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| September 21, 2007
Alcoa and Yutong Bus Co., China's Leading Bus Producer, to Build Eco-Friendly, Aluminum Intensive Buses for 2008 Olympics
BEIJING & PITTSBURGH--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Zhengzhou Yutong Bus Company, Ltd, and Alcoa (NYSE:AA) announced today
the formation of a partnership to apply world-class structural design,
materials and manufacturing technologies to develop a new generation of
energy-efficient, environmentally-friendly buses for China’s
growing commuting public.
The first element of the partnership will be the development of a new,
environmentally-friendly bus design that will significantly reduce
greenhouse gas emissions and improve fuel economy. It is anticipated
that the prototypes will be ready in time for the 2008 Summer Olympic
Games.
“The partnership between Yutong Bus and Alcoa
on the new sustainable bus demonstrates long-term commitment to the
support of our government’s policy to build
mass transportation vehicles in harmony with society –
people and the environment,” said Mr. Tang
Yuxiang, Chairman and Chief Executive of Zhengzhou Yutong, China’s
largest bus manufacturer and the number two producer in the world.
“We realize that reducing the weight of
tomorrow’s short- and long-range buses will be
essential for improving their sustainability,”
added Mr. Yuxiang, “and that the intelligent
application of aluminum is one of best methods possible to achieve such
mass reduction.
A recent study by the Institute for Energy and Environmental Research in
Heidelberg, Germany, which was presented last month at the 2007 China
Aluminum and Transportation Conference in Dalian, revealed that a weight
reduction of 1000kg in a diesel-powered city bus making several stops
will save 2,550 litres of fuel and significantly reduce C02 equivalent
green house gas emissions over its lifetime.
“Our goal, of course, is to work with Yutong
to achieve significantly more than 1000kg weight reduction per vehicle,”
according to Mr. Jinya Chen, Alcoa’s
President for the Asia-Pacific Region.
“Our companies believe that through the
combination of aluminum spaceframe design and advanced manufacturing
technologies, we can achieve 15 to 20 percent weight reductions while
maintaining the safety and enhancing the sustainability performance of a
new family of buses,” Mr. Chen added.
Alcoa has been a leader in the development and integration of advanced
aluminum alloys, vehicle structural design and advanced joining and
assembly technologies for more than two decades. The company produces
cast and extruded components for the Audi A8 aluminum space frame (ASF)
in Germany and manufactures aluminum spaceframes for all Ferrari Gran
Turismo vehicles in Italy.
The aluminum industry is projected to be greenhouse gas neutral by the
year 2020 as a result of projected use in the transportation market.
This means that the savings in greenhouse gas emissions from lighter
weight, more fuel efficient vehicles will more than offset emissions
generated when the metal is first produced.
“Yutong Bus Company looks forward to working
with Alcoa to combine the best thinking of both companies to explore the
opportunities that aluminum presents to develop a whole new family of ‘Green’
buses, not only for China but the world. This project shows Yutong and
Alcoa as industry leaders in innovation and social responsibility,”
Mr. Yuxiang concluded.
About Yutong
Zhengzhou Yutong Group Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as “Yutong
Group”), with its head office in Zhengzhou,
Henan province, is a large-scale enterprise group with bus making as its
core business, with engineering machinery and real estate as additional
strategic businesses as well as managing its investment portfolios. In
2006, the sales income of Yutong Group reached high up to
RMB10,139,800,000, taking up over 22% of the domestic market. In the
same year, 22,198 units of Yutong buses were sold and 2,002 buses were
exported with the export amount up to USD105 million, increasing 28%
compared with the corresponding period last year. The number of Yutong
buses all over the world exceeds 120,000, making Yutong an international
large-scale bus manufacturing enterprise.
About Alcoa
Alcoa is the world's leading producer and manager of primary aluminum,
fabricated aluminum and alumina facilities, and is active in all major
aspects of the industry. Alcoa serves the aerospace, automotive,
packaging, building and construction, commercial transportation and
industrial markets, bringing design, engineering, production and other
capabilities of Alcoa's businesses to customers. In addition to aluminum
products and components including flat-rolled products, hard alloy
extrusions, and forgings, Alcoa also markets Alcoa®
wheels, fastening systems, precision and investment castings, structures
and building systems. The company has 116,000 employees in 44 countries
and has been named one of the top most sustainable corporations in the
world at the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland. More
information can be found at www.alcoa.com.
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