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California Offering $7.7M for New and Improved Hydrogen Fueling Stations
16 April 2008
California is soliciting qualified teams to compete for part of $7.7 million aimed at helping construct and improve hydrogen-fueling stations in the Los Angeles and San Francisco areas.
We are shifting California's economy to clean energy and hydrogen plays an important role. We have burgeoning technologies that use hydrogen to power vehicles and in the future could provide electricity for homes. The increased use of hydrogen in the transportation sector would diversify California’s energy sources and reduce harmful smog-forming and climate-changing emissions.
— California Air Resources Board Chairman Mary Nichols
The new funding follows Air Resources Board’s recent amendments to the Zero Emission Vehicle program (earlier post), which requires auto manufacturers to place varying numbers of zero emission vehicles on the road by 2014, based on their type. Some of these will be fuel cell vehicles dependent on readily available sources of hydrogen.
There are 24 hydrogen stations operating in California, with more planned and there are roughly 209 hydrogen-powered vehicles operating throughout the state.
The application deadline for funds is June 13, 2008.
April 16, 2008 in Brief | Permalink | Comments (6) | TrackBack (0)
Comments
Posted by: Lad | April 16, 2008 at 02:17 AM
If they (so called energy companies) were smart they could realize that this is a great industry for them to jump ahead of the pack instead of just being another waiting in the fray for push from the world economy.
Posted by: JJSpawn | April 16, 2008 at 05:46 AM
Wow! $7.7million for 209 vehicles. That's $36820 per owner. If someone gave me that, I'd stop driving for a year and take a taxi.
Posted by: DS | April 16, 2008 at 08:16 AM
Many years ago, California had an FFV program where they were running cars on methanol. The test showed it could be done and then the cars we put out of service and the fuel stations shut down.
Arnold has got to get off of the hydrogen highway kick. He wanted to convert one of his Hummers to H2 until he found out what it would cost. California is billions of dollars in deficit this year and it is more important to support schools than have an H2 station.
Posted by: sjc | April 16, 2008 at 09:29 AM
It's fine if CA wants to build out a tiny H2 infrastructure. Consumers given a choice of driving great distance for H2 fuel vs. a PHEV with not-so-distant E85 - will opt for the ethanol. Remember the move is to greener transport - if 2 or 3 percent of that is H2 nuts, bless 'em.
According the Governor's office the 2007-2008 CA budget shows a $1.5 billion "reserve." CA under Gov. Gray Davis ran a $16 billion shortfall and trashed the electric utilities which is partly why he was thrown out.
Posted by: gr | April 16, 2008 at 01:14 PM
The latest budget is billions in deficit. Davis inherited Wilson's poorly written deregulation laws. Enron gamed the system and power contracts had to be negotiated under disadvantageous circumstances. People go on perception and one liners not reality, facts and truth.
Posted by: sjc | April 17, 2008 at 09:36 AM
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I haven't quite figured out how the oil companies fit into all this unless they plan to control the generation and distribution of the H2. Perhaps they plan to create the H2 from raw fossil fuel stock and deliver it in pipelines...but in any case you can bet they are involved. I don't see them involved greatly in creating H2 using electrolyse.
IMHO, I think PHEVs and BEVs cut them out of the mix and that's why they haven't embraced the technology and indeed are fighting with all their resources to move us to H2.