BMW partners with Toyota to take ‘zero emissions to the next level’ as Volvo scraps EV pledge

The up-market German marque is adamant that EVs represent the future – with hydrogen playing a crucial role – as Volvo retreats on its plan to make only EVs by 2030.

Toyota president Koji Sato with BMW chairman Oliver Zipse have struck a partnership to build hydrogen fuel cell electric cars.

BMW is ploughing ahead with its battery-powered car strategy – partnering with Toyota to build a hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle by 2028 – as fellow up-market brand Volvo dumps its pledge to build only EVs by the of the decade.

The luxury German marque, which also owns the Rolls-Royce and Mini brands, says it will jointly develop an “all electric powertrain” with Toyota using hydrogen fuel cell technology, taking “zero-emission technology to the next level”.

It announced the partnership the same day that Volvo, renowned for its environmental commitments, scrapped its plans to sell only fully electric cars by 2030 in the latest slowdown in growth for battery-powered vehicles.

But BMW vice-president of hydrogen vehicles Michael Rath was adamant that electric-powered cars represented the future.

BMW’s hydrogen cars are effectively EVs, with a chemical reaction taking place in the fuel cell between hydrogen and oxygen from the air, through which power for an electric motor is generated.

“The use of hydrogen on a large scale will play a vital role in the global effort to combat climate change,” Dr Rath said.

“Sustainability is a key element of the BMW group’s corporate strategy overall.

“The BMW Group aims to reduce emissions per vehicle over the entire life cycle by 2030 by at least 40 per cent compared to 2019. We are proud of what we have achieved as a company.

“It also encourages us to continue on our path.”

Asked about Volvo’s decision, Dr Rath said “battery electric vehicles are very important for us to decarbonise” and “we are not looking at competitors”. “Especially for fuel cell electric vehicles, sometime you have to be the first to do something new and to lead the path,” he said.

Dr Rath said he did not see battery electric vehicles and fuel cell electric vehicles as competitors. “Rather, we think that they complement each other very well as a zero emissions vehicles,” he said.

“To be clear, hydrogen vehicles are not also electric vehicles.

“The main difference is the way energy is stored in the car. It is stored as hydrogen, not as electricity, in the battery. From a customer perspective, it combines the best of both worlds, driving like a battery vehicle with the advantage of fast refuelling.”

Volvo chief executive Jim Rowan said: “It is clear that the transition to electrification will not be linear and customers and markets are moving at different speeds of adoption.” The move comes amid growing consumer resistance to being forced into more expensive zero-emission vehicles at a time of heightened inflation and interest rates, and when public recharging networks are far from mature.

Australia’s Federal Chamber of Automotive Industries chief executive Tony Weber described sales of battery electric vehicles as “disappointing”. “This is despite the supply of battery electric vehicles increasing signifi-cantly with more brands and EV models having entered the Australian market,” he said.

BMW this year sent two hydrogen vehicles to Australia to undergo testing in local conditions and assess market appetite and said the feedback had been positive, particularly given a driver can refuel in minutes compared with EVs taking about half an hour.

BMW chairman Oliver Zipse said the Toyota partnership would “underscore how technological progress is shaping the future of mobility” and “herald an era of significant demand for fuel cell electric vehicles”.

Toyota president Koji Sato said the companies would “deepen our collaboration in efforts such as the join development of next generation fuel cell systems and the expansion of infrastructure, aiming for the realisation of a hydrogen society”.

Originally published as BMW partners with Toyota to take ‘zero emissions to the next level’ as Volvo scraps EV pledge