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Renault markets the first hydrogen-powered family car in Europe Business

Renault brings Europe’s first hydrogen-powered family car to market and promises it will travel 500 miles on a single charge.

The French automaker will relaunch its popular Scenic model as an electric vehicle in 2024 and then plans to add a hydrogen power source to it by 2030.

Electric cars can last up to 300 miles before they need to be plugged in, but Renault estimates that by the end of the decade hydrogen will power cars for up to 800 miles.

However, the UK has only 11 hydrogen fueling stations for cars, most of which are in southern England. Four more are on the way, but buyers will likely be hesitant to commit to fuel before more are available.

While many automakers have made hydrogen-powered prototypes, most automakers have abandoned plans to market them and instead poured their resources into batteries.

Hydrogen, which burns in oxygen to produce water, is considered a good way to power heavy trucks due to the weight of the batteries needed to make them electric. As an automotive fuel, it has struggled to gain traction due to the current expense of making green hydrogen versus using green electricity to charge a battery.

Mass-market hydrogen cars can only be purchased from Japanese and Korean automakers. Korean Hyundai makes the Nexo, a hydrogen SUV, while Toyota has been making the Mirai since 2014.

Proponents of the fuel envision hydrogen refueling stations using electricity to split water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen, making the gas at the pump.

Renault shelved the Scenic in 2019 as part of a cost-cutting campaign and gave the chop to its larger Grand Scenic variant a year later. But it remained popular with buyers and saw the strongest price growth among used cars with a 61% gain in the average asking price in the year to April, according to AutoTrader, pushing down prices. buyers from £8,107.

The new version will have a 75% lower carbon footprint thanks to the use of recycled materials and a smaller battery, Renault said.

It is fighting to catch up with its competitors while suffering heavy losses after exiting its Russian operations following the Russian invasion of Ukraine.

Earlier this week, the French automaker agreed to sell its 68% stake in automaker Lada Avtovaz to NAMI, a state automotive research body, while the city of Moscow will receive Renault Russia.

Assets changed hands for two rubles, or just over two pence, in an effective nationalization of trademarks in Russia. Renault has the option of buying AvtoVaz within the next six years, which chief executive Luca de Meo has hinted as a possibility.

The deal will be painful for Renault, as the automaker has become dependent on Russia for around 18% of global sales, making the country its second largest market after France. His Russian assets were valued at 2.2 billion euros on his balance sheet, and he will take charge of selling them later this year, he said.

She entered Russia in 1998, agreeing to take over a car factory in Moscow at a time when relations with the country were thawing with Europe.

He then took a stake in Avtovaz, owner of the Lada brand, in 2008, a move followed by several stock purchases that culminated in 2018 when the Lada owner was delisted from the Moscow stock exchange.

Renault has been under pressure to sell its business since Russia invaded Ukraine. Lada production was halted several times during the conflict due to sanctions against Russia, which deprived its factories of parts, including computer chips.

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Source: www.telegraph.co.uk
This notice was published: 2022-05-19 18:32:35

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