London, 10 October, 2023, (Oilandgaspress): – The regional public transport operator Ferry Cars from Belgium has put five new Mercedes-Benz eCitaro low-floor city buses with all-electric drive into operation. The operator, based in the city of Eeklo, which is located in the north of the Belgian province of East Flanders in the Meetjesland region between Ghent and Bruges and thus close to the border with the Netherlands, uses the locally emission-free and quietly running 12-metre electric buses in the regional public transport of Belgium’s largest local public transport companies De Lijn and TEC (Transport en Commun).
Ferry Cars is the first Belgian public transport operator to test the function of electric regional public transport deployment in practice. “Our fruitful collaboration with Daimler Buses started more than 20 years ago; this has given us the confidence to be the first Belgian company to order the eCitaro,” explains Pieter Lanssens, CEO of Ferry Cars. Practical testing of the eCitaro in regional transport supports environmental objectives
By 2030, the Flemish government aims to reduce CO2 emissions by 35 percent. Mobility must make a significant contribution to this. For Ferry Cars, the purchase of the five all-electric eCitaro buses is a pilot project to test how electric regional public transport can be optimally implemented in practice. The public transport company expects that this proactive approach will enable it to fully meet the government’s environmental objectives for public transport even before mandatory obligations and regulations will be introduced in 2025. Read full article
Daimler Buses has won a total of six awards at the international trade fair Busworld, held from 7 to 12 October in Brussels. The specialist panel at Busworld Awards honoured the eCitaro with the “Grand Award Bus” and the “Comfort Label” awards. The Setra TopClass S 516 HDH received the “Grand Award Coach” as well as two “Coach Comfort” and “Coach Safety” label awards.
eCitaro – emission-free with high energy capacity
The eCitaro with the latest generation of NMC3 battery on board is an example of the high level of development at Daimler Buses in the segment for zero-emission city buses. Third-generation lithium-ion batteries introduced at the end of 2022 have a very high energy capacity and are very durable. The solo bus features three battery packs with a total capacity of 294 kWh. Thanks to its high energy capacity, the eCitaro featuring the new generation of batteries is ideal for long route cycles and subsequent mains charging at the depot.
S 516 HDH offers maximum long-distance comfort
Setra – the brand has been the epitome of premium touring coaches for over seven decades.
The next generation of Setra ComfortClass stands for a versatile touring coach concept that meets the strictest requirements in economy, safety and flexibility. Like all exclusive TopClass HDH models, the award-winning S 516 HDH takes bus tours to a new level. Maximum long-distance comfort, individual luxury and technical excellence combine to create a true travelling experience. Read full article
The EU Commission is currently preparing new CO2 requirements for buses. Daimler Buses supports the plan to reduce CO2 emissions by new buses. As one of the world’s leading bus manufacturers, the company wants to make a contribution to fighting climate change and be a driver of the transformation. Daimler Buses believes that a halving of CO2 emissions from new buses in Europe is possible from 2030, compared to 2025, across all segments. To achieve this, a comprehensive supportive policy framework is necessary. The company made this announcement today at “busworld” in Brussels, the most important European industry trade fair.
According to Daimler Buses, only electrically powered city buses should be allowed in Europe from 2030. This segment could thus make a contribution of 100 percent to CO2 reduction. Daimler Buses also believes that long-term subsides for e-infrastructure at depots – for both city buses and coaches – are necessary. This is intended to reduce one-off costs incurred by bus operators when switching from conventionally powered to electric buses. In addition, the development of a public charging and hydrogen refueling infrastructure for coaches is required. This is a particularly big challenge compared to the city bus segment, as the infrastructure has to be available everywhere. In addition, coach operators will still be working to overcome the effects of the COVID pandemic for the next few years, which means that they will continue to have less financial flexibility. Subsidies in this segment must cover e-infrastructure and vehicles as well. Daimler Buses therefore considers a contribution of the coach segment to CO2 reduction of 20 percent to be extremely ambitious, but realistic.
From 2030, according to the EU Commission, only locally CO2-neutral city buses are to be permitted under the so-called “ZEV mandate”, which Daimler Buses strongly supports. For coaches, however, the EU Commission is currently planning a reduction of 45 percent CO2. The formulation of these proposals is part of the further European legislative process. Read full article
About the eActros 600
A new design language for the driver’s cab of the eActros 600 breaks with the familiar appearance of the Actros series, takes up design elements of the concept prototype presented at the IAA and moves them forward with clean-cut lines and an aerodynamic shape. The interior has also been updated. Three battery packs supply the series version of the eActros 600 with a total installed capacity of more than 600 kW and two electric motors, as part of the new electric axle, generate a continuous output of 400 kW and a peak output of 600 kW. The high battery capacity is planned to make possible a range of 500 kilometers without intermediate charging. In addition to the semitrailer tractor, Mercedes-Benz Trucks will also produce rigid variants of the eActros 600 right from the market launch. This offers customers numerous further application options in all-electric transport. The development engineers at Mercedes-Benz Trucks design the eActros 600 to meet the same requirements on the durability of the vehicle and components as a comparable conventional heavy-duty long-haul Actros. That means 1.2 million kilometers in ten years of operation. Batteries with lithium iron phosphate cell technology (LFP) are used in the eActros 600. These are characterized in particular by a long service life and a high level of usable energy. The series version of the eActros 600 is designed to facilitate both CCS charging at up to 400 kW and megawatt charging (MCS). Read full article
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Administrator Michael S. Regan announced his selections for membership of the Science Advisory Board (SAB) and Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee (CASAC). The well-qualified experts selected by Administrator Regan bring a cross-selection of scientific disciplines and the experience needed to provide sound scientific advice to EPA leadership to help advance the agency’s mission.
“Everything we do at EPA must be grounded in the latest and best available science, adhering to the highest standard of scientific integrity,” said EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan. “The Science Advisory Board and the Clean Air Scientific Advisory Committee will ensure that EPA continues to receive sound, independent science-based advice. I want to thank those members leaving SAB and CASAC for their outstanding service and welcome the newest members that will apply their widely-respected and trusted expertise to our work to protect public health and our environment.”
The membership solicitation process resulted in 115 nominations for the SAB and eight CASAC nominations to fill the required slot for a member representing State air pollution control agencies. All candidates were evaluated by the Science Advisory Board Staff Office (SABSO) and recommendations were given by SABSO to the Administrator for him to consider for his selections.
EPA also announced today that Dr. Kimberly L. Jones, Associate Provost for Faculty Affairs and Professor, Department of Civil and Environmental Engineering at Howard University, has been named chair of the Science Advisory Board. Dr. Jones is the first African-American Chair and first Chair to represent a historically black college or university. Read full article
$30M BIL investment advances Superfund cleanup on Atlanta’s Westside and free EPA job training provides skills, job opportunities for 20 local residents.Federal, state and local officials gathered in Atlanta’s Westside last Thursday evening to recognize two milestones in the cleanup of the Westside Lead Superfund Site. Through President Biden’s Investing in America agenda, $30 million in Bipartisan Infrastructure Law funding is being invested to support the Westside cleanup. Additionally, 20 Atlanta area residents graduated from the EPA’s Superfund Job Training Initiative or “SuperJTI.” Some graduates will fill available jobs with environmental contractors cleaning up contamination at the Westside Lead Superfund Site. Read full article
U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) announced the latest actions to phase down climate-damaging hydrofluoro carbons (HFCs) under the bipartisan American Innovation and Manufacturing (AIM) Act, building on the Biden-Harris Administration’s progress in accomplishing an initial 10% reduction and helping achieve an 85% reduction by 2036. The first new action is a final rule to accelerate the ongoing transition to more efficient and climate-safe technologies in new refrigeration, heating and cooling systems and other products by restricting the use of HFCs where alternatives are already available. The second action is a proposed rule to better manage and reuse existing HFCs, including by reducing wasteful leaks from equipment and supporting a growing American industry for HFC recycling and reclamation. These actions come one year after President Biden signed the U.S. ratification of the Kigali Amendment, an international agreement to phase down super-polluting HFCs and help avoid up to 0.5 °C of global warming by 2100.
Under the AIM Act, the Biden-Harris Administration is phasing down HFCs to achieve a 40% reduction of HFCs starting in 2024 and an 85% reduction by 2036. Today’s actions will support the national phasedown, including through an additional $4.5 billion in estimated savings for industry and consumers, while supporting good-paying American manufacturing jobs to produce the next generation of equipment and HFC alternatives. Read full article
FIAT offers a simple and innovative solution for customers of the Fiat New 500 and Abarth New 500e, who can request a fast charge wherever their car is located, in just a few clicks. The service is the easiest way to avoid charging anxiety. It is integrated with the FIAT app, and it is aimed at simplifying the daily life of customers providing a fast charge without the need for them to be with their car.
The innovative service is offered by E-GAP, which enables a mobile on-demand fast charging service, using energy that is 100% from renewable sources, in 4 countries – Italy, France, Spain and Germany – and in 13 cities – Rome, Milan, Turin, Bologna, Brescia, Verona, Trento, Paris, Lyon, Madrid, Barcelona, Munich and Berlin – with the aim of reaching a total of 15 cities in Europe by the end of 2023.
Customers can choose to recharge their electric vehicle safely by using the provider’s nomadic charging devices.
The process is extremely easy: the service is booked via app and a VAN with a mobile charging infrastructure reaches the vehicle, wherever it is parked, and delivers the recharge. The E-GAP app is all that’s needed and can be connected to the FIAT app through the “account linking” feature. Once logged in, customers simply have to register their own vehicle by inputting its data and authorize E-GAP to geolocalize the vehicle and operate it autonomously. The customer has simply to select the address, schedule the charging time window and desired level of charging, and pay for the service. The customer is notified that a charging session has been scheduled directly on the FIAT app, where they have to authorize E-GAP to access the vehicle during the selected time window. The E-GAP VAN arrives within 90 minutes from customer’s request and, once the vehicle is located, it operates the recharge without moving the car from its parking place. Read full article
Mercedes-Benz Vans increased global sales by 11% reaching 323,500 units since beginning of the year with stable sales development in the core markets Europe (+12%) and the U.S. (+13%). Global sales in the third quarter 2023 are on previous year’s level (+1%). In total, Mercedes-Benz Vans sold 105,100 vans with the three-pointed star. Mercedes-Benz Vans strengthens its position in strategically relevant markets and industries and focuses on profitable growth. The main sales driver in the third quarter was the NAFTA region, where sales increased by 41% (25,300 units sold). With 21,800 units sold sales increased by 41% in the U.S. – the most important market within the NAFTA region. The sales of electric vans in Q3 rose by 105% to 6,300 eVans compared to previous year’s level. Read full article
Lamborghini Esperienza Giro India, the epitome of a luxurious and lifestyle experiential driving program, has concluded amidst the grandeur of Rajasthan. Celebrating the brand’s 60th anniversary, this year’s theme immersed Lamborghini owners in the regal splendour of Rajasthan, allowing clients to explore the heart of India’s royal heritage in their Lamborghini. Esperienza Giro India 2023 unfolded as an extraordinary adventure, exclusively tailored for Lamborghini customers on a route that wove through resplendent royal palaces to awe-inspiring sand dunes, driving on the most spectacular roads across the mesmerising Golden City of Rajasthan.
The convoy, comprised of more than 60 Lamborghini cars, reawakened everyone’s senses with the curated routes that traversed the heart of India’s royal heritage, with a picturesque backdrop of the Thar Desert. The journey began at the magnificent Jodhpur and culminated at the enchanting Palace in Jaisalmer.
This year’s Esperienza Giro India allowed clients to indulge in the rich tapestry of Rajasthan’s cultural heritage while reveling in the unmatched performance and luxury of their Lamborghini. The event underscored Lamborghini’s commitment to delivering exceptional experiences that go beyond driving, forging enduring connections between the brand, its owners, and the remarkable world they explore together. Read More
Lamborghini presents two important Lamborghini models to Middle East audiences at the inaugural edition of the Geneva International Motor Show (GIMS) Qatar. Lamborghini Chairman and CEO Stephan Winkelmann was on site in Doha to mark the brand’s presence at the first-ever GIMS Qatar event, where Middle East audiences enjoyed two regional premieres: the Revuelto[1] super sports V12 plug-in hybrid, and the all-electric Lanzador concept.
Unveiling the two cars, Stephan Winkelmann commented, “This new motor show in a significant region is the perfect opportunity to present these important Lamborghini models to Middle East audiences. We are delighted to be here today, in the year that Lamborghini celebrates its 60th anniversary and six decades of our rich brand heritage, while providing visitors to GIMS Qatar a preview of our innovative future as we shape our path towards electrification.”
A replacement for the legendary Aventador, the Revuelto defines a new paradigm in terms of performance, sportiness and driving pleasure. Its revolutionary architecture, with naturally-aspirated V12 engine combined with three electric motors and eight-speed, double-clutch transverse gearbox, delivers 1015 CV. With its innovative design, maximum-efficiency aerodynamics and a new carbon frame concept, the hybrid Revuelto continues Lamborghini’s V12 super sports heritage. Read More
Ahead of the eighth-annual Rebelle Rally, Hyundai Motor America is revealing the modifications and custom graphic wrap for the Brute Squad’s Santa Cruz Sport Adventure Vehicle entry. For the second consecutive year, the modified Hyundai Santa Cruz will be piloted by automotive journalists Jill Ciminillo (navigator) and Kristin Shaw (driver), aka “The Brute Squad”. The Rebelle Rally is a grueling all-women, off-road navigational challenge starting and ending in the deserts of California starting Oct. 13. Over the span of eight demanding days, Shaw and Ciminillo will bravely tackle this adventure in a specially equipped Santa Cruz they call ‘Sandy.’ What’s more, they’ll take on this challenge with little more than a compass and paper maps to guide them – GPS and Internet-enabled devices are forbidden. Read More
Hyundai Motor Company and Tate Modern today announced the opening of Hyundai Commission: El Anatsui: Behind the Red Moon as Tate Modern unveils a monumental sculptural installation created by artist El Anatsui. Thousands of metal bottle tops and fragments have been stitched together into three expansive abstract compositions. These undulating forms, which are the artist’s largest work to date, cut through the vast industrial space of Tate Modern’s Turbine Hall, reflecting on the expanse of human history and the elemental power of the natural world. Each sculpture refers to Anatsui’s interest in the movement and migration of goods and people during the transatlantic slave trade.
Hyundai Commission: El Anatsui: Behind the Red Moon is the eighth annual Hyundai Commission, a series of new, site-specific works by international artists in response to the unique context of Tate Modern’s iconic Turbine Hall. Staged in three acts, viewers are invited on a journey of movement through Anatsui’s dynamic metallic sculptures. The first hanging, titled ‘The Red Moon,’ resembles the majestic sail of a ship billowing out in the wind, announcing the beginning of a journey across the Atlantic Ocean. Red liquor bottle tops form the outline of a red moon, or ‘blood moon,’ as it appears during a lunar eclipse. The second sculpture, titled ‘The World,’ is composed of many individual layers that evoke human figures suspended in a restless state. The ethereal appearance of these figures is achieved using thin bottle top seals wired together to create a net-like material. When viewed from a particular vantage point, these scattered shapes come together into a single circular form of the Earth. In Anatsui’s final hanging, ‘The Wall,’ a monumental black sheet of metal cloth stretches from floor to ceiling. At its base, pools of bottle tops rise from the ground in the form of crashing waves and rocky peaks. Behind its black surface, a delicate structure of shimmering silver is revealed, covered in a mosaic of multi-colored pieces. This combination of lines and waves, blackness, and technicolor, echoes the collision of global cultures and hybrid identities that Anatsui invites us to consider throughout his work. Read More
Hyundai Motor America and its U.S. Hispanic marketing agency, Lopez Negrete Communications, launched a new creative campaign for the three-row flagship 2024 SUV Palisade. The new campaign, “¿Viste?” (Did You See It?), is aimed at upwardly mobile Hispanic families striving for multigenerational validation, while highlighting the sophistication, innovation, and comfort of the Hyundai Palisade. The campaign, in both English and Spanish for bilingual audiences, includes a :30 and :15 TV commercial, digital spots, and a social media series with a rolling start beginning Sept. 30. Read More
The 2024 Toyota Prius is the hybrid that is engineered to surprise. Designed to capture drivers’ hearts at first glance, the latest generation of Prius brings sporty style and a fun, dynamic driving experience, all while keeping its legendary fuel efficiency and low emissions. With a sleek silhouette and wide rear, with available 19-inch wheels, the 2024 Prius brings coupe-inspired looks to the legendary hybrid. Even the interior is made to inspire, featuring a clean, modern design, high tech driver and multimedia displays, and ambient lighting. Altogether, it’s a progressive, sporty Prius, that excites the senses.
Under the hood, the 2024 Prius is powered by the fifth generation Toyota Hybrid System and a 2.0L engine, delivering up to 196 net hp on Electronic On-Demand All-Wheel Drive (e-AWD) equipped models and 194 net hp on Front-Wheel Drive (FWD) equipped models. With ample power the Prius still brings outstanding fuel efficiency, it has an impressive manufacturer-estimated 57 MPG combined rating – the best ever for a Prius and the most fuel-efficient hybrid in production for model year 2024. The available e-AWD system adds extra grip when needed while still having an impressive manufacturer-estimated 54 MPG combined rating.
The Prius also continues to play its part in Toyota’s diverse approach to reducing carbon emissions, as an iconic player in Toyota’s effort to move toward its “Beyond Zero” vision. With 16 electrified vehicles for customers to choose from, it’s part of a lineup that wears the new “Beyond Zero” badge, symbolizing Toyota’s global effort to get closer to a carbon neutral future. Read More
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