On September 5th, BMW Group announced the launch of its first market-oriented mass-produced hydrogen fuel cell vehicle (FCEV) by 2028. Oliver Zipse, Chairman of the Board of Directors of BMW, stated that there is an anticipated significant increase in the market demand for fuel cell vehicles in the future.
BMW and Toyota signed a memorandum of understanding on September 3rd regarding comprehensive cooperation on fuel cell technology. Based on the outcomes of this collaboration, BMW will introduce fuel cell vehicle products with brand characteristics.
"The first step of the collaboration is to focus on the energy battery system, combining hydrogen and oxygen to generate electricity. We will jointly develop a universal system for hydrogen fuel cells. Toyota provides the fuel cell technology, and we collaborate on building the next generation of fuel cells. The high-pressure hydrogen tanks are developed by BMW, while Toyota's technology is primarily concentrated on the fuel cell itself. In terms of system design, both parties will design their own fuel cell systems for their respective vehicle models, and we will cooperate technically in this area. BMW and Toyota will each develop their own vehicle models, incorporating the jointly developed fuel cells into their respective models," said Michael Rath, Vice President of BMW Group's Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle division, to reporters.
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Compared to pure electric vehicles, hydrogen fuel cell vehicles have a higher energy density, and their refueling time and driving comfort are comparable to those of gasoline vehicles. Additionally, the performance degradation of hydrogen fuel cells over their entire life cycle is minimal. Data provided by the International Hydrogen Fuel Cell Association shows that, according to the development roadmap of fuel cell vehicles in major countries around the world, by 2030, the number of hydrogen fuel cell vehicles in use will reach nearly ten million, indicating a huge potential for the market development of fuel cell vehicles. As of June 2023, the total number of fuel cell vehicles in major countries worldwide exceeded 75,000, with the promotion scale continuously expanding, and the main focus on fuel cell passenger cars. In China, the promotion mainly focuses on fuel cell commercial vehicles, covering the entire range of commercial vehicles such as buses, heavy trucks, and logistics vehicles. Currently, China has approximately 20,000 fuel cell vehicles, ranking among the top in the world. According to the latest report from the Ministry of Transport, China's hydrogen fuel cell vehicle stock is close to 20,000, ranking among the top in the world, with a total of about 400 hydrogen refueling stations.
In terms of commercialization, hydrogen-powered logistics heavy-duty trucks have become one of the main scenarios for the hydrogen fuel cell industry to achieve commercialization. According to compulsory insurance data, in 2023, the sales volume of hydrogen-powered heavy-duty trucks in China reached 3,653 units, with a year-on-year growth of nearly 50%. Brilliance BMW has also been actively exploring the application scenarios of hydrogen energy in the logistics field, and with more trucks and heavy-duty trucks entering the market, it will prepare for the future large-scale entry of passenger cars into the market. The service life of hydrogen fuel cells is generally longer than that of lithium batteries, and the long-term use cost is lower than that of pure electric trucks. Moreover, some local governments offer preferential policies such as free high-speed tolls for hydrogen vehicles, which has encouraged many logistics companies to purchase hydrogen vehicles. However, there is still some controversy in the industry regarding the application of hydrogen fuel cells in passenger cars, mainly due to the high costs and incomplete hydrogen refueling station infrastructure faced by the commercialization of fuel cells. For example, the Toyota Mirai, a hydrogen fuel cell passenger car, starts at 748,000 yuan when imported domestically, which is much higher than the price of Toyota's gasoline vehicles.
In 2023, BMW's pilot fleet of BMW iX5 hydrogen fuel cell vehicles began road testing in major cities around the world, and the vehicle has now completed the production-level standard testing process. However, BMW has not yet disclosed the specific model for the mass-produced hydrogen fuel cell vehicle in 2028.
"The decision to proceed with mass production was made after careful consideration, and we will overcome the technical challenges before mass production in 2028, with some high-performance applications being enhanced. One of the goals of BMW's cooperation with Toyota is to mass-produce new next-generation models and reduce costs by increasing economies of scale. Cooperating with Toyota allows us to share some of the research and development costs, making the entire investment project more efficient," said Michael Rath to reporters. One of the main obstacles to commercialization is infrastructure construction; currently, Europe and other parts of the world are building hydrogen refueling stations on a large scale, which has been well applied in commercial vehicles (such as trucks and buses). In the future, as the density of infrastructure increases, it will promote the application of hydrogen in passenger cars.
"In the past, the main criticism of hydrogen fuel cells was the use of natural gas for hydrogen production, which is costly. In the future, there will be a greater use of renewable energy for hydrogen production on a large scale, and as this technology gradually matures, costs will also be significantly reduced," said Jürgen Guldner, Head of Hydrogen Fuel Cell Technology and Automotive Projects at BMW Group, to reporters.
In the field of electrification, BMW will launch the "New Class" (pure electric vehicles) in 2025, and hydrogen fuel cell vehicles are a supplement to the pure electric technology route. "We will not put all our production capacity into a single technology. BMW has an open technical architecture and a resilient flexible production capability, which will allow for flexible allocation among pure electric models, gasoline vehicles, plug-in hybrid models, and hydrogen fuel cell models that will be mass-produced after 2028. According to consumer choices and market demand, we will adjust the planning and proportion of mass production for different technological paths," said Jürgen Guldner.
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