogen engine racing car driven by the company’s President Akio Toyoda takes a corner in Mimasaka, Japan
TOKYO (Reuters) - As U.N. climate conference delegates considered how to save the planet over the weekend in Glasgow, Toyota Motor's chief executive was in Japan racing an experimental hydrogen car - a vehicle he says could preserve millions of auto jobs.
The colourful Toyota Corolla Sport that Akio Toyoda steered around the Okayama International Circuit in western Japan was powered by a converted GR Yaris engine running on hydrogen. Making such a powerplant commercially viable could keep internal combustion engines running in a carbon-free world.
"The enemy is carbon, not internal combustion engines. We shouldn't just focus on one technology but make use of the technologies we already possess," Toyoda said at the track. "Carbon neutrality is not about one having a single choice, but about keeping options open."
Toyota's latest push into hydrogen tech comes as the world's biggest carmaker joins the rush to win a share of the growing market for battery electric vehicles (BEV) as the world tightens emission regulations to meet carbon-cutting pledges.
Although still only a small portion of vehicles on the road, global electric car registrations in 2020 grew 41% even as the overall car market contracted by almost a sixth, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
By 2025, Toyota plans to have 15 EV models available and is investing $13.5 billion over a decade to expand battery production.
NOT ONLY ELECTRIC
At the gathering in Glasgow, six major carmakers, including General Motors, Ford Motor, Sweden's Volvo and Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz signed a declaration to phase out fossil-fuel cars by 2040.
Toyota declined https://www.reuters.com/business/cop/toyota-says-large-parts-world-not-ready-zero-emission-cars-2021-11-11 to join that group, arguing that much of the world is not ready for a shift to EVs. Another notable absence was Germany's Volkswagen.
"We don't want to be seen as an EV maker, but as a carbon-neutral company," Toyota Vice Chairman Shigeru Hayakawa told Reuters in an interview.
Hayakawa likened the technological choice facing the auto industry to the late 19th century contest that pitted direct current electricity transmission against alternating current. The stakes are high.
"If the adoption of carbon-free fuels happens quickly, that could bring the first battery EV boom to an end," said Takeshi Miyao, an analyst at auto industry research company Carnorama.
In Japan, where mass layoffs are politically difficult, hydrogen's allure is that it would cause less disruption than a full switch to EVs. The Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association estimates the automotive industry employs 5.5 million people.
Although Toyota https://www.reuters.com/article/toyota-hydrogen-idCNL4N2S404A and other car makers are putting resources into building hydrogen fuel cell vehicles (FCV), none have shown the appetite Toyota has for hydrogen engine technology.
CHALLENGING TECHNOLOGY
One problem is that the engine is not completely carbon-free and cannot therefore be classed as zero-emission.
Although the byproduct of hydrogen and oxygen combustion is water, a small amount of engine metal burns as well, resulting in about 2% of the emissions of a gasoline engine. The exhaust also contains traces of nitrogen oxide.
There is a carbon cost to building electric car batteries, but EVs do not pollute when operated.
Hydrogen cars also need bulky pressurized tanks for their fuel. Much of the rear seat and trunk in Toyota's hydrogen car was taken up by fuel tanks that blocked the rear window.
Safety concerns meant Toyota engineers had to refuel the vehicle far from the pits where other teams worked on their cars.
Such concerns have also slowed the construction of hydrogen fuelling stations in Japan, despite Japanese government backing for the fuel, which it sees as a key component in the country's future carbon-neutral energy mix.
Tim Kelly and Maki Shiraki
Mon, November 15, 2021,
Toyota Motor Corporation’s hydrogen engine racing car driven by the company’s President Akio Toyoda is surrounded by pit crew members in Mimasaka, Japan
Toyota Motor Corporation’s hydrogen engine racing car driven by the company’s President Akio Toyoda takes a corner in Mimasaka, Japan
TOKYO (Reuters) - As U.N. climate conference delegates considered how to save the planet over the weekend in Glasgow, Toyota Motor's chief executive was in Japan racing an experimental hydrogen car - a vehicle he says could preserve millions of auto jobs.
The colourful Toyota Corolla Sport that Akio Toyoda steered around the Okayama International Circuit in western Japan was powered by a converted GR Yaris engine running on hydrogen. Making such a powerplant commercially viable could keep internal combustion engines running in a carbon-free world.
"The enemy is carbon, not internal combustion engines. We shouldn't just focus on one technology but make use of the technologies we already possess," Toyoda said at the track. "Carbon neutrality is not about one having a single choice, but about keeping options open."
Although still only a small portion of vehicles on the road, global electric car registrations in 2020 grew 41% even as the overall car market contracted by almost a sixth, according to the International Energy Agency (IEA).
By 2025, Toyota plans to have 15 EV models available and is investing $13.5 billion over a decade to expand battery production.
NOT ONLY ELECTRIC
At the gathering in Glasgow, six major carmakers, including General Motors, Ford Motor, Sweden's Volvo and Daimler AG's Mercedes-Benz signed a declaration to phase out fossil-fuel cars by 2040.
Toyota declined https://www.reuters.com/business/cop/toyota-says-large-parts-world-not-ready-zero-emission-cars-2021-11-11 to join that group, arguing that much of the world is not ready for a shift to EVs. Another notable absence was Germany's Volkswagen.
"We don't want to be seen as an EV maker, but as a carbon-neutral company," Toyota Vice Chairman Shigeru Hayakawa told Reuters in an interview.
Hayakawa likened the technological choice facing the auto industry to the late 19th century contest that pitted direct current electricity transmission against alternating current. The stakes are high.
"If the adoption of carbon-free fuels happens quickly, that could bring the first battery EV boom to an end," said Takeshi Miyao, an analyst at auto industry research company Carnorama.
In Japan, where mass layoffs are politically difficult, hydrogen's allure is that it would cause less disruption than a full switch to EVs. The Japan Automobile Manufacturers Association estimates the automotive industry employs 5.5 million people.
Although Toyota https://www.reuters.com/article/toyota-hydrogen-idCNL4N2S404A and other car makers are putting resources into building hydrogen fuel cell vehicles (FCV), none have shown the appetite Toyota has for hydrogen engine technology.
CHALLENGING TECHNOLOGY
One problem is that the engine is not completely carbon-free and cannot therefore be classed as zero-emission.
Although the byproduct of hydrogen and oxygen combustion is water, a small amount of engine metal burns as well, resulting in about 2% of the emissions of a gasoline engine. The exhaust also contains traces of nitrogen oxide.
There is a carbon cost to building electric car batteries, but EVs do not pollute when operated.
Hydrogen cars also need bulky pressurized tanks for their fuel. Much of the rear seat and trunk in Toyota's hydrogen car was taken up by fuel tanks that blocked the rear window.
Safety concerns meant Toyota engineers had to refuel the vehicle far from the pits where other teams worked on their cars.
Such concerns have also slowed the construction of hydrogen fuelling stations in Japan, despite Japanese government backing for the fuel, which it sees as a key component in the country's future carbon-neutral energy mix.
At the end of August, there were 154 hydrogen stations in Japan - six short of what the government wanted by the end of March.
"Hydrogen has long been known as a potential low-carbon transport fuel, but establishing it in the transport fuel mix has been difficult," the IEA said in a progress report https://www.iea.org/reports/hydrogen this month.
Even with adequate fuel infrastructure, Toyota still must build a vehicle that can compete in price, range and operating cost with conventional gasoline cars and EVs.
In Okayama, Toyoda declined to say when Toyota might launch a commercial hydrogen-engine car.
"It's good to have a lot of choices. If everything becomes EVs then much of that industry is in China," said Eiji Terasaki (57), who had travelled to the Okayama circuit from neighbouring Kagawa prefecture to watch the races.
(Reporting by Tim Kelly; Editing by Gerry Doyle and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
"Hydrogen has long been known as a potential low-carbon transport fuel, but establishing it in the transport fuel mix has been difficult," the IEA said in a progress report https://www.iea.org/reports/hydrogen this month.
Even with adequate fuel infrastructure, Toyota still must build a vehicle that can compete in price, range and operating cost with conventional gasoline cars and EVs.
In Okayama, Toyoda declined to say when Toyota might launch a commercial hydrogen-engine car.
"It's good to have a lot of choices. If everything becomes EVs then much of that industry is in China," said Eiji Terasaki (57), who had travelled to the Okayama circuit from neighbouring Kagawa prefecture to watch the races.
(Reporting by Tim Kelly; Editing by Gerry Doyle and Emelia Sithole-Matarise)
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