By the end of the decade, BMW will have a hydrogen-powered car.

Oliver Zipse, chairman of the BMW Group, found some time to discuss hydrogen fuel cell powertrains while speaking at the introduction of Rolls-first Royce’s mass-produced electric vehicle. His remarks will no doubt please those who do not see their future in large batteries.

Zipse stated:

“We believe in hydrogen for many reasons. We believe that – and I’m speaking now from the BMW side but that ends up being for every brand in the Group – if you want to ride emissions-free and you do not have a charging station, this is the only possibility we have.”

“In some areas to implement a hydrogen infrastructure is easier than an electric infrastructure, for example in areas where you don’t have any connection to a power grid. For hydrogen you just need the tank. There will be instances in this world where you have that situation. Will that be the main market? No, it will not.”

But it’s a market that BMW obviously wants to participate in. Remember that it was already testing the I Hydrogen NEXT” in June 2021 when it was “near standard”—basically an X5 with a fuel cell.

Can we anticipate a hydrogen-powered Phantom or Ghost in the near future, returning to Rolls-Royce?  “I would never exclude anything,” declared Zipse.