Hydrogen stations are opening to serve the needs of hydrogen vehicles, primarily at research facilities. Honda opened a hydrogen station in Torrance, California, that produces hydrogen using solar-powered water electrolysis. SunLine Transit operates a station in Thousand Palms, California, that offers hydrogen along with numerous other fuels. Munich has a hydrogen station on the grounds of its airport that is used to fuel a fleet of 15 BMW sedans with internal combustion engines that run on hydrogen. Tokyo has three hydrogen stations built with government funding, and a natural gas company in Japan is currently building a fourth.
Iceland plans to be the first hydrogen-powered economy. Next year, DaimlerChrysler will begin to convert Reykjavik's 80 buses to fuel cell engines. Shell is constructing a hydrogen station that uses inexpensive hydropower to electrolyze water to supply the buses. After the buses are converted, Iceland's passenger cars will be next, and then the nation's fishing fleet.
One obstacle to commercialization of fuel cell vehicles is the lack of a fueling infrastructure. In a classic chicken-and-egg situation, car companies are wary of producing too many fuel cell vehicles without a network of hydrogen stations, while companies involved in hydrogen fuel are wary of building the requisite infrastructure in the absence of a sizable fuel cell vehicle market. Some automakers estimate that 30 percent of filling stations in the United States would need to offer hydrogen fuel in order for a viable hydrogen-based transport sector to emerge.
Iceland plans to be the first hydrogen-powered economy. Next year, DaimlerChrysler will begin to convert Reykjavik's 80 buses to fuel cell engines. Shell is constructing a hydrogen station that uses inexpensive hydropower to electrolyze water to supply the buses. After the buses are converted, Iceland's passenger cars will be next, and then the nation's fishing fleet.
One obstacle to commercialization of fuel cell vehicles is the lack of a fueling infrastructure. In a classic chicken-and-egg situation, car companies are wary of producing too many fuel cell vehicles without a network of hydrogen stations, while companies involved in hydrogen fuel are wary of building the requisite infrastructure in the absence of a sizable fuel cell vehicle market. Some automakers estimate that 30 percent of filling stations in the United States would need to offer hydrogen fuel in order for a viable hydrogen-based transport sector to emerge.