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Technology Stocks : Ballard Power -world leader zero-emission PEM fuel cells -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Hawkeye who wrote (4510)	11/10/1999 1:31:00 PM
From: Hawkeye	Read Replies (2) \| Respond to of 5827

Another WOW!!! Strong statement from Daimler on the importance of fuel cell cars. This may be their official statement that they are going ahead with the program as was expected by the end of 99. I think the headline is misleading though as there is no indication of any change to the 2003-04 timeline for initial introduction. Bloomberg technology Wed, 10 Nov 1999, 1:22pm EST DaimlerChrysler Plans to Introduce Fuel-Cell Car Within Decade DaimlerChrysler Plans to Introduce Fuel-Cell Car Within Decade Stuttgart, Germany, Nov. 10 (Bloomberg) -- DaimlerChrysler AG, the world's fifth-largest carmaker, said it's investing heavily to bring an affordable car powered by a fuel cell to market within the next 10 years. The company, which spent $7.2 billion on research and development last year, has six experimental vehicles that can be powered by fuel cells -- devices that generate electricity with a chemical reaction of fuel and oxygen -- using a variety of fuels, including methanol and hydrogen. DaimlerChrysler expects stricter legislation on air pollution and an increasing scarcity of oil will create a need for an alternative to the internal-combustion engine, which burns gasoline or diesel fuel to power almost all cars, trucks and buses worldwide. ''We expect fuel to become scarcer in the not-too-distant future,'' said Klaus-Dieter Voehringer, board member responsible for research and technology. ''We now have six road-ready fuel cell-driven prototypes covering a range that extends from compact cars to buses.'' Developing a marketable fuel cell is one of the company's four main research priorities. It plans to spend 17 billion euros ($17.7 billion) on research and development by 2001, with 90 percent of the money going into the priority areas, which also cover new materials, networks for forecasting traffic and electronics. The company isn't alone in fuel-cell research. More than 60 others, such as carmakers Ford Motor Co. and Bayerische Motoren Werke AG as well as Germany's Siemens AG engineering company, are working on fuel-cell technology. Other Research DaimlerChrysler sees Japanese companies as a particular threat, estimating the four largest Japanese carmakers invested more than $850 million this year to develop fuel cells. ''If we don't vigorously pursue the introduction of fuel- cell vehicles and consolidate our leading position now, others will fill the void and get the business,'' said Ferdinand Panik, the head of DaimlerChrysler's fuel-cell project group. The company said its drive to innovate is reflected in its recent patents. The companies that formed DaimlerChrysler last year, Daimler-Benz AG and Chrysler Corp., registered a combined 1,400 patents related to the automobile industry last year. This year, that number may amount to 2,000, even as the company expects to beat its goal of saving $96 million in research and development costs because of the merger, the company said. The company said it's using Iceland as a kind of fuel-cell laboratory. The country enlisted DaimlerChrysler in its efforts to move from combustion engines to fuel-cell or hydrogen-burning engines. In addition to testing hydrogen-powered fuel cell cars, the company will outfit Iceland's fishing fleet with engines that burn hydrogen, which produce less pollution than a conventional motor. DaimlerChrysler also sees potential for selling fuel cell- powered buses in Brazil, which it calls the largest bus market in the world. Since city buses are fueled from a central location and have a limited range, they are ideal for fuel-cell technology, DaimlerChrysler said. The main disadvantage of fuel cells today is that there are few refueling stations available and vehicles can't go as far with a fuel cell as they can with a conventional combustion engine.