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According to foreign media reports, Martin Daum, CEO of Daimler truck, said on November 12 that he was more worried about the global chip supply shortage than the impact of novel coronavirus's epidemic.
"at the moment, I am more worried about the supply of semiconductors than the COVID epidemic," he said in an interview. Trucks are a necessary condition for keeping our systems alive, even in the depths of the crisis. " Daum said that in his view, the epidemic is not a major risk for Daimler trucks. "the risk now is supply, especially the supply of semiconductors," he said. Now, we have to call the chip suppliers and ask them how many chips they can supply us. The supply of chips is our planned output, and basically every truck we produce will be sold. "
Analysts had previously said that the transition to electric cars would exacerbate the chip shortage, which could require about 10 times as many chips as conventional fuel cars. But Daum said the electric models currently being produced by Daimler trucks do not use "significantly more chips" than internal combustion engines. "Electric models may use less than 10% more chips than internal combustion engines," he said. "
Daum also talked about the challenges and opportunities facing the automotive industry in the coming years, as competition is becoming increasingly fierce and efforts to develop zero-emission vehicles will face cost hurdles. "first of all, in the field of heavy commercial vehicles, you need a lot of energy, that is, very large batteries, which are much more expensive than traditional internal combustion engine trucks," he said. "
Daum said that despite the high costs, carmakers still had to make a "direct transition to zero-emission transport". The company already has a plan to increase sales of its zero-emission models to 60% of its total sales by 2030.
The electrification of long-distance heavy trucks faces a series of unique challenges. The International Energy Agency's Global Electric vehicle Outlook 2021 describes electric long-distance trucks as "advanced technologies that require high-power charging and / or large batteries".
Daimler's focus on zero-emission technology will put it in competition with companies such as Tesla and Geely, which are also developing electric trucks. However, Daum is confident about the future, saying Daimler trucks are "the pioneer of electric trucks". The company launched its all-electric heavy truck eActros in Europe just a few weeks ago. "how does our technology compare with that of other companies?" he said. We have to see the trucks of other companies before we can evaluate their technology. "
In addition to pure electric trucks, Daimler trucks also focus on hydrogen-powered fuel cell vehicles. Their goal is to build a network of 150 hydrogen stations and 5000 "heavy hydrogen trucks" by 2030.
As for the debate between pure electric vehicles and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, Daum said: "We want both because they both have their own practical significance." Generally speaking, if you are delivering goods within the city, you need less energy, you can charge in the parking lot at night, then this situation is more suitable for the use of pure electric vehicles. But when you make long-distance transportation, such as from (Stockholm) in Stockholm to (Barcelona), in Barcelona, I think you will need a hydrogen-powered car that can refuel along the way. The debate has not come to an end yet, and it is too risky for an enterprise of our size to adopt only one technology. "
