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April 06, 2005
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First Fuel-Cell Cars in Canada hit B.C. Streets


Ford Focus Fuel-Cell Vehicle, Dr. Gerhard Schmidt, Vice-President, Research and Advanced Engineering (right)

Photos: Ford

VANCOUVER — Five fuel-cell cars powered by hydrogen instead of gasoline were delivered by Dr. Gerhard Schmidt, Vice-President, Research and Advanced Engineering, Ford Motor Company, and Joe Hinrichs, President and CEO of Ford of Canada, to the Vancouver Fuel Cell Vehicle Program (VFCVP) today, moving Canada closer to a cleaner-energy future.

Ford of Canada handed five sets of keys to the Government of Canada, launching this first-of-its-kind demonstration program, which encompasses three years of a five-year initiative.

"Using hydrogen and fuel-cell technologies is a key part of bringing down greenhouse gas emissions and addressing climate change. I’m proud that the Government of Canada is part of projects such as this and that we’ve supported these innovative technologies for nearly two decades," said the Honourable R. John Efford, Minister of Natural Resources Canada. "By working together, we can make sure Canada continues to be known as a world leader in putting these technologies on the road."

  

The Government of Canada has invested $4.5 million in this project. The partners in this program — the Government of Canada, Ford Motor Company/Ford of Canada, Fuel Cells Canada and the Government of British Columbia — will collaborate on this five-year, $9-million program.

BC Hydro, B.C. Transit, Ballard Power Systems, the City of Vancouver, Fuel Cells Canada, the National Research Council (NRC), Natural Resources Canada and the Government of British Columbia will use the state-of-the-art Ford Focus Fuel Cell Vehicles (FCVs) in real daily driving conditions as part of a three-year hydrogen fuel technology demonstration program.

The Government of British Columbia strongly supports the VFCVP program as part of its commitment to promoting clean and renewable alternative energy sources and assisting in the growth of B.C.’s technology industries. This is one of a number of hydrogen-related programs targeted for implementation before the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games in Vancouver and Whistler.

"This project highlights British Columbia’s leadership in the development of hydrogen and fuel-cell technologies, and builds on our commitment to have the world’s first hydrogen highway developed in time for the 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Games," said the Honourable Richard Neufeld, British Columbia’s Minister of Energy and Mines. "B.C.’s 2002 Energy Plan lays out a path for future energy use and production, with a key focus on alternative energy, including hydrogen fuel cells, which will ensure environmental sustainability — one of our key goals for the next decade."

The VFCVP is managed by Fuel Cells Canada (FCC), which is headquartered at the NRC Institute for Fuel Cell Innovation, where the VFCVP vehicles will be maintained and refuelled.

(April 01, 2005)

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