1) What actually slowed or shrank?

• Volkswagen trimmed EV output at select plants as demand softened and hybrids gained share.
• U.S. EV makers adjusted headcount and guidance: Rivian, Lucid, and Tesla each executed cost actions through 2024–25.
• Road-transport hydrogen retrenched: Hyzon downsized, Nikola restructured, Germany’s H2 MOBILITY closed low-utilisation passenger stations, and Stellantis pared back LDV hydrogen.
• Flagship supply and pipeline plans slipped: RWE and others reassessed timelines; Europe’s H₂ backbone targets shifted to the right.
• Growth cooled but did not collapse: see the IEA Global EV Outlook 2025.

2) Technology & industrialisation (supply-side)

For EVs, the constraints are less about failed science and more about manufacturing yields, COGS, pack warranty economics, and charging infrastructure. Legacy OEMs have re-sequenced capex to defend margins while working through battery cost curves and software roadmaps.

For road-transport hydrogen, the binding constraint is station utilisation: networks with low throughput struggle to cover opex and maintenance, pushing operators to consolidate along heavy-duty corridors where back-to-base fleets can anchor demand.

3) Consumer-side economics & behaviour

• Subsidy cliffs: U.S. consumer incentives have tightened; see the IRS guidance on clean-vehicle credits here.
• Price points and product mix: premium EVs remain price-sensitive; Chinese OEMs pressure on cost and software; hybrids pick up share as a “no-infrastructure gamble.”
• Charging reality: buyers want reliability and proximity, not just peak kW claims. Patchiness slows conversion even where vehicles and offers exist.

4) Politics & policy: U.S. whiplash on net zero

Policy reversals in 2025 reduce both demand-pull and the confidence to invest at scale. Moves to weaken federal tailpipe rules and to revisit the EPA’s GHG Endangerment Finding reshape compliance math for automakers and tilt programme timing toward hybrids and lower-capex refreshes. Divergence between the U.S. and jurisdictions like the EU (see AFIR) complicates platform planning and siting.

5) Weighing the causes

6) Implications (2025–2027)

1. De-risk U.S. exposure: re-sequence launches and capex for post-credit demand; focus on trims that clear true mass-market price points.
2. Double down on cost engineering: prioritise yield/scrap reduction, pack integration and robust aftersales over speculative “hero chemistries.”
3. Targeted hydrogen: concentrate on heavy-duty corridors and depot fleets where utilisation supports station economics.
4. Policy hedging: maintain dual-track compliance plans — strict EU/China regimes vs looser U.S. — while monitoring regulatory and court outcomes.

Conclusion

The current pullback is best read as industrial-policy whiplash plus consumer-economics reality, not a collapse of underlying technologies. EV adoption should re-accelerate where cost, infrastructure and policy align (notably China and selected EU markets). In short, EV and hydrogen slowdowns 2025 are a pause and rebalancing, not an endpoint. Hydrogen’s near-term transport role narrows to high-utilisation heavy-duty niches until stations and supply chains can scale economically.

Companies & institutions mentioned

Volkswagen ·
Rivian ·
Lucid ·
Tesla ·
Hyzon Motors ·
Nikola ·
H2 MOBILITY Deutschland ·
Stellantis ·
RWE ·
IEA ·
U.S. EPA ·
EU AFIR ·
IRS Clean-Vehicle Credit

Sources & further reading

• IEA — Global EV Outlook 2025
• BloombergNEF — Electric Vehicle Outlook
• Volkswagen Press Releases (EV production)
• Rivian Newsroom & Lucid Media Room & Tesla IR
• Hyzon News & Nikola Press
• H2 MOBILITY official site
• Stellantis Press Releases
• RWE Press
• EPA — GHG Endangerment Finding overview
• EU — Alternative Fuels Infrastructure Regulation (AFIR)
• IRS — New Clean Vehicle Credit

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• Hydrogen Internal Combustion Engine (H2ICE): 2025 Guide
• European Hydrogen Truck Manufacturers
• All Field Notes