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Automotive industry looks beyond EVs for decarbonization

By Nitin Dahad for EETIMES – Electrification is a given in the automotive industry. Policy mandates have set targets for electric vehicle (EV) sales and the phasing out of the internal combustion engine (ICE), and automotive OEMs have set their trajectories to go fully electric. However, there are still parts of the ecosystem that would challenge the singular electric-only path, and some OEMs are looking for policymakers to embrace decarbonization holistically with consideration of things like e-fuels and alternative technologies.

If you listened to some of the speakers at Financial Times’ Future of the Car conference in London, U.K., this month, you would think that governments had overlooked alternative fuels and opted to pick EVs as the only route to meeting sustainability and net-zero agendas. While companies like Nissan and others highlighted their commitment to EVs, some others like Chevron and INEOS Automotive were vocal about the need for governments to give other technologies a chance to prove themselves in meeting the vehicle decarbonization agenda.

The three-day conference covered almost everything you might imagine when discussing the future of the car—from connected and software-defined vehicles to digital infotainment systems and their potential to add new experiences to consumers, plus new business models enabled by connectivity. While the subject of fully autonomous vehicles (AVs) wasn’t center stage, there was some talk about it, especially when the Mobileye CEO took the stage.

Software was a key topic, especially as Volkswagen had just announced the restructuring of its CARIAD software business and the appointment of a new CEO for the software and technology group. Speaking at the conference, Volkswagen Group CFO Arno Antlitz did emphasize that software was still a strategic pillar for the business. “You should own the software stack. We want to achieve that with less cash burn,” Antlitz said… Full article

Source: www.eetimes.com

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