India will be among the very few countries in the World to use the metal hydrates commercially, Mr Singh told a press conference here.

He said a pilot project for rolling out 50 such pollution free two and three wheelers is currently on at a research centre in Banaras in Uttar Pradesh..

The experimental one-person craft, being built by US aerospace company Boeing, will rely entirely on a 25-kilowatt fuel cell for propulsion once airborne. The fuel cells will provide electrical power for propeller motors. However, the aircraft will need to use batteries to accelerate to the required speed during take off.

The device, mounted on the driver's side of the truck, funnels reformulated methanol fuel through a series of fuel cells to generate 5 kilowatts of electricity -- enough to power the microwave, air conditioner, stereo, computer and lights inside a stationary Freightliner cab and sleeper. It also could run Overstreet's refrigerated trailer. 

Japan's biggest automaker said its recent agreements with the local governments, Iwatani International Corp., Nippon Oil Corp., Tokyo Gas Co. and Toho Gas Co., mark the first lease ever of fuel-cell vehicles in Japan to local governments or private companies. 

The cars will be delivered May 29, Toyota officials said. 

Some automotive engineers and analysts worry that platinum is too expensive and too rare for fuel cells to be produced in the numbers needed for the technology to be a viable alternative to the internal combustion engine.

"We have a perception problem," says Marcus Nurdin, managing director of the International Platinum Association, based in Frankfurt, Germany.

The f-cell Forum is designed to address the topic of fuel cells in Europe and worldwide, and the focus of this year's event is an assessment of current fuel cell activities and future markets.

A new class of materials achieves that aim without the problems associated with other approaches, researchers report in the May 16 issue of the journal Science. Their work also points to ways of making the materials hold even more hydrogen. 
 

Global said Thursday it "intends to fully reply to Enbridge's motion" in Court of Queen's Bench. 

The three-day, 400-mile fuel-cell car demonstration through one of the worst smog belts in the country started in West Sacramento, headquarters of the California Fuel Cell Partnership, a research and promotional collaboration of carmakers, energy companies and government regulators.

The partnership sponsored the "rally through the valley" to show just how far the latest fuel-cell prototypes can go.

"This is the science of the future," said Winston Hickox, head of the California Environmental Protection Agency.

Beginning in November, United Parcel Service Inc. will operate a small fleet of fuel cell-powered vehicles on daily runs to test the experimental power source's performance during heavy stop-and-go driving in a busy metropolitan area.

The DTI has stressed that the creation of the vision will require the full engagement of industry, Government and the research community, as well as the DTI-funded industry body, Fuel Cells UK, which was launched in May 2003.

The Government plans to launch its fuel cell vision at the Grove Fuel Cell Symposium in September 2003.

In the interim, by means of a series of workshops and meetings, Fuel Cells UK will develop the vision for the fuel cell sector through consultation with industry in June, July and August 2003.

The report also invites relevant comments and input to Fuel Cells UK