Carlos Tavares, CEO of Stellantis, discussed various topics at the Freedom of Mobility Forum, including electric and hydrogen cars. On the latter technology, the Portuguese manager stated that the current cost is twice that of electric cars, which makes it inaccessible at the moment. However, according to Tavares, even with a cost reduction, hydrogen could only be used for large company fleets in the future, but not for ordinary citizens.
Tavares says that hydrogen is not a solution for “ordinary citizens” but only for large company fleets
On electric cars, Tavares stated that they are not a solution for everyone: “We need to move away from the idea that this solution is right for everyone. I also believe that electric cars can only be a solution for some of our brands, but not all.” On the batteries of electric vehicles, Tavares reiterated that the goal is to halve their weight and the use of raw materials: “In the next ten years, the automotive industry must achieve a breakthrough in terms of cell power density, to reduce the weight and raw materials of electric vehicles by at least 50%.”
The Portuguese manager also reiterated that it is necessary to work on reducing the cost of electric cars and making them more accessible, in order to make this transition easier, especially for consumers. However, a survey conducted in the United States, Brazil, India, Morocco, and France, states that only one in four people claim to have changed their transportation habits to limit their environmental impact, while the rest do not intend to do anything about it.
Another very important issue is that of charging stations, an obstacle for many less developed nations. Roberto Schaeffer, Professor of Economics at the University of Rio de Janeiro in Brazil, stated during his speech at the Freedom of Mobility Forum that more than 800 million people do not have access to electricity, while many others do not have a stable and reliable electrical grid to rely on.