TranSiC welcomes Swedish electric car plan
The Swedish government is planning to consign the nation s conventional fuel-burning cars to the scrapheap by 2030, a move that suits SiC component manufacturer TranSiC.
By that date, according to a goal in the ambitious climate and energy strategy Sweden announced on March 11, all cars in the country will be independent of fossil fuels.
Based in Kista, just outside Stockholm, Volvo-funded TranSiC supplies SiC power electronic components for which electric vehicles are a key potential market.
“The 2030 goal certainly is of importance for TranSiC,” said Bo Hammarlund, the company s outgoing vice-president of sales and marketing. “Despite the fact that it is 20 years ahead we can already see the Swedish automotive industry switching from combustion only to hybrid- and all electrical vehicles.”
Hammarlund says that, through its relationships with its compatriot car makers, TranSiC is involved in existing development programs intended to progress electric vehicle technology. SiC promises lower conduction and switching power losses than silicon electronics currently used in electric vehicles powertrain.
Now, the recently-announced energy strategy means that any such efforts could also be aided by government funding for vehicle energy efficiency.
As a next step in the strategy, the Swedish Energy Agency has been commissioned by the government to explore how the number of electric cars in the country can be increased.
The Agency will report back at the end of May, on subjects including possible measures for stimulating sales of electric and hybrid electric vehicles.
Any such incentives will be welcomed by a Swedish automobile industry that TranSiC describes as innovative, but beleaguered.
“Today the Swedish automotive industry is in a crisis where only new ideas seem to be the solution,” Hammarlund told compoundsemiconductor.net. “TranSiC benefits from having early adopters in electrical vehicle manufacturing close by.”
Sweden s climate and energy strategy developments come at a time of significant change at TranSiC. Hammarlund, one of the company s original founders, officially left his role on April 16 to pursue other entrepreneurial opportunities.
Then, on May 1, TranSiC will welcome a new chief executive officer, Mats Reimark. Reimark has many years experience working for General Motors in developing power transmission for conventional and hybrid vehicles.
The company says that it has now left its startup phase, and is now seeking to move from its current staffing level of 10 employees to full industrialization.
