Toyota, the 'Honest Man', Has Endured Many Silent Losses

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Recently, the 2024 World New Energy Vehicle Congress was held as scheduled.

Objectively speaking, there were no overly novel viewpoints presented at this grand event focused on the new energy vehicle industry.

However, Toyota, which participated in this conference, unexpectedly became the "innovator."

As most automakers are focused on electric drive, Toyota remains committed to its hydrogen energy technology.

Yamagata Mitsumasa, President of Toyota's Hydrogen Energy Business Division, shared Toyota's development plans and future prospects for hydrogen energy at the World New Energy Vehicle Congress.

After a systematic presentation, we can draw a clear conclusion: Toyota's 30-year dedication to hydrogen energy technology holds significant development opportunities but also faces numerous challenges.

First, let's understand Toyota's hydrogen energy

In fact, Toyota has been exploring hydrogen energy as a vehicle power source since 1992.

In other words, over one-third of Toyota's 80+ years in the automotive industry has been devoted to studying hydrogen energy.

Globally, many automakers, including Hyundai, BMW, and even many domestic manufacturers, have dabbled in hydrogen energy while exploring new energy forms.

Hydrogen energy is currently the cleanest renewable energy source besides nuclear energy. Although 95% of global hydrogen production currently relies on highly polluting fossil fuels, many manufacturers are exploring clean and renewable hydrogen production systems powered by wind or solar energy through water electrolysis, aiming for a fully environmentally friendly and renewable process.

Therefore, hydrogen energy holds considerable development potential for the future energy industry.

Returning to Toyota's hydrogen energy technology strategy, since entering this field in 1992, Toyota has continuously researched the potential of hydrogen energy in the automotive and broader industries.

Toyota's utilization of hydrogen energy is relatively complex.

On one hand, Toyota realizes chemical reactions through hydrogen fuel cells, converting hydrogen's chemical energy into electrical energy. In brief, this process reverses the electrolysis of water, supplying hydrogen and oxygen to the anode and cathode, respectively. Hydrogen diffuses outward through the anode and reacts with the electrolyte, releasing electrons that travel through an external load to the cathode, thereby powering the traction battery.

When discussing Toyota's new energy strategy, it's essential to clarify that Toyota does not neglect electric technology. On the contrary, Toyota believes hydrogen fuel cell technology and pure electric drive technology can complement each other perfectly.

For instance, in long-distance or cold-weather travel scenarios, new energy vehicles struggle to replenish their batteries. Hydrogen fuel cells, however, can quickly replenish energy without polluting during the conversion from chemical to electrical energy.

In Toyota's view, hydrogen fuel cell technology complements pure electric technology, akin to the rapidly developing plug-in hybrids in China.

On the other hand, Toyota is also exploring hydrogen detonation engine technology. This technology operates similarly to conventional fuel engines but utilizes hydrogen, which boasts an energy density of 120MJ/kg—far exceeding that of oil and natural gas—and produces only water upon combustion, making it environmentally friendly, efficient, and pollution-free.

After establishing development paths for hydrogen fuel cell and hydrogen detonation engine technologies, Toyota has achieved fruitful results in various technical fields. Technologies such as fuel cell stacks, hydrogen tanks, and hydrogen detonation engines have been implemented by Toyota, which holds 90% of the technology patents in the hydrogen vehicle sector.

Despite these patents, Toyota has chosen an open and collaborative approach to promote industry development rather than hoarding its intellectual property.

Toyota Builds Partnerships to Seek Development Opportunities

Why is consumer awareness of hydrogen energy vehicles or hydrogen energy technology low in the marketplace?

In our opinion, the overwhelming popularity of electric drive as a new energy source overshadows other energy forms.

For instance, besides low awareness of hydrogen energy and limited automaker involvement, methanol new energy technology also faces an awkward situation. If I hadn't mentioned it here, who would have known that Geely Emgrand launched a methanol fuel engine series? Few users are likely aware of this development.

Due to the initial lack of policy support for hydrogen energy and low market awareness, most automakers have either ignored or low-key developed this promising new energy sector.

Considering Toyota's over three decades of investment in hydrogen energy, it naturally refuses to abandon this sector where it has invested significant effort, time, and money. Toyota aims to expand the hydrogen energy market. If Toyota were to hold onto its 90% of technology patents, other automakers would face barriers in the hydrogen sector, hindering further development.

To expand the market, Toyota needs to embrace openness and collaboration. This strategy resembles China's "wolf-raising" approach in table tennis: only when everyone becomes stronger can the industry thrive, presenting greater development opportunities.

Toyota has deep roots in the Chinese market, which offers substantial policy support for new energy vehicles. Therefore, Toyota embraces the Chinese market with open arms regarding hydrogen energy.

In 2019, Toyota began promoting hydrogen fuel cell technology in China, collaborating with Tsinghua University to establish the "Tsinghua-Toyota Joint Research Institute" and partnering with multiple domestic automakers and E-Power to found the "Joint Fuel Cell System R&D (Beijing) Co., Ltd." These collaborations drive the development of the hydrogen energy industry and promote local R&D and production of hydrogen fuel cell technology through industry-academia-research partnerships.

Today, in addition to Toyota's own Mirai, Toyota offers hydrogen-powered vehicles like the Fuchi heavy-duty truck equipped with Toyota's Huafeng brand fuel cell system in the Chinese market. After five years of nurturing the Chinese hydrogen energy market, Toyota has achieved initial results in technology localization.

Globally, Toyota is also collaborating with automakers like BMW to popularize hydrogen energy. Objectively, despite over three decades of exploration, Toyota and the automotive industry as a whole are still in the initial stages of hydrogen energy technology development. In our view, Toyota has taken its second step: collaboration.

With widespread collaboration, Toyota's hydrogen energy strategy will likely accelerate its implementation and growth. Together, we can address present and future challenges steadily and methodically.

The Greatest Challenge Facing Toyota's Hydrogen Energy: Social Stigmatization

For most people, hydrogen energy remains an unfamiliar energy form.

Many of us have played with floating balloons as children. In the past, most of these toy balloons were filled with hydrogen. However, incidents of "hydrogen balloon" explosions occasionally occurred, leading people to perceive hydrogen energy as "dangerous," "flammable," and "explosive.""After Toyota and other manufacturers introduced hydrogen fuel cell vehicles, the market was plagued by controversies.

A common folk saying goes, "Electric vehicle fires are terrifying, but hydrogen fuel cell vehicle fires are even more so. If the hydrogen storage tank in a hydrogen fuel cell vehicle explodes, it's like a small 'hydrogen bomb' detonation.""Indeed, hydrogen is highly energy-dense and can detonate when its concentration in the air is between 4.0% and 75.6%, making it dangerous. In August, rumors circulated that the Ukrainian military removed a hydrogen tank from an abandoned Toyota Mirai and used it to blow up a building.

This news sparked more questions about hydrogen fuel cell technology.

In fact, these rumors are unfounded.

After extensive research, I found that the original news came from the euromaidan press agency on August 3. Ten days later, the agency issued a supplementary report clarifying the details. The truth is that the Ukrainian military indeed obtained a hydrogen tank from a Toyota hydrogen fuel cell vehicle, filled it with nearly 200 kilograms of plastic explosives, and detonated it remotely, igniting Russian ammunition inside the building during the explosion.

As always, media reporting must be truthful and fact-based, avoiding the spread of misinformation.

Automakers, including Toyota, design hydrogen fuel tanks with extreme strength and incorporate complex leak-proof and anti-static measures. I researched and found that most hydrogen fuel tanks in hydrogen fuel cell technology can withstand ultra-high pressures of 35 MPa, equivalent to withstanding a weight of 350 kg per square centimeter. Toyota's hydrogen fuel tanks can withstand up to 70 MPa, showcasing their remarkable strength.

During my research, I did not find any news of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles exploding during normal operation. The only related news was the distorted and fabricated "Ukrainian military explosion incident.""Besides safety concerns, many believe that "most hydrogen production processes consume significant fossil fuels, leading to greater pollution." While most hydrogen production technologies globally rely on fossil fuels, it's crucial to note that standardized and large-scale hydrogen production minimizes waste and pollution.

For instance, why are industrial wastewater discharges centrally treated at sewage treatment plants? It's because these plants can collect and process large volumes of wastewater cost-effectively, minimizing waste and pollution. The same principle applies to modern industrial hydrogen production, where centralized production minimizes waste and pollution through economies of scale. This is a significant reason why countries worldwide are promoting hydrogen fuel cell technology.

Moreover, Toyota actively promotes the upgrading of hydrogen production technologies globally and aims to reduce hydrogen fuel costs. With Toyota and its partners' efforts, hydrogen energy is poised to become mainstream in the foreseeable future. As more countries and companies join the fray, hydrogen energy's application scale will further expand.

In modern industry, expanded application and production scales address many issues, including minimizing pollution, waste, and costs. Looking ahead, we have reason to believe that hydrogen fuel cell technology will emerge as a zero-pollution, low-cost, large-scale new energy technology.

Closing Remarks:

Any new technology inevitably encounters resistance during its implementation.

However, perseverance is crucial. Toyota has taken the first step in its hydrogen energy endeavors, achieving technical milestones. In its next phase, Toyota faces its greatest challenge: opening up the market landscape.

As the saying goes, "No sweet without sweat." Toyota, steadfast in its strategy and equipped with sufficient strength, takes every step methodically. We believe that in the near future, through Toyota's collaboration with global partners, new market avenues will open, embodying the true spirit of long-termism.