Toyota shifts hydrogen strategy and invests in Czech EV production

Toyota is adjusting its hydrogen mobility strategy by prioritizing heavy-duty transport to build necessary infrastructure. While the company maintains its long-term goal of producing hydrogen passenger cars, it faces a circular challenge where insufficient infrastructure limits consumer demand, and low demand discourages infrastructure investment. To address this, Toyota intends to develop hydrogen ecosystems through truck and heavy vehicle fleets, which provide the consistent demand required to make refueling stations viable. The company is collaborating with Scania and Iveco to integrate its third-generation fuel cells into heavy trucks by 2027, and has entered a joint venture with Volvo Group and Daimler Truck via cellcentric.

In the Czech Republic, Toyota Motor Manufacturing Czech Republic has announced a one-week production halt in December to prepare for a transition toward battery electric vehicle (BEV) production. This shift is part of a major investment totaling approximately 680 million euros (nearly 17 billion CZK) to expand the Kolín plant. The project includes new facilities for battery assembly, welding, and painting, which will expand the site from 152,000 to 173,000 square meters and create 245 new jobs. The Kolín facility is positioned to become Toyota’s first European plant dedicated to battery electric vehicles.