Norway fast-tracks hydrogen highway

By 2009, hydrogen-fueled vehicles are expected to be able to drive along a 360-mile hydrogen highway in Norway, with five designated fueling stations accessible along the way.

However, with two years left to accomplish Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger’s “Vision 2010,” California’s 800-mile hydrogen highway is limited to two regions: the San Francisco Bay Area and Los Angeles.

The different approaches used by the groups behind each highway could explain why Norway is on track to meet its hydrogen highway goal, while California is nowhere near ready.

Last week, Japan-based Mazda Motor Corporation (TYYO: 7261) announced it was sending the hydrogen versions of its RX-8 cars to Norway for testing on the nation’s hydrogen highway project, known as the HyNor. Eight of the cars have been in Norway since 2006.

Established in 2003, Norway’s HyNor is a 580-kilometer (360-mile) stretch of road running from Oslo on the east coast to Stavanger on the west coast. The first hydrogen fueling station opened in Stavanger in 2006; another opened in the midway city of Porsgrunn last year; and more are
being built this year.

If everything goes according to schedule, hydrogen-fueled vehicles should be able to go from Oslo to Stavanger by 2009. And if the highway proves commercially viable, Mazda hopes to lease 30 of its RX-8 hydrogen vehicles to consumers.

Another company providing vehicles to test the HyNor is Quantum Fuel Systems Technologies Worldwide (NASDAQ: QTWW). The company was contracted in 2006 to develop hydrogen–fueled Toyota Priuses to Miljobil Grenland AS, a HyNor vehicle provider. Miljobil is also the parent company of Miljo, which is building the electric version of the Tata Indica (see Electrovaya, Tata Motors to make electric Indica).

So while several companies are jumping on the hydrogen-highway bandwagon in Norway, California's attempts are flailing.

Schwarzenegger’s Vision 2010 plan involves having hydrogen fuel accessible to every Californian along the state’s major highways. But Roy Kim, spokesman for the California Fuel Cell Partnership (CaFCP), told the Cleantech Group that the emphasis is currently on "clustering" the fueling stations in urban areas.

The earlier failures on California’s hydrogen highway, he said, were because previous deployments were too expansive.

The focus now, Kim said, is on using Los Angeles as a model to show that fuel-cell vehicles are a viable option.

Clustering is a good starting point, said Joan Ogden, director of the Sustainable Transportation Energy Pathways Program at the University of California at Davis.

Studies conducted by Ogden and her colleagues indicate that a few dozen strategically placed hydrogen fueling stations throughout the Los Angeles region would be enough to meet consumer demand for hydrogen. The key is coordinating supply and demand for the vehicles and fueling stations, she said.

In July, the CaFCP released a vision statement planning to have 25,000 zero-emissions vehicles (ZEVs), including hydrogen vehicles, on the road by 2015 and as many as 50,000 ZEVs by 2017. The vehicles are expected to help California meet its goals of reducing the state's carbon emissions to pre-1990 levels by 2050.

To meet the projected hydrogen fueling demand for that many vehicles, Kim said, funding for fueling stations would have to be provided by both the state and private sector. He said it was “extremely important” to have the state and private sector form partnerships to build more hydrogen fueling stations. 

The state is expected to spend around $80 million to $90 million in the next few years to construct additional stations to meet projected demand.

Companies such as Shell (NYSE:RDS.A) and Chevron (NYSE:CVX) have already built hydrogen fueling stations, and General Motors (NYSE:GM) is looking into mobile refueling stations, said Ogden.

Another option being studied at UC Davis involves developing joint stations for hydrogen and electricity. Buildings could use the electricity generated, while the hydrogen produced could be used separately for vehicles.

While the state prepares for the possibility of having thousands of fuel cell vehicles on the road in the next four years, providing hydrogen fueling stations between the San Francisco Bay Area and the Los Angeles region seems less of a priority. Ogden said fueling stations outside of the designated urban areas is unlikely to happen in the meantime because “most people don’t do a lot of long-distance trips."

At a later date, she said, placing hydrogen fueling stations on major highways such as Interstate 5 would be considered.

There are currently 27 fueling stations in California, Kim said. The majority of the stations are Los Angeles, San Diego, San Francisco and Sacramento.

In the meantime there aren't that many fuel cell cars on the road. Last week the third Honda Clarity FCX hydrogen-powered car was leased in Southern California. Honda hopes to lease 200 cars over a three-year period.