The electric hybrid propulsion system supplied by BAE Systems which bridges the gap between conventional drives and full electric or fuel cell systems, remains a viable option for reducing emissions and saving fuel in areas where charging infrastructure is unavailable, maintains BAE Systems.

In June, EV Consulting, part of FEV Group, published a study for the VDMA – a European network association in the mechanical and plant engineering sector – that predicts by 2040 the fuel cell components market for passenger cars in Europe would be worth EUR11bn annually, whereas globally this figure would be EUR75bn.

Andreas Moser (56, appointed head of ZF Commercial Vehicle Technology Division, ZF Friedrichshafen AG, on January I, 2020) last month at the parent company’s headquarters in Friedrichshafen, to a closed group of journalists laid out details of organisational changes within the CV division to address the post-Covid markets and to meet key technology trends taking place in the sector.

At ABA Marketplace and Busworld North America conference held in Omaha, Nebraska, USA in January 2020, Jan Deman, President Busworld Academy, said:  “As Busworld, we stand at a crossroads, where bus manufacturers, operators, authorities and knowledge institutions meet, and from this point we notice that never before in our industry so many initiatives have been taken to exchange ideas and insights as today.

While there have been tenders during the last few years for electric buses in Turkey, which have then later been cancelled due to the recession, the CNG market remains in better shape, according to Cenk Yavuz, territory manager, Turkey for on-highway business of Turkey Engine Power Systems Ltd of Izmir.

A pair of FUSO eCanter 7.49t electric delivery trucks have entered service with operators in Copenhagen, Denmark, and the first in Scandinavia: One has joined the fleet of Citylogistik and the other is with Aastiderne, two well-known Danish transport operators.

Transit buses, school buses and intercity / tour coach segments are on different trajectories when looking at global bus demand, stated Veerender Kaul, global vice-president commercial mobility at Frost and Sullivan talking at Busworld Academy North America about the global and North American bus and coach markets.

Brussels-based European Automobile Manufacturers’ Association is lobbying for changes to EU policy to enable transition to carbon-neutral freight transport.

Global demand for trucks started to weaken in the second half of 2019 and this trend is set to continue in 2020 and 2021, stated Zita Zigan, director of global commercial vehicle forecasting at LMC Automotive Ltd.

Competition in the Philippine light truck and bus market has intensified significantly in recent months with the launch of the Isuzu Traviz and the return of the Mitsubishi L300 at the end of September.

“The likelihood of a recession in 2020 is 30%,” stated Ben May, director, Global Macro Research at Oxford economics speaking in London last month at the LMC Automotive Global Truck forecasting day.

The Indian commercial vehicle industry has come to be dominated by a few traditional manufacturers after decades of relative isolation, and it is this that has been the driving factor for them to focus on building low cost technological products best suited to the demands of the Indian marketplace.