Oliver Zipse
At the IAA, the CEO is also convinced that hydrogen can coexist with battery-electric vehicles.
(Photo: dpa)
BMW boss Oliver Zipse has called for increased expansion of the hydrogen infrastructure in China. Hydrogen is one of the best ways to store and transport energy, he said on Wednesday at a congress with Chinese car manufacturers on the sidelines of the Munich Auto Show IAA. In the future, hydrogen will be produced where sufficient renewable energy is available. Currently, most hydrogen filling stations are outside of the inner cities. “An expansion of the hydrogen network for cars in urban areas must be a priority.”
In addition, synergies could be generated between commercial vehicles and cars. This will increase the importance of hydrogen cars and bring new momentum to the market.
At the same time, Zipse welcomed the Chinese efforts to build up the electric charging infrastructure. It is now necessary to set national standards for public charging.
At the trade fair, BMW presented a “New Class” vision vehicle, which will be produced from 2025. The BMW development center in Shanghai is already working on tuning the vehicles to the Chinese market. The cars are to be located in the 3 segment. Zipse said he could also envision hydrogen vehicles on the platform in the future. “For us, zero-emission vehicles always include hydrogen. That distinguishes our approach.”
Most recently, the Munich company launched a small series of an X5 with a fuel cell. A decision as to whether the vehicle should go into series production has not yet been made.
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