The firm, equally owned by Michelin, Forvia, and Stellantis, said the three had reached an agreement to allow Symbio to continue operations, but warned it faced challenges in adapting its strategy to its “new scope of activity.”

Under the cost-cutting programme, Symbio will cut its headcount by over 70% from its current 650 employees to a team of just 175.

Symbio said it was “committed to implementing employment support measures” for employees who lose their jobs.

It intends to ramp up deployment of its current 75kW PEM fuel cells in buses and stationary applications.

It now hopes to manufacture 10,000 systems per year from its flagship SymphonHy factory in France by 2028–2030. This would represent just 20% of its previously stated target of 50,000 units for 2030.

The company also said it will continue R&D activities on its next-generation 150kW fuel cells.

It comes after its one-third owner Stellantis, which represented 80% of Symbio’s orders, discontinued the development of its hydrogen-powered light-duty vehicles, citing a lack of adoption prospects before 2030.

At the time, newly appointed Symbio CEO Jean-Baptiste Lucas said the sudden exit came as a “shock” and risked wiping out the company.

Now, Lucas said, for the firm to continue operations, it must undergo a “profound and challenging” transformation.

“We have redefined our strategic priorities and adapted our offering to meet the new realities of the mobility and stationary markets,” he said in a statement.

“Our goal is to enable Symbio to become a key player in hydrogen-electric technology, building the future of a sovereign European hydrogen sector in France.”

Stellantis’ rollback and Symbio’s forced restructuring come amid a brutal shakeout in the hydrogen mobility market. Over the past year, various OEMs have ceased operations or scaled back, with high fuel costs and refuelling challenging commercial deployments.