The joint presentation „Hydrogen and Fuel Cells“ on the Hannover Fair was in every respect bigger and better than the former ones. The area was 1650 m² (2001: 902), there were 90 (70) exhibitors from 10 (9) countries, and 22 (18) of these were from the USA or Canada. More and more politicians include the presentation in their visits. Federal Chancellor Gerhard Schroeder repeated his visit of last year. His particular interest was in home fuel cells. Juergen Trittin, federal minister for the environment, wanted to see clean cars; DaimlerChrysler, BMW, and General Motors showed what they had. Wolfgang Clement, prime minister of North Rhine-Westphalia, and his minister for economy, Ernst Schwanhold, brought themselves up to date about high temperature fuel cells. Another guest was Sigmar Gabriel, prime minister of Lower Saxony, because he thinks: „The fuel cell is definitely one of the most exciting and promising new technologies.“

Cars are usually the greatest attractions, but the exhibits from the field of stationary and portable applications were no less important. General Motors demonstrated that both fields of application do not exclude each other. They showed their prototype „HydroGen 3“ as well as a stationary system comprising an electrolyser and a fuel cell. MTU had installed a „Hot Module“, the core component of the company's molten carbonate fuel cells. 

In the field of portable applications Smart Fuel Cells from Brunnthal (near Munich) showed for the first time in the public a small power generator running on methanol. The Fraunhofer Institute for Solar Energy Systems (ISE) for the first time presented a laptop running on the power coming from a fuel cell fully integrated in the battery compartment. This is the result of a two-year cooperation with the Korean electronics company LG.

An interesting feature this year was to which extent the various utilities included hydrogen and especially fuel cells in the presentation on their own stands in the same hall. From EnBW down even to Ruhrkohle (the company running the coal mines in the Ruhr area) they made PR with their relevant projects. 

Just as last year BMW sends its hydrogen cars across the globe. The BMW CleanEnergy World Tour 2002 started on 19. March in California's capital Sacramento. The objective of the tour is to create further partnerships in the work for the introduction of hydrogen fuel. This is not a job for future generations, as Christoph Huss, responsible for science and traffic policy at BMW Group, put it: „When we take serious the challenge of sustainable use of resources, autonomous energy supply, and reduction of the greenhouse emissions, the time is now to make preparations for the availability of hydrogen for transport purposes. Only then can we expect an implementation in the next decade.“ Last year BMW transferred a part of its hydrogen fleet to California. The cars have now run more than 25.000 km without problem under very different conditions. The total distance covered by the fleet is now 170.000 km worldwide. (BMW press release of 25. March 2002)

During an event at the Science Museum in London the future BMW head Helmut Panke made favorable remarks about the renewable energy potential of the UK. The dutch-british energy company BP supports BMW's work. BP will start the operation of the first hydrogen filling station in London in 2003. (BMW press release of 18. April 2002)

An isolated system in the true meaning of the word was shown by the Norwegian company Norsk Hydro Electrolysers on the Hannover Fair. Utsira, an island off the Norwegian west coast with the country's smallest community (250 inhabitants) will soon get a wind power plant. In order to accommodate for the differences between demand and supply an electrolyser and a fuel cell will be installed. Except for power generation the hydrogen can be used as fuel for the cars on the island and for the ferry to the mainland. The inhabitants like the idea. 

Next year Toyota will start to sell the first hydrogen cars. Tokyo Shimbun reports that the offer will be restricted to the Tokyo region because the necessary filling stations will be available there then. The range will be about 250 km, the price around 75 k$.

(Calstart, 26. February 2002)

Honda as well will bring a serial fuel cell car to the market next year. The company says that the fuel cell prototype FCX-V4 got the road permission for test purposes from the Japanese ministry for environment and transport. As a partner in the „California Fuel Cell Partnership“ Honda tests the prototype also on US roads. 

(Verkehrsbrief, 12. March 2002)

From 2005 the first emission free passenger ferry of the world will circulate between San Francisco and Treasure Island. The Water Transit Authority and the city work together in the project. 

(San Francisco Chronicle, 2. March 2002)

The world's greatest hydrogen storage may be below our feet. NASA studies revealed a so far unknown reaction mechanism which becomes relevant under the conditions given when molten rock cools down. The upper 20 km of the earth crust might harbor a virtually inexhaustible hydrogen supply. Under favorable conditions up to 1000 l of gas could be in every m³ of rock. Quite unclear, however, is whether or not it would bring an energetical, ecological, and economical benefit to fetch it. This would mean to get down to depths the oil explorers never reached. Certain regions, however, might offer deposits which could be tapped economically. 

(bild der wissenschaft newsticker, 5. April 2002)

EnBW, an important south west German utility, intends to install 25 fuel cell plants before the end of this year and 55 to the end of 2004. Now the company looked for home owners willing to have such a device installed in their basement. Since the fuel cell is not yet a serial product but a non-commercial pre-serial device EnBW will operate, control and maintain them. The customer gets heat for his rooms and his warm water from EnBW by means of the fuel cell device.

(EnBW press release of 27. February 2002)

Austria's first fuel cell heating started operation on 1. March in the Technology Center Salzkammergut at Attnang-Puchheim. It is a solid oxide device from Sulzer Hexis. The cell operation is part of the research work of two utilities, Energie AG Oberoesterreich (EAG) and Oberoesterreichische Ferngas AG. Both companies will invest 0,5 M€ in the market development in the next two years.

(Salzburger Nachrichten, 2. March 2002)

The project of a fuel cell plant with 1 MW electrical output on the power plant ground at Marbach will suffer a delay of at least one year. The original plan for the start of operation was autumn 2003. But on the market for microturbines no type could be found which meets the technical and commercial requirements. It has to be developed now. The turbine is necessary to run the Siemens-Westinghouse solid oxide fuel cell with enhanced gas pressure and so to raise the electrical efficiency of the whole system to about 60 %.

(EnBW press release of 4. March 2002)

About 2700 emergency power units with a total output of 750 MW are distributed all over Germany in order to keep telephone and internet running even if there is a problem with the normal power grid. All of them are Diesel aggregates. DeTe Immobilien, the real estate subsidiary of Deutsche Telekom, will replace the Diesels by fuel cell in the long run. A first plant of this type will start its operation in September in Munich. It is a molten carbonate cell from MTU with 250 kW. A particularly high efficiency will be achieved by cogeneration. „We have long term plans for the use of about 100 fuel cells, which would save a total of 60.000 tons CO₂“, said the company. The project is funded at 50 % by the federal ministry for economy.

(Sueddeutsche Zeitung, 8. March 2002)

At the Hannover Fair Sulzer Hexis and Aral presented their plans to develop a fuel cell running on oil. The new technology will thus be beneficial for home owners who do not have access to the natural gas grid. A company spokesman said that the first prototype will be ready by summer this year to undergo an extended test phase.

(Aral press release of 16. April 2002)

The Railroad Commission of the Texan Alternative Fuels Research and Education Division (AFRED) develops a home fuel cell running on propane (LPG) under a contract with the US department of energy (DoE). DoE supports the work with 500 k$ for three years. The result will be two LPG reformers which can be fitted in PEM plants with an output between 5 and 10 kW_el. A study phase of one year will follow.

(Earth Vision Environmental News, 12. March 2002)

RWE, a major German utility, has now established a company named RWE Fuel Cells GmbH with seat at Essen which comprises the former cell project of the company. The new company will coordinate and direct the whole fuel cell business of the RWE group. This includes development and marketing of products, systems, and services on the basis of fuel cells. 

(RWE press release of 13. March 2002)

Hydrogenics from Canada and Enkat GmbH (Gelsenkirchen, Germany) have founded a joint company named Hydrogenics Europe GmbH. The first task will be to extend the development and production capacities already existing at Gelsenkirchen. The objective is to produce complete fuel cell systems or to adapt them to the European market, respectively, provided the market conditions are accordingly. 

(Press release of the ministry of economy of North Rhine-Westphalia of 17. April 2002)

Japan will change to rules applicable to fuel cells in order to promote the technology. So far fuel cells can only be used under the rules for commercial plants, which brings about a considerable technical and administrative effort. Analogously to the development for solar devices fuel cells will now at least partly be exempted from these requirements. Prime minister Junichiro Koizumi told the parliament that in three years from now he wants to see fuel cells in stationary operation. The simplification is to promote this without lowering the safety level. 

(EarthVision Environmental News, 26. February 2002)

Tropical rain forests are no sink for CO₂. Scientists from the USA and Brazil found that the numerous rivers and inundation areas of the rain forests release three times more of it into the atmosphere than they thought so far. The carbon balance of the rain forests is therefore balanced: they absorb as much CO₂ as they release.

(J. E. Richey u. a., Nature 416 (2002) 617-20)

The group of Alliance 90/The Greens in the German federal parliament hosted a meeting under the topic "From oil to solar hydrogen — world energy politics for tomorrow" on 1. and 2. March at Berlin. Among the participants from the Green party were foreign minister „Joschka“ Fischer, federal environment minister Juergen Trittin, parliamentary group heads Rezzo Schlauch and Kerstin Mueller, energy expert Michaele Hustedt, transport expert Albert Schmidt, and research expert Josef Fell. Among the guests was Klaus Toepfer, head of the UN environment program.

Minister Fischer said that the connection between energy and development is only too clear. The climate change is real. Most of the emissions come from the industrialized countries of the North. Energy, like the access to oil and natural gas, are already a key element of international conflicts. Fischer said: „In my eyes the energy problem is the archimedical point.“ The decision between conventional and nuclear energy on the one hand and sustainable energy on the other will be „the pivotal topic which we will have to deal with in the years to come, nationally, in Europe, but above all internationally.“ The objective is to make energy free from carbon. The strategy for the way to this end comprises four elements:

1. preference for fuels which are associated with low carbon emissions,

2. raising the energy efficiency,

3. raising the percentage of renewable energies,

4. installing the infrastructure for hydrogen as energy carrier.

Fischer about hydrogen: „The vision of using hydrogen energy promises a true revolution. ... We are only at the beginning of what I hope to be a hydrogen era. ... We must make the right decisions nationally and internationally.“

Klaus Toepfer as well put the matter in the global context. He said that between 80 and 90 % of all environment problems of the world are directly or indirectly associated with generation, transport, use, or disposal of energy. The lever for the solution of the problem in his eyes is demand, not supply. He as well sees hydrogen as the energy of the future, in particular solar hydrogen. It depends on the primary energy. All processes for the hydrogen generation (biomass, nuclear etc.) will have to be taken in account, not only solar energy.