Being present at the Paris Motor Show, Hydrogen Today also has access to decision makers. In particular, we were able to attend a lecture delivered by Valeo’s CEO, Christophe Perillat.

The press conference, which focused on the electric vehicle for instance, drifted a little on hydrogen. The director, who was questioned twice on the subject, first said that, in his opinion, a hydrogen vehicle was the same as a battery vehicle, because it has an electric motor and an inverter, components that Valeo supplies to manufacturers. Mr. Perillat confirmed that the equipment manufacturer was thinking about the subject, in particular by developing air compressors to optimise the operation of fuel cells.

However, Valeo’s CEO does not personally believe that there is an opportunity in the private car sector, even if there is a definite interest for heavy vehicles, trucks in particular. He believes that for cars, the market “has decided” because of the lower efficiency compared to the battery.

Article written by Laurent Meillaud, translated by Logan King and reviewed by Marina Leite.