Opportunities and Obstacles for the Introduction of a Fuel Cell Electric Vehicle Strategy in Europe as an Extension of the Product Portfolio of European OEMS

Climate policy goals have now taken on a strongly dominant role in European mobility development. In the current preferred approach, European OEMs are focusing on the BEV strategy, which is considered an established technology. However, the shift towards a purely battery-oriented direction in Europe is advanced, yet there are still long ways to go before speaking of complete market penetration. Meanwhile, Asian, and American providers have embedded themselves in the European market, threatening to snatch significant shares from European OEMs in the overall market. Therefore, a separate approach has emerged to determine possibilities for expanding the product portfolio to FCEVs in Europe, as this market is still in an early stage internationally. An empirical approach was used to identify the factors European OEMs see as implementation or barriers to an FCEV strategy. The results indicate generally that such a strategy extension appears feasible in many factors, yet there are hardly any implementations for real feasibility. Costs and model portfolios are particularly emphasized here. However, there are also cautious attitudes due to a lack of refuelling infrastructure and perceived insufficient demand on the customer side.