Symbio: Stellantis taking stake in Michelin-Faurecia JV

Negotiations have commenced for vehicle manufacturer Stellantis to acquire a “substantial stake” in zero-emission hydrogen mobility firm Symbio, with the expectation that it will become a “significant player” along with Faurecia and Michelin. Commenting on the negotiations, Michelin’s Florent Menegaux said the arrival of Stellantis will “catalyse the tremendous industrial momentum” that the existing stakeholders have already achieved.

“Symbio’s technical roadmap perfectly matches with Stellantis’ hydrogen roll-out plans in Europe and in the US,” states Carlos Tavares, chief executive officer of Stellantis. “This move will foster the speed of development to bring low-emission products to our customers, beyond traditional electric vehicles. We’re grateful to the teams at Faurecia, Michelin and Symbio for their commitment to innovation, excellence, and collaboration as we all work to achieve decarbonised mobility.”

Hydrogen vans in Europe by 2024

Stellantis launched its first hydrogen-driven mid-size vans in late 2021. The company is pursuing an aggressive ambition as part of the Dare Forward 2030 strategic plan, which includes expanding its hydrogen offering to large vans as early as 2024 in Europe and 2025 in the US while further exploring opportunities for heavy-duty trucks.

“By the intention of acquiring a stake in Symbio, Stellantis confirms the robustness of Michelin and Faurecia’s approach to creating a global leader in zero-emission mobility. The new setup will accelerate and globalise Symbio’s growth to the benefit of its customers,” says Patrick Koller, chief executive officer of Faurecia.

“Michelin is convinced that hydrogen fuel cell technology will make an effective contribution to decarbonizing mobility and even beyond,” adds Florent Menegaux, chief executive officer of Michelin. “This is what led Michelin to pioneer in this technology for more than 20 years. The arrival of Stellantis in Symbio’s capital would reinforce this conviction and would catalyse the tremendous industrial momentum we have built with Faurecia.”

Accelerated industrialisation

In October 2022, Symbio announced the HyMotive project to accelerate its industrialisation and disruptive innovation, which will increase its total production capacity in France to 100,000 systems per year by 2028 while generating 1,000 additional jobs.

This transaction enables Symbio to expand its development by capitalising on Stellantis’ leadership in the European and American automotive markets. The transaction is expected to close in the first semester of 2023 and is subject to customary closing conditions, including regulatory approvals.