NEWS

May 2004 Fuel Cells Bulletin5

I n B r i e f

Nissan leases first X-Trail FCV to Cosmo OilIn Japan, energy company Cosmo Oil hasleased the first X-Trail FCV car manufac-tured by Nissan Motor Co, at a monthlylease price of ¥1 million (US$9200). CosmoOil will use the hydrogen-powered X-TrailFCV – which uses a 63 kWe PEM fuel cellsystem supplied by US-based UTC FuelCells – to obtain useful information on howit should configure the required futurehydrogen supply infrastructure.

Nissan has been conducting public-roaddriving tests in Japan since 2002 using proto-type FCVs approved by the Ministry of Land,Infrastructure & Transport. Both Cosmo Oiland Nissan are participating in the JapanHydrogen & Fuel Cell Demonstration(JHFC) Project.

The X-Trail FCVs are equipped with an air-conditioning system jointly developed byNissan and Calsonic Kansei Corporation thatuses CO2 as the refrigerant, which is especiallyeffective in heating a vehicle compared with theHFC-134 refrigerant used in most automotiveair-conditioning systems, according to a JapanCorporate News Network report. It helps toovercome a key drawback in FCVs, which donot provide very effective cabin heating becausethey lack a heat source such as an internal com-bustion engine.

Hydrogenics on track with 2003 resultsToronto-based Hydrogenics Corporation hasreported that for fiscal 2003, its revenuesincreased 68% to $26.7 million (all figures inUS$, unaudited), compared with $15.8m for2002. Its net loss for 2003 was $22.1m, slight-ly higher than the 2002 net loss of $20.6m.However, excluding $12.9m in non-cashamortization of intangibles and $0.7m instock-based compensation expense, its net lossfor 2003 was $8.5m, against $5.4m for 2002.

The company’s fourth quarter 2003 revenueswere $5.9m, similar to the $5.8m reported forfourth quarter 2002. The net loss for the fourthquarter 2003 was $7.7m, compared with a netloss of $5.1m for the year-ago quarter.

For the full year, the company’s selling, gen-eral and administrative expenses (combinedwith R&D expenses) were $21.6m in 2003,almost double the $10.9m reported for 2002.The increase is largely attributable to the acqui-sition of Greenlight, combined with increasedR&D activity focused on Hydrogenics’ emerg-ing portfolio of fuel cell power products andhydrogen refuelers. Combined with year-endbalances, the company now has approximately$105m in combined cash and short-terminvestments. It also now has in excess of 230patent applications, protecting more than 100inventions.

Contact: Plug Power Inc, Latham, NY, USA. Tel: +1518 782 7700, www.plugpower.com

Or contact: Honda R&D Co Ltd, Saitama, Japan.Tel: +81 48 462 5467, www.honda.co.jp/RandD

Or contact: Airgas Inc, Radnor, Pennsylvania, USA.Tel: +1 610 687 5253, www.airgas.com

SFC, Toshiba show DMFCprototypes at CeBIT

Munich-based SFC Smart Fuel Cellpresented its latest direct methanol

fuel cell performance prototype at therecent CeBIT 2004 information technolo-gy trade show in Hannover, Germany.SFC says the ‘PowerBoy’ is a flexible andhighly miniaturized power supply thatcan operate and charge a variety of con-sumer electronic devices, including paral-lel operation of several products.

The PowerBoy features long runtimes of up to12 h per cartridge. The device weighs just 0.7 kg,and is claimed to have a greater energy densitythan Li-ion batteries. Fuel for SFC’s products isprovided by small exchangeable fuel cartridges.The company has formed a consortium withleading international companies to create stan-dards for safe and affordable cartridges.

Also on show was a competitive notebookDMFC prototype from Japanese-based Toshiba,which was demonstrated powering a B5-sizedsub-notebook PC. Toshiba’s DMFC [FCB, May2003] runs on a methanol/oxygen fuel mix, andgenerates and supplies power directly to the PC.It is claimed to have an energy density up to fivetimes that of a typical Li-ion battery.

Contact: SFC Smart Fuel Cell AG, D-85649 Brunnthal-Nord, Germany. Tel: +49 89 607 45460,www.smartfuelcell.com

Or contact: Toshiba Corporation, Corporate Research& Development Center, Saiwai-ku, Kawasaki, Japan. Tel:+81 44 549 2056, www.toshiba.co.jp/rdc

First steps in EU’s QuickStart hydrogen initiative

The European Commission is currentlyawarding 16 contracts, worth nearly

�100m, for research projects on hydro-gen and fuel cells, following its first callfor proposals under the Sixth Frame-work Programme (FP6). EU funding isbeing matched by an equivalentamount of private investment for theseprojects, which the Commission hasdescribed as ‘the initial phase’ of itsQuick Start initiative for hydrogen

production and use. This initiative wasset up last November by EC vice presi-dent Loyola de Palacio and researchcommissioner Philippe Busquin.

About �62m of the EU funding is directedtowards hydrogen technologies, while around�30m is available for research into fuel cells.Initiatives include integrated projects aimed atproducing hydrogen-rich gas from biomass,developing hydrogen-powered IC engines, andproducing innovative fuel cell systems and com-ponents for road transport applications.

The Commission intends to reinforce this ini-tial group of projects by launching calls for fur-ther research initiatives worth a total of �150m,as early as July. Together, these projects consti-tute the first phase of the Quick Start hydrogenprogram, paving the way for large-scale public/private partnerships for research and demonstra-tion activities. These partnerships will bringtogether EU and member state institutions,industry, the research community and otherpartners, notably the European InvestmentBank, in order to leverage finance.

The knowledge component of the Quick Startinitiative comprises two 10-year partnerships.The first, with a �1.3bn budget, will explore thepotential of producing hydrogen to decarbonizefossil fuel use. The second is a so-called ‘light-house’ project, worth �1.5bn, to explore thepractical feasibilities of managing hydrogen ener-gy communities, or a ‘hydrogen village’.

Cooperation has been established with EUmember states to coordinate national researchactivities in this field, following the recommen-dations of the European Hydrogen & Fuel CellTechnology Platform, which held its first gener-al assembly in January [FCB, February]. ThePlatform steering panels are now starting todevelop coherent European research anddeployment strategies.

For more on the European Hydrogen & FuelCell Technology Platform, go to: europa.eu.int/

comm/research/energy/nn/nn_rt_htp1_en.html

California FCV fleet addsanother Toyota hybrid

Toyota has delivered another FuelCell Hybrid Vehicle (FCHV) to the

National Fuel Cell Research Center atthe University of California, Irvine. Thevehicle will be leased by HoribaInstruments, a manufacturer of analyti-cal and engine measurement instru-ments. The vehicle joins 17 ToyotaFCHVs on the road in Japan and the US.

The FCHV is based on the ToyotaHighlander mid-size SUV, and utilizes the samehybrid technology as the company’s Prius. The