Roland Busch

💚🇪🇺 Mobility is critical infrastructure. At the European Forum Alpbach #EFA26, I had the pleasure of joining the session “Acting at Speed: Emergency Measures for Peaceful Ambition.” Together with Manuel J. Heckmann, Managing Partner at Lineup Holdings, and Bengisu Berispek, Project Lead, researcher and lecturer at Technische Universität Berlin, and guided by our moderator Kalina Oroschakoff we discussed how Europe can turn its ambitions into implementation—faster, more decisively and with greater strategic focus. My key message was clear: Europe’s resilience depends not only on how we produce energy, but also on whether we can move people, goods and industrial resources reliably at all times—including during crises. Rail and public transport are strategic assets. Europe must accelerate fleet modernisation, invest in infrastructure, vehicles and digitalisation as one integrated system, and scale proven technologies. At the same time, procurement must recognise European value creation, cybersecurity, secure supply chains, lifecycle costs and reliable delivery—not simply the lowest initial price. Europe has the technology, industrial expertise and capital. What we lack is not knowledge, but the speed to turn decisions into operational infrastructure. My sincere thanks to Othmar Karas, Gabriel Karas, Johannes Schneeberger and the entire #EFA26 team for creating this important platform for open exchange, new perspectives and concrete European solutions—and to my fellow participants for an inspiring discussion. #HowEuropeWins #ŠkodaGroup #RAILFLUENCER #Mobility #EuropeanResilience #StrategicAutonomy #CriticalInfrastructure #MadeInEurope #PublicTransport #Rail

20

Great to be at IAA TRANSPORTATION in Hannover today – a good reminder that the transformation of mobility is not only about vehicles. It is about technology, materials, energy, infrastructure – and increasingly about regulation. What strikes me in many conversations here: innovation is global, while regulation is becoming more fragmented. Decisions taken in Brussels, Berlin, Washington or Asia increasingly have consequences far beyond their own borders and across entire global value chains. Whether we talk about electrification, batteries, chemicals and materials, fire safety or circularity, companies need to understand these regulatory developments early – and engage where the decisions are actually being shaped. This is where I see an increasingly important role for international regulatory diplomacy: connecting industry, policymakers and value chains across Europe and key markets such as Japan, Korea and other parts of Asia. Having worked on exactly these interfaces between regulation, industrial policy and global markets for several years, I am convinced that we need more of this cross-border dialogue – not less. Because the objective should remain simple: ambitious regulation, competitive industry and technologies that can actually make it to market. Good discussions in Hannover – and plenty more to come. Seeheimer Kreis Wirtschaftsforum der SPD e.V. SPD-Bundestagsfraktion CDU/CSU-Bundestagsfraktion CDU Deutschlands German Association of the Automotive Industry (VDA) Cefic German Chemical Industry Association VCI ICL Industrial Products LANXESS Albemarle Corporation Mercedes-Benz AG BSEF The GR Company #IAATransportation #Mobility #Regulation #IndustrialPolicy #RegulatoryDiplomacy #FireSafety #GlobalValueChains

28

1 Kommentar

AVAS: More noise – is it really useful? The introduction of the Acoustic Vehicle Alerting System in electric vehicles is presented as a step forward for road safety. However, its current implementation is questionable: AVAS is permanently active at speeds below 20 km/h, regardless of the actual danger situation. Modern sensor technologies could enable noise generation that is tailored to the situation and based on need. Blanket activation falls short in this regard. In addition, the regulation applies exclusively to electric vehicles, even though modern combustion engines in automatic creep mode, for example, can also fall below the legal noise limits. This unequal treatment contradicts the principle of equal treatment of all drive types in the context of road safety. The argument that AVAS serves in particular to protect blind and visually impaired people must be viewed in a differentiated manner. These groups of people are generally particularly attentive to ambient noise. One advantage of electric vehicles, their quiet driving behavior, especially in urban areas and at night, is limited by AVAS. The mostly unnecessary background noise impairs the quality of life in cities. And some of the noises at least for me are just awful (Zoe, the “designed” sound of the Cooper SE). I'm not sure if the “pink noise” mentioned in the linked article, which led me to write this post, really helps. https://lnkd.in/dZAjY6FA And if we really think noise is permanently needed, why not music or whatever? I feel already your but… And don't get me wrong, road safety is essential, but it should be function-oriented, proportionate, and non-discriminatory for all types of drive systems. The current AVAS regulation therefore appears to be in need of revision. What do you think? #avas #safety #function #useful

6

2 Kommentare

What does it take to introduce a new EV brand to the German market? Voices of VinFast is a series exploring the people and perspectives shaping the transition to electric mobility across Europe. In this episode, Fabian Beck, Marketing Manager at Schachtschneider Automobile in Potsdam, shares his perspective on introducing electric mobility to new customers and markets. Together with partners across Europe, VinFast is building a growing network of dealerships supporting the shift toward electric mobility. Learn more about the VinFast dealer network here: https://lnkd.in/gR_Dig2N #VinFast #ElectricVehicles #Innovation #DrivenbyDesign #EffortlessDriving #VF6 #VF8 #SUV #autohaus_huebsch #schachtschneiderautomobile #autohausjakob

38

🚀 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗠𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻 𝟮𝟬𝟯𝟬: 𝗚𝗲𝗿𝗺𝗮𝗻𝘆 𝘁𝗮𝗸𝗲𝘀 𝗲-𝗺𝗼𝗯𝗶𝗹𝗶𝘁𝘆 𝘀𝗲𝗿𝗶𝗼𝘂𝘀𝗹𝘆 (𝗮𝗴𝗮𝗶𝗻) The German Federal Ministry of Transport has presented the 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 𝗜𝗻𝗳𝗿𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗿𝘂𝗰𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲 𝗠𝗮𝘀𝘁𝗲𝗿𝗽𝗹𝗮𝗻 𝟮𝟬𝟯𝟬 (see link in comments) as a decisive step to make Germany a leading market for e-mobility. The overarching goal is to get more electric vehicles on the road, supported by the nationwide rollout of reliable charging points for cars, trucks, and buses. But 𝘄𝗵𝗮𝘁’𝘀 𝗿𝗲𝗮𝗹𝗹𝘆 𝗻𝗲𝘄?  ▶️ 𝗗𝗲𝗺𝗮𝗻𝗱-𝗼𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗱 ��𝘅𝗽𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗶𝗼𝗻: Charging points will be planned more closely along actual demand, focusing on residential areas, depots, and long-distance routes.  ▶️ 𝗧𝗿𝗮𝗻𝘀𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗲𝗻𝗰𝘆 & 𝘀𝘁𝗮𝗻𝗱𝗮𝗿𝗱𝗶𝘇𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Prices, usage, and permitting processes will become clearer and more predictable.  ▶️ 𝗦𝗺𝗮𝗿𝘁 𝗰𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗶𝗻𝗴 & 𝗴𝗿𝗶𝗱 𝗶𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗴𝗿𝗮𝘁𝗶𝗼𝗻: Charging infrastructure will become smarter and better integrated into the electricity grid. ⚡ 𝗪𝗵𝘆 𝘁𝗵𝗶𝘀 𝗺𝗮𝘁𝘁𝗲𝗿𝘀 𝗳𝗼𝗿 𝗖𝗣𝗢𝘀:  Not every charging points is as profitable as initially calculated. The right location choice determines usage, profitability, and user acceptance. At ChargePlanner by RetailSonar, we allow CPOs to assess charging infrastructure locations based on data, accurate map demand, so they can plan investments economically. This makes their charging network 𝗲𝗳𝗳𝗶𝗰𝗶𝗲𝗻𝘁, 𝘂𝘀𝗲𝗿-𝗳𝗿𝗶𝗲𝗻𝗱𝗹𝘆, 𝗮𝗻𝗱 𝗳𝘂𝘁𝘂𝗿𝗲-𝗽𝗿𝗼𝗼𝗳. P.S. 𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗿𝗴𝗲𝗣𝗹𝗮𝗻𝗻𝗲𝗿 is experienced in data-driven charging infrastructure assessment. Check out our analysis of the current state of the German EV market via the report in the comments 🔽 #eMobility #Futureproof #Electrification #EVcharging Nationale Leitstelle Ladeinfrastruktur

19

1 Kommentar

Charge point operators want busy chargers. Logistics operators want free ones. A classic conflict of goals. We quantified it for electrified long-haul trucking on German motorways. The result: the two interests overlap more than either side assumes. The reason is charging prices. ➡️ Without sufficient utilization, public fast charging does not pay off for charge point operators. Those costs come back to the logistics operators through charging tariffs. ➡️ Too much utilization backfires as well. Long waiting times make trips avoid a site, and the operator ends up selling less energy. ➡️ So it can pay off for logistics operators to accept moderately higher waiting times, provided the lower charging prices outweigh the cost of the time. Instead of one single compromise, our optimization yields a whole spectrum of build-out paths. At a 10% electrification level, balanced configurations sit at 23% to 32% temporal charger utilization and 1.4 to 1.9 minutes of mean waiting time per charging process. A denser network with more sites helps the logistics operators, a leaner one helps the charge point operators. Two numbers that put this into perspective: For the business case, energetic utilization is the relevant metric. In the planned network we arrive at 13% to 15% at a 10% electrification level, assuming 1 MW per plug and mean weekday charging demand on five or six days per week. A study by Johannes Karlsson and Anders Grauers from Chalmers University of Technology (Energies, 2023) puts the profitability threshold for a fast-charging station at roughly 4% at a charging price of 0.40 EUR/kWh, which corresponds to the current Milence tariff, and at 20% to 25% if the price is to come down to 0.17 EUR/kWh. Read together, that suggests the planned network can carry itself at today's tariffs from a very early stage, while the room for substantially lower prices only opens up as demand grows. Eliminating waiting times altogether would take a far larger network. In the planned network, pushing the mean waiting time from 1.9 minutes down to essentially zero requires 64% more charging points, 2,348 instead of 1,429. Whether that is worth it is a question for the people who pay for it, in either currency. I would be interested in the view from practice. Would a somewhat busier but cheaper charging network be attractive to fleet operators, or does predictability matter more than the price in the end? Read the study: https://lnkd.in/davYpY-C Joint work with Tobias Tietz and Dietmar Göhlich, TU Berlin. #ChargingInfrastructure #Logistics #Electromobility #FreightTransport #eTruck #EnergyTransition

17

8 Kommentare

What convinced a ZF veteran to leave and start over? The realization that decentralized data infrastructure could achieve what centralized platforms never could: trust at scale. Thomas Rösch, CEO of Cofinity-X, joins "Under the Hood: Automotive Storytelling" to share the Catena-X origin story. And it's a great story. Three insights that stood out: 1️⃣ "It's like a USB stick now" → When 28 companies agree on connector standards, data sharing becomes plug-and-play. No more months of interface debates. 2️⃣ The network effect requirement → "If we get only 50 German companies, it's not an ecosystem. We need worldwide participation." Gaining traction is not always easy, but the shift in the automotive industry towards collaboration helps tremendously. 3️⃣ Cross-industry expansion → The same infrastructure works outside of automotive. Thomas' advice: "Believe and make it. That's really the story. So that's what I did, let's say my whole career. So if I believe in something, I really make it happen." 🎧 Listen to hear how belief and persistence built an ecosystem that's reshaping industrial data exchange. Apple Podcasts: https://lnkd.in/emTN6H8C Spotify: https://lnkd.in/eQ9beqtm

49

6 Kommentare