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To: Rickmas who wrote (4060)	4/20/1999 12:37:00 PM
From: Hawkeye	Respond to of 5827

Tuesday April 20, 12:03 pm Eastern Time Company Press Release SOURCE: American Methanol Institute California Paving the Way for Methanol Fuel Cell Vehicles WASHINGTON, April 20 /PRNewswire/ -- California Governor Gray Davis today announced that fuel cell vehicles will soon be appearing on the State's streets and freeways. Automakers DaimlerChrysler and Ford, and their fuel cell vehicle development partner Ballard Power Systems, Inc. will demonstrate as many as 50 fuel cell cars and buses in the State between now and 2003. Three major oil companies also committed to working on the refueling infrastructure needed to serve these vehicles. ''For the past several years, fuel cell vehicles were left to white-coated, laboratory researchers working under the hood,'' said American Methanol Institute President & CEO John Lynn. ''Governor Davis is now putting fuel cell cars on the street, and California drivers behind the wheel.'' At a press conference held today in Sacramento, Governor Davis joined with officials from DaimlerChrysler, Ford, Ballard, several major oil companies and several state agencies to announce the initiation of the California Fuel Cell Partnership. DaimlerChrysler's NECAR 4 fuel cell car, and Ford's P2000 fuel cell vehicle were on hand at the press event. Both the P2000 and the NECAR 4 are fueled with liquid hydrogen, which must be supercooled under high pressure to minus 400 degrees. While the first vehicles demonstrated under the California Fuel Cell Partnership will be hydrogen fueled, by 2002 the fuel cell cars placed in service will use on- board reformers fueled with methanol. Refueling stations for dispensing methanol are very similar to today's gasoline stations, and conversion capital costs are moderate. Many existing gasoline underground storage tanks can be adapted to store and dispense methanol for less than $20,000, while the capital cost for adding new methanol capacity to an existing service station is about $60,000. ''The methanol industry is ready, willing and able to serve a California market for fuel cell vehicles,'' added Lynn. ''Our estimates show that for about a $550 million investment, all of California's 11,700 service stations can be adapted to serve methanol. This compares quite well with the $4 billion in capital costs oil refiners spent over a three-year period to produce cleaner-burning gasoline in the State.'' In California, the pump price for methanol at 38 retail stations ranges from 87.9 cents to $1.10 per gallon. According to the California Energy Commission, the average price for regular unleaded gasoline for the week of April 12th was $1.624. Today, methanol is sold in California to serve over 11,000 ''flexible fuel'' vehicles. SOURCE: American Methanol Institute