“While national and international hydrogen attention is largely focused on transforming the personal vehicle, much of the public is likely to first experience quiet, zero-emission, fuel cell buses,” said NHA President Jeff Serfass. “We are very proud that so many of our members are leading the way in implementing the use of hydrogen in the public transportation market.”

The NHA members include Ballard Power Systems, Daimler-Chrysler, GE Research, Hydrogenics, ISE Corporation, New York Power Authority (NYPA), Nuvera Fuel Cells, Shell Hydrogen, South Carolina Research Authority (SCRA), University of South Carolina (USC), and UTC Power. In addition, NHA Affiliate Weststart/CALSTART was selected by the FTA to receive a share of the funding.

“The expansion and use of fuel cell and hydrogen technology is a necessary and innovative step to significantly reduce dependency on foreign oil,” remarked Representative Bono during the announcement. “Americans and Congress must continue to support legislation that strengthens any efforts to diversify our nation’s energy portfolio.”

The individual projects represent a wide variety of fuel cell bus research and demonstration projects in Alabama, South Carolina, Connecticut, Washington DC, and California. NHA members Ballard, ISE Corp, Shell Hydrogen, and UTC Power have teamed with the Washington Metro Area Transit Authority which was granted $8.4 Million for advanced bus development and in-service evaluation of hybrid fuel cell buses. USC and SCRA have a $5.67 million project that will bring the first fuel cell bus to South Carolina in time for the NHA’s Annual Hydrogen Conference, which will be held in Columbia, SC in 2009. Other NHA member projects include GE and NYPA’s lightweight fuel cell hybrid bus; a fuel cell bus fleet in Massachucetts with Nuvera Fuel Cells; DaimlerChrylser and Hydrogenics’ compound fuel cell hybrid bus in San Francisco; and an ISE Corp/ UTC Power collaboration which will design and demonstrate a 40-foot fuel cell bus for use in hot desert climates.

About the National Hydrogen Association: The National Hydrogen Association (NHA) is the Nation’s premier hydrogen trade organization led by over 100 companies dedicated to supporting the transition to hydrogen. Efforts are focused on education and outreach, policy, safety and codes and standards. Since 1989, the NHA has served as a catalyst for information exchange and cooperative projects and continues to provide the setting for mutual support among industry, research and government organizations. http://www.hydrogenassociation.org