http://ens-news.com/ens/may2003/2003-05-05-19.asp#anchor2
First of 30 Fuel Cell Buses on Trial in Europe VANCOUVER, British Columbia, Canada, May 5, 2003 (ENS) - Ballard Power Systems customer and partner, DaimlerChrysler, today delivered the first zero-emission Mercedes-Benz Citaro Bus powered with a Ballard¨ fuel cell engine to public transport authorities in Madrid, Spain, as part of the European Fuel Cell Bus Project. This is the first of 30 Citaro buses equipped with 205 kW Ballard fuel cell engines that will be delivered over the next year to 10 cities - Amsterdam, Barcelona, Hamburg, London, Luxembourg, Madrid, Porto, Rekjavik, Stockholm and Stuttgart. Driven by regular transit bus drivers, the new fuel cell powered buses will carry passengers in daily service in each city for a two year field trial. Ballard has shipped 18 heavy duty fuel cell engines to DaimlerChrysler's bus assembly plant in Mannheim, Germany and expects to ship the remaining engines this year. "This is the start of the fuel cell and hydrogen revolution in Europe," said Dennis Campbell, Ballard's president and CEO. "Thousands of people all across Europe will have the opportunity to experience first-hand, the clean, quiet and comfortable ride of these zero-emission buses." The European Fuel Cell Bus Project provides a "unique opportunity to showcase the diversity of solutions available for the production and delivery of hydrogen fuel," said Campbell. To fuel the 30 buses, 10 hydrogen refueling stations will be established, each producing hydrogen using a unique process, highlighting the flexibility available with hydrogen production. The fuel cell engines Ballard makes are proton exchange membrane fuel cells - electrochemical devices in which the energy of a chemical reaction is converted directly into electricity, the company explains on its website. By combining hydrogen fuel with oxygen from air, electricity is formed, without combustion of any form. Water and heat are the only by-products when hydrogen is used as the fuel source. Although hydrogen is considered the primary fuel source for fuel cells, the process of fuel reforming allows for the extraction of hydrogen from other fuels including methanol, natural gas, petroleum, or renewable sources. Unlike a battery, a fuel cell does not run down or require recharging, Ballard explains, it operates as long as a fuel is supplied. As an extension of its heavy duty engine programs, Ballard recently began the integration of its engine into the first of three Gillig Corporation buses at its Burnaby, BC facilities, for delivery in 2004 to Gillig's customer, the Santa Clara Valley Transportation Authority (VTA) in California. These buses represent the fourth field trial for Ballard fuel cell powered buses in North America. Previous generation engines operated in bus field trials in Chicago, Vancouver, and Palm Springs. This is a joint demonstration program with the Santa Clara VTA, the San Mateo Transportation District, the California Fuel Cell Partnership and the California Air ------------------------ Yahoo! Groups Sponsor ---------------------~--> Get A Free Psychic Reading! Your Online Answer To Life's Important Questions. http://us.click.yahoo.com/cjB9SD/od7FAA/uetFAA/9bTolB/TM ---------------------------------------------------------------------~-> Biofuels at Journey to Forever http://journeytoforever.org/biofuel.html Biofuel at WebConX http://webconx.green-trust.org/2000/biofuel/biofuel.htm List messages are archived at the Info-Archive at NNYTech: http://archive.nnytech.net/ To unsubscribe from this group, send an email to: [EMAIL PROTECTED] Your use of Yahoo! Groups is subject to http://docs.yahoo.com/info/terms/
