Hyperdrive

Daimler Disagrees With Tesla and VW’s Batteries-or-Bust View

  • Truck chief says fuel cells are needed to reach climate goals
  • CEOs Musk and Diess have argued hydrogen is a lost cause

Martin Daum

Photographer: Alex Kraus/Bloomberg
Lock
This article is for subscribers only.

Daimler AG’s truck chief expects hydrogen-powered big rigs to play an important role in slashing emissions from the transportation sector despite the technological hurdles and skepticism raised by two prominent rivals.

Focusing solely on battery-electric vehicles would be risky because of the scarcity of certain raw materials and challenges grids will have supporting wide-ranging charging networks for trucks and buses, Martin Daum, Daimler Truck’s chief executive officer, said in a phone interview.