Stellantis has binned its hydrogen development to focus on hybrids and EVs
Hydrogen-powered vans are scrapped just as production was set to start. Stellantis says 'no development prospect' for alternative fuel
Skip 4 photos in the image carousel and continue reading
Turn on Javascript to see all the available pictures.
1
/
4
Stellantis has pulled the plug on its hydrogen fuel cell development programme, saying it 'does not anticipate the adoption of hydrogen-powered light commercial vehicles before the end of the decade'.
Yep, Stellantis was hoping to lead the hydrogen revolution with vans, with medium-sized production previously set to kick off this summer in Hordain, France, while large hydrogen vans would be built in Gliwice, Poland. The carmaking MegaCorp said it'll no longer launch the vans with these powertrains, but it also made clear this 'will not impact staffing at Stellantis' production sites'. R&D spend that previously went on hydrogen tech will now 'be redirected to other projects'.
Advertisement - Page continues below
'In a context where the Company is mobilising to respond to demanding CO2 regulations in Europe, Stellantis has decided to discontinue its hydrogen fuel cell technology development program,' said COO for Europe Jean-Philippe Imparato.
READ MORE What is a hydrogen fuel cell car and how does it work?
'The hydrogen market remains a niche segment, with no prospects of mid-term economic sustainability. We must make clear and responsible choices to ensure our competitiveness and meet the expectations of our customers with our electric and hybrid passenger and light commercial vehicles offensive.'
Stellantis, which makes commercial vehicles under the Citroen, FIAT Professional, Opel, Peugeot, Ram and Vauxhall brands, also called out the lack of refuelling infrastructure in place for hydrogen vehicles, and the need for stronger purchasing incentives to bring prices down.
Advertisement - Page continues below
Back in December last year, UK pricing was revealed for the large Vauxhall Movano in its now-canned hydrogen form (pictured above). There's no easy way to say this, but it was to start at just over £70,000 and promised a range of 311 miles, with a refuelling time of just five minutes.
Reckon hydrogen propulsion still has a future?
Top Gear
Newsletter
Thank you for subscribing to our newsletter. Look out for your regular round-up of news, reviews and offers in your inbox.
Get all the latest news, reviews and exclusives, direct to your inbox.
Success Your Email*
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Times
22 minutes ago
- Times
Activist investor steps up pressure on Smith & Nephew
The activist investor Cevian Capital has raised its shareholding in Smith & Nephew, increasing pressure on the FTSE 100 medical equipment maker before its half-year results. Filings show Cevian, one of Europe's biggest activist investors, has raised its stake to 8.5 per cent having first publicly emerged with a holding in July last year via a Jersey-based vehicle. Cevian, which had raised it to 7.5 per cent in February, is understood to be the largest shareholder. The stake building comes before half-year results from Smith & Nephew on August 5 where investors will look for signs of a turnaround in the performance of its orthopaedics division, the group's largest. The group remains committed to retaining the business, but following full-year results in February, John Rogers, Smith & Nephew's chief financial officer, outlined scenarios under which it could evaluate options.
Times
22 minutes ago
- Times
Great British Railways ‘risks repeating the mistakes of the past'
The government's state-owned framework for the railways risks 'morphing into the ghost of British Rail' unless ministers find ways to boost competition and develop fresh income streams, a new report warns. Concerned that Great British Railways is about to 'repeat the mistakes of the past', the study urges ministers to drop their 'profound and misguided hostility to open access rail competition' and seek ways to cut annual subsidies. It finds that, with railway revenue at only at 89.1 per cent of pre-pandemic levels, thanks to working from home and a drop in season ticket sales, the taxpayer is spending £12.5 billion a year in subsidy. That is despite the sector accounting for only 2 per cent of all journeys taken by the public. Tony Lodge: How to make Great British Railways a success The report, Rail's Last Chance, is from the Centre for Policy Studies think tank. Its author, Tony Lodge, outlines a four-point plan to get the industry back on track. 'It is hard to avoid the conclusion that Great British Railways is a solution looking for a problem — prioritising the nationalisation of the railways over their effective and efficient operation,' he says. His study follows a damning report last month from the management consultancy Arthur D Little, which found that Britain is embarking on a new era of nationalised railways, including taking back control of private franchised train operators, with no coherent strategy. It quoted one senior rail executive saying the railway was stuck with the Albert Einstein maxim that 'the definition of madness is to do the same things and expect a different outcome'. Lodge is particularly critical of the government's antipathy to open access rail operators, which run without government contracts or public subsidy. After heavy pressure from the transport department, the Office of Rail and Road (ORR) blocked applications earlier this month for new services from Sir Richard Branson's Virgin Group, FirstGroup's Lumo and the Wrexham, Shropshire & Midlands Railway Company citing 'insufficient capacity on the west coast main line southern section'. Calling for a minimum of 10 per cent open access on intercity routes by 2030, Lodge argues that they deliver 'better services, more routes, faster trains and cheaper tickets', while lifting the performance of the incumbent operator. He cites the east coast main line, where Hull Trains, Lumo and Grand Central compete with the state-backed LNER. He says quarterly data shows that LNER has grown passenger numbers by 28 per cent since 2019, while on the west coast the monopoly operator Avanti is 'still struggling to get passengers back' to pre-Covid levels. • Alistair Osborne: Great Bolshevik Railways going the wrong way Pointing to the 'enormous missed opportunities for the rail estate to generate wider ancillary income', Lodge's second recommendation is for ministers to examine the potential for property, retail and green energy income across 'the rail sector's 52,000 hectares'. He says there is scope to develop 34 sites for solar energy — enough to power at least 140,000 homes — and room for health hubs at stations. Thirdly, he calls for the ORR to 'retain its independent regulatory powers' to scrutinise Great British Railways, saying it 'should not be able to mark its own homework'. His final plea is not just for an 'easy, cheap and user friendly' ticketing app but one that also offers such things as a 'rail miles loyalty scheme'. British Rail was the name for the monolithic state-owned railway business until 1997 by which time the industry had been broken up and part privatised.
Times
22 minutes ago
- Times
UK economy enjoyed short-term boost from Trump's tariff confusion
President Trump's initial move to impose tariffs on almost every country meant Britain's economy got off to a better-than-expected start in 2025, although forecasters still expect America's trade war to be a longer-term drag on growth. The UK economy is expected to grow 1 per cent this year, according to the EY Item Club, which had previously anticipated a rise in gross domestic product of only 0.8 per cent. The forecaster attributed its upgrade to a 'flurry of business spending' at the start of the year as companies tried to complete purchases and ship orders before the implementation of US tariffs in April. 'There was some activity and some additional exports brought forward and that lifted [the economy] in the first quarter, but you can see from the size of the upgrade that the outperformance wasn't massive,' Matt Swannell, chief economic adviser to the EY Item Club, said.
