Renault swaps LCV fuel cell partner: Plug Power instead of Symbio

The French car manufacturer Groupe Renault is intensifying its activities in various fields at the start of the year and has now announced a surprising change of development partner for fuel cell drives for light commercial vehicles from Symbio to the US specialist Plug Power. The previous partner offers some strong points, but in terms of technology, Plug Power has a broader approach and better possibilities for the development of end-customer offers in this sector, which include not only the vehicle but also the refueling infrastructure and the procurement of H2 fuel, as a spokeswoman revealed to LOGISTRA.

Joint venture develops vans for delivery and shuttle services

The 50:50 joint venture, which is to be established in France in the first half of 2021 and is developing fuel-cell solutions for light commercial vehicles in goods and passenger transport and taxis, relies on the 20 years of expertise of the fuel cell specialist. This specialist has so far delivered over 40,000 fuel cell systems and erected 110 H2 refueling stations, where more than 40 tons of H2 are refueled daily. Furthermore, the provider is leading in the technology of green hydrogen, which is produced from renewable sources via electrolysis, argue the French further.

The cooperation with Symbio is to continue for the time being with the current H2 drive solutions in the City-Van Kangoo H2. However, for further developments in the area of the 2.8 and 3.5-ton Renault Trafic and Master, the new developments from Plug Power will also be relied upon.

The cooperation is based on three pillars: 

• Research & Development: The plan is to establish a joint innovation center where mixed and integrated teams will develop H2 models based on existing and future LCV platforms.
• Production: The joint venture is to combine the manufacturing capacities and capabilities of Groupe Renault with Plug Power's H2 manufacturing know-how and establish a vertically integrated fuel cell stack system. Additionally, entire tank systems are to be set up, which play a key role in hydrogen ecosystems, as the manufacturer argues.
• Sales: In sales and distribution, an ecosystem is also to be set up that realizes vehicle, tank system, and fuel supply as well as service of the facilities from a single source. This is believed to be able to massively accelerate the ramp-up of this technology in commercial fleets.

The recently appointed new Renault-Groupe CEO Luca de Meo, who switched from Seat, expressed his belief that the new partnership would create a unique "one-stop" solution and a complete value chain for LCV, from the vehicle to tank solutions and decarbonized hydrogen. This aims to position France as a bridgehead for this key technology and strengthen its leading role in Europe. The goal, de Meo stated, is to become the European market leader in fuel cell-powered light commercial vehicles. Andy Marsh, CEO of Plug Power, expressed pride in taking on market leadership in Europe for heavy transporters together with Groupe Renault as an innovation leader in hydrogen fuel cell technology.