In order to reduce greenhouse gas emissions in the transportation sector and allow Japanese automakers to compete in the global electric vehicle competition, the Japanese government has set new targets.
Recently, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan held a government-civilian agreement and proposed that by 2050, the passenger cars sold by Japanese automakers worldwide will be electrified, that is, they will no longer sell new pure internal combustion engine models, but electric vehicles, fuel cells. The car or hybrid car. The meeting was co-sponsored by Japanese government officials and representatives from the economic circles. Japanese Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Shiguro Hiroshi, Toyota, Honda, Nissan and other Japanese car executives attended. At the meeting, the Japanese government formally proposed By the middle of this century, the goal of 'full electrification' of Japanese passenger cars.
Passenger car fully electricized
The Japanese government has proposed this goal first, in order to control greenhouse gas emissions and deal with climate change. The Japanese government and enterprises have agreed that it is necessary to set long-term goals in order to maintain the environmental performance of Japanese cars at the world's leading level. In order to achieve the Paris Agreement's emission reduction targets, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry hopes to reduce the average greenhouse gas emissions per vehicle by 80% compared to 2010 (including 90% reduction of passenger cars) by 2050. To this end, Japan The government believes it is necessary to make the Japanese cars sold worldwide as electrified models.
Secondly, the global competition in the field of electric vehicles is becoming more and more fierce, and Japanese manufacturers are faintly backward. Japan’s Asahi Shimbun pointed out that although Japan has a dominant position in the field of hybrid vehicles, China, the United Kingdom, France and other countries are popularizing electric vehicles. The first step is to take the lead in introducing various incentive policies, which gives Japan a strong sense of crisis, lest it fall behind in the R&D competition of the next generation of automotive technology. Although electrified vehicles also include hybrid vehicles, in order to achieve greenhouse gas emission reduction The goal is to spread the true zero-emissions of pure electric vehicles and fuel cell vehicles. 'Japan hopes to contribute to the realization of zero emissions worldwide by promoting electric vehicles on a global scale. This is a global influence. The signal, we will go all out. 'Shi Geng Hongcheng claims.
In addition, in view of the indispensability of rare metal cobalt in battery materials, in order to ensure the supply of cobalt, the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry of Japan and the People's Republic of China also said that a new organization will be established by March next year, when the car manufacturers will jointly purchase cobalt. Japan will also promote the development of battery technology and develop a battery evaluation method guide to be able to trade at the right price when using second-hand electric vehicles.
Japanese car companies actively transform
In fact, the first car manufacturer to propose a 100% electrification target in 2050 is Toyota. Toyota proposed in the 'Toyota Environmental Challenge 2050' strategy released in 2015 that by 2050, the average carbon emissions of Toyota's new global car will be higher. In 2010, it cut 90% and basically achieved zero production of traditional power vehicles. Two years later, Toyota’s director of advanced R&D and engineering, Ge Weiqing, once again boldly predicted that as auto companies face more stringent environmental regulations, they will accelerate electric vehicles. Development, the new car in the market will no longer be equipped with a traditional internal combustion engine in 2050, completely replaced by electric motors. Ge Weiqing also pointed out that Toyota is actively developing solid-state battery technology and has obtained many patents. This battery is small in size and high in capacity. Considered to be a major breakthrough in electric vehicles.
At the end of last year, Toyota Motor President Akio Toyoda said that it is hoped that by 2030, sales of electrified vehicles, including hybrid vehicles, will account for 50% of the company's total sales. Toyota expects its sales of electrified vehicles to be around 550 by 2030. Ten thousand vehicles, including 4.5 million hybrid electric vehicles and plug-in hybrid vehicles, 1 million pure electric vehicles and fuel cell vehicles.
As for Nissan, the global cumulative sales volume of its pure electric vehicle has reached 270,000 units. The new generation of the wind will be launched in Japan and Europe and the United States this year. According to Nissan’s plan, the annual sales of its electrified models will be before the end of March 2023. It will be upgraded to 1 million vehicles, including pure electric vehicles such as the LEAF and models equipped with Nissan's e-Power electric drive technology.
Honda is not far behind, claiming that 2018 is its 'first year of electrification' and released the 2025 electrification strategy. By 2025, Honda will launch more than 20 electrified models in China. Honda has also announced the '2030 Vision'. That is, by 2030, motorized products accounted for 2/3 of Honda's global sales. Mitsubishi Motors is well-known in plug-in hybrid technology, especially the Outlander hybrid car. In China, GAC Mitsubishi launched the Zhizhi PHEV. This is a plug-in hybrid SUV. However, except for Toyota, other Japanese car companies have not set a time node to completely withdraw from the traditional fuel car market.
Employment killer? Everyone is at risk
For the new goal of 100% electrification of Japanese cars, Bloomberg recently pointed out that electric vehicles may become Japan's largest industry - the 'employment killer' of the automotive industry, especially for parts suppliers. Toyota Akio last autumn The warning said that the '100-year-old' industry upheaval will threaten the survival of the auto industry. Shared cars, electric cars and self-driving cars are in the ascendant, but these are the wave of innovation that those who rely on the survival of internal combustion engines are afraid of. The Japanese government It is proposed that the ban on the sale of traditional fuel vehicles by 2050 will further exacerbate their uneasiness.
Take Aichi Prefecture, where Toyota headquarters is located, for example. The biggest problem facing the local area is that the use of electric vehicles is about 1/3 less than that of today's ordinary fuel vehicles. The auto industry workers have been affected. In Aichi, you can Find manufacturers of spark plugs, pistons, camshafts, fuel pumps, fuel injectors and catalytic converters, but electric vehicles don't need these. For Aichi's 310,000 auto workers, industrial change, restructuring means Reducing scale and layoffs, this is bound to be a painful process that will have a profound impact on the industrial center of Japan.
What influences electric vehicles will bring to Aichi Prefecture, Japanese economists have not yet conducted formal research. However, the Fraunhofer Institute of Industrial Engineering in Germany recently conducted a survey of the German automotive industry, saying that electric vehicles are assumed in 2030. With a penetration rate of 25%, even in the new jobs created by the electric vehicle industry, 9% of the auto industry jobs in Germany will be cut down. Regardless of the popularity of the final electric vehicles, there will be suppliers unable to adapt to this shift. And encountered elimination, especially small and medium-sized enterprises.
Downstream of the supply chain, many companies have fewer than 30 employees and are struggling to invest in new business and technology. According to a survey by the Aichi County government, Toyota's profit reached a new high in 2017, but 40% of Aichi's small suppliers Income is declining, with only 15% of companies saying they have employees in research and development. 'As with all technological changes, there are winners and losers.' Macquarie analyst Janet Lewis said, 'Some suppliers Being able to develop some key components, they may not need to worry, but if it is a supplier of muffler, it is difficult to be a winner.'