Toyota News

My brother and I had a discussion about methanol where we concluded that methanol is a promising sustainable liquid fuel for transportation devices when batteries cannot do the job. While Methanol is initially not carbon zero, as long as we focus on developing zero carbon electrical energy, eventually we can produce zero carbon green methanol. Once there is plentiful green methanol, existing methanol vehicles will automatically become zero carbon transportation.The core argument…

U.S. automakers General Motors and Ford will reroute affected shipments after a bridge collapse in the U.S. shuttered the Port of Baltimore, but the companies said on Tuesday the impact will be minimal."We expect the situation to have minimal impact to our operations. We are working to re-route any vehicle shipments to other ports," GM said in a statement.The Port of Baltimore is the busiest U.S. port for car shipments, handling at least 750,000 vehicles in 2023, according to data from the Maryland Port Administration.

A massive cargo ship smashed into a bridge while sailing out of Baltimore early on Tuesday, sending cars and people into the river below and closing one of the busiest ports on the U.S. Eastern Seaboard.Rescuers pulled out two survivors, one of whom was hospitalized, and searched for more in the Patapsco River after huge metal spans of the 1.6-mile (2.57 km) Francis Scott Key Bridge crumpled into the icy water around 1:30 a.m. (0530 GMT).The ship reported a power issue before impact…

A container ship smashed into a four-lane bridge in the U.S. port of Baltimore in darkness on Tuesday, causing it to collapse and sending cars and people plunging into the river below.Rescuers pulled out two survivors, one in a "very serious condition," and were searching for more in the Patapsco River after huge spans of the 1.6-mile (2.57 km) Francis Scott Key Bridge crumpled into the water.The ship "lost propulsion" as it was leaving port, and crew on board notified Maryland officials they had lost control of the vessel, ABC News reported, citing an unclassified U.S.

Japan's NYK Line said Thursday its NYK Bulk & Project Carriers Ltd. (NBP), Oshima Shipbuilding Co., Ltd. (OSHIMA), and Sumitomo Corporation (SUMITOMO) had signed a memorandum of understanding to study, design, and construct the world’s first Handymax bulk carrier (ammonia dual fuel type) dedicated to the transport of copper products, that will reduce CO2 emissions to zero.The MoU signing comes just a year after Corporación Nacional del Cobre de Chile (CODELCO), a Chilean state-owned company and one of the world's leading copper producers, and NYK Bulk & Project Carriers Ltd.

Corvus Energy, a company providing zero-emission solutions for the maritime industry, said Monday it had won a contract with Hvide Sande Shipyard in Denmark to supply a complete hydrogen fuel cell system for the training vessel “MS Skulebas.” "This marks a historic milestone for Corvus Energy," Corvus Energy said."The 35-meter fishing and training vessel has the latest technology and commercial fishing systems installed and sets an example of innovation and cooperation within the maritime and education sectors.

Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK), NYK Group’s Asahi Shipping, and Kobe Steel have announced a successful trial run of biofuels on a voyage between Japan and Australia.The companies supplied biofuel via ship-to-ship transfer to the bulk carrier Sunrise Serenity at the port of Kobe in Japan. The vessel was supplied with biofuel by Toyota Tsusho Marine Fuels Corporation and then sailed to the port of Newcastle, Australia.The vessel is operated and managed by Asahi Shipping and…

On July 24, Freesia Leader, the fifth LNG-fueled pure car and truck carrier (PCTC) operated by NYK, arrived at the port of Nagoya for a commemorative delivery ceremony.After arriving at the Port of Nagoya, the vessel received LNG fuel from Kaguya, an LNG-bunkering ship operated by Central LNG Marine Fuel Japan Corporation, a joint venture owned by NYK and other companies.The 200-meter, 71,846GT Freesia Leader can carry 7,000 units and will be engaged in the transportation of finished…

Corvus Energy has launched its inherently gas-safe marine fuel cell product, the Corvus Pelican Fuel Cell System.The system is the result of the H2NOR research project that started in 2021. H2NOR was initiated by Corvus Energy, Toyota and other partners to fast-track the development and production of sustainable and scalable Maritime Hydrogen Fuel Cell Systems.Corvus says the result of the two-year development is the safest marine fuel cell system to date. Using the well-proven fuel cell technology from Toyota…

Some U.S. importers who shifted cargo away from West Coast ports to rival gateways over fears that labor contract talks could disrupt shipments have begun bringing some of that volume back, even as those negotiations stretch into their 13th month, company supply chain executives said.But anxiety over labor negotiations only explains part of the market share losses at West Coast container ports, including the nation's busiest at Los Angeles/Long Beach, eight importers said at the…

I will readily confess that 20 years ago I was not convinced that EV’s were the answer to sustainable energy. Instead, I had long been a fan of hydrogen. I was well aware that there were technical issues associated with hydrogen, but was equally aware that, for total sustainable energy, a transportable fuel is needed and hydrogen seemed to be the way to go.I envisioned hydrogen generation from sustainable sources (wind, solar, etc) and the use of hydrogen with fuel cells in cars, ships and with gas turbines in airplanes.

Toyota Tsusho and subsidiary Toyotsu Energy have launched Japan's first continuous, commercial supply of biodiesel blended fuel at the Port of Nagoya.Toyotsu Energy is supplying Toyofuji Shipping's car carrier Toyofuji Maru after earlier conducting ship-to-ship bunkering trials.Toyota Tsusho, in cooperation with Daiseki Eco. Solution, is procuring waste cooking oil collected from the employee cafeterias and other facilities of Toyota Group and Toyota Tsusho Group companies, which…

The L.S. Starrett Company, a manufacturer of precision measuring tools and gages, metrology systems and more, appointed Matthew Wells as Director of Operations and Continuous Improvement, responsible for Production, Planning, Production Control and Purchasing, Inventory Management, Warehouse and Shipping, Quality, Manufacturing Engineering, Facility, EHS, Maintenance and Continuous Improvement. Wells reports directly to Mr. Emerson Leme, Vice President, Starrett Industrial Products, North America.

Corvus Energy, a producer of battery systems for the ocean space, opened a new test area for hydrogen fuel cells at its production site in Bergen, Norway.As part of the H2NOR project, Corvus is working toward the development and production of sustainable, large-scale maritime-certified hydrogen fuel cell systems, with Toyota on board as key partner and supplier of mass-produced fuel cell technology.In March the project received Approval in Principle (AiP) by DNV and the test area is an important part of the prototype testing and validation.

Corvus Energy announced it has been selected to lead an IPN project – a program funded by the Research Council of Norway to promote innovation in the industry. Corvus Energy joins forces with research institute NORCE and other partners for the project which has been awarded 13,9 million NOK in funding.The industrial project, titled “Optimized Hydrogen Powered Maritime Mobility” or “OptHyMob” for short, will improve operations of hydrogen-driven marine vessels in order to reduce costs and extend the lifetime of both the hydrogen fuel cells and the batteries in hybrid configurations.

Classification society Bureau Veritas (BV) approved the second generation of the REXH2 developed by Energy Observer Developments (EODev), a turnkey power generator for the supply of low carbon electricity on board ships. The hydrogen PEM fuel cell at its heart makes it possible to meet energy needs ranging from 70 kW to about one megawatt when several REXH2 are installed in parallel.The Approval in Principle (AIP) obtained by EODev for its REXH2 fuel cell design follows a thorough design review against the latest classification rules and regulations…

Nippon Yusen Kabushiki Kaisha (NYK) and its affiliate Sanyo Kaiji Kabushiki Kaisha (Sanyo Kaiji) have started a continuous three-month test navigation using biodiesel supplied by Toyotsu Energy Corporation in tugboats operated by Sanyo Kaiji. The biofuel will be supplied via ship-to-ship using a bunkering ship to supply fuel to the tug, the first time for this to be done in Japan. Three test trials are planned to take place by July. This biofuel supply and test navigation are…

Corvus Energy announced its hydrogen fuel cell system developed through the H2NOR project has received approval in principle (AIP) from classification society DNV for its safety solution enabling simplified placement of the system inside a ship’s hull.According to Corvus, the fuel cell system (FCS) is the first designed to be inherently gas safe, meaning that the surrounding machinery space will be considered gas safe under all conditions. This design reduces the number of requirements for the safety and ventilation support systems…

Russian troops were in the center of the Ukrainian port of Kherson on Thursday after a day of conflicting claims over whether Moscow had captured a major urban center for the first time in its eight-day invasion.Russia's defense ministry said it had captured Kherson on Wednesday but an adviser to Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskiy responded that Ukrainian forces continued to defend the Black Sea port of about 250,000 people."We are a people who broke the enemy's plans in a week," Zelenskiy said in a video address.

Japanese shipping company NYK last week took delivery of the Plumeria Leader, an LNG-powered pure car and truck carrier (PCTC).The vessel, delivered on March 24, was built at the Shin Kurushima Dockyard of Shin Kurushima Toyohashi Shipbuilding Co. Ltd. This is NYK's second LNG-fueled car carrier following the delivery of the Sakura Leader."By vessel modification and the switch to LNG, Plumeria Leader will make the ship up to approximately 40% more energy efficient (by reducing CO2 emissions per unit of transport) compared to ships using conventional heavy oil-fired engines.

The MIT Energy Initiative (MITEI) launched a new research consortium—the Future Energy Systems Center—to address the climate crisis and the role energy systems can play in solving it. Randall Field, Executive Director, discusses current research and the challenges ahead for the maritime sector.The reputation of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is such that it can take mammoth issues — such as driving the world to net zero — head-on, and suddenly make the impossible…

Japan's crude steel output is expected to rise 1.9% in the January-March quarter from a year earlier, helped by a recovery in manufacturing including shipbuilding and machinery, its Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry (METI) said last week.This would mark the fourth straight quarterly increase and bring annual output for the financial year to March 31 to 97.07 million tonnes, up 17% from a year earlier when the COVID-19 pandemic pushed production to the lowest in about 50 years.METI estimated crude steel output at 24.15 million tonnes for the three-month period…

NYK conducts third successful biofuel trial on ship carrying Tata Steel cargoThe bulk carrier Frontier Sky, which is owned by NYK and operated by Tata NYK Shipping Pte. Ltd., conducted a trial use of biofuel to transport cargo provided by Tata Steel Limited, the major steel manufacturer in India. According to the company, this is the third successful trial use of biofuel by an NYK vessel.In this test voyage, the vessel was fueled with biofuel by Toyota Tsusho Petroleum Pte. Ltd. at the port of Singapore on November 14 and a test voyage was conducted on a route to the port of Dhamra, India.