Total acquires stakes in Hysetco to accelerate hydrogen mobility in Paris

Total announced to have acquired 20% stakes in, Hysetco, a French company working on developing hydrogen mobility and owning the largest fleet of hydrogen taxis globally.

Hysetco launched the fleet in 2015, which is operated in the Île-de-France region under the Hype brand. Hysetco currently owns around 700 taxis in Paris, with the majority run on diesel which is expected to gradually transit to hydrogen by 2024.

Hysetco also operates hydrogen stations to fuel its taxis. The company expect to expand its stations’ network in the coming years to support the growth of the hydrogen vehicle fleet. The Total acquisition will play a key role in expanding the hydrogen refuelling station as it would make its network of service stations available to Hysetco.

Hysetco other shareholders include STEP (Société du Taxi Electrique Parisien), Air Liquide, Toyota and Kouros.

Patrick Pouyanné, Chairman and CEO of Total, said, “This acquisition is a concrete commitment and an acceleration for Total in hydrogen mobility.

He added, “We are delighted to be working with partners whose skills and expertise complement each other throughout the hydrogen vehicle value chain.”

Early this year, HysetCo acquired Slota Group, a long-standing Parisian taxi operator. To finance the acquisition of Slota Group through investment fund Naxicap, HysetCo and Hype put together a group of leading financial partners, including Rgreen Invest, Mirova, Raise Impact and Eiffel Investment Group. As a result, HysetCo and Hype raised over €100 million in investment.