The California Fuel Cell Partnership (CaFCP) laid out the next steps in creating a hydrogen super highway for the state in the next five years in a recent publication. The group’s report, Hydrogen Fuel Cell Vehicle and Station Deployment Plan: A Strategy for Meeting the Challenge Ahead, asks what infrastructure is needed to power 4,300 hydrogen cars and 20 fuel-cell buses by 2014. The answer is a $180 million push for new stations to open outside of the Los Angeles and San Francisco metro areas. CaFCP’s idea for additional stations would require $120 million in state and federal funding along with $60 million in funding from corporate partners.
CaFCP proposes the creation of an additional 46 public hydrogen stations by 2014 with 40 stations created in the next three years. The report offers a solution to the concentration of hydrogen stations in Los Angeles and San Francisco called “hydrogen communities.” By adding hydrogen refueling spots in Torrance, Newport, Irvine and Santa Monica, the state would encourage automakers like Honda to expand their production runs. CaFCP wants to fund connector stations between these cities to encourage commuters and busy professionals to travel long distances on hydrogen.
California’s hydrogen refueling infrastructure may be substantial compared to other states but it has a long way to go. The state has a network of 26 refueling stations but only six of these stations are available to the public. A majority of hydrogen refueling stations currently operating in California are used for commercial fleets and prototype testing. CaFCP’s plan would turn the tides away from private hydrogen stations to public refueling spots on a short timetable.
While CaFCP certainly wrote this report based on its sole mandate to promote fuel cells, the partnership’s organizers had their eyes on the case of the Honda FX Clarity. The Japanese automaker has restricted leasing of its FX Clarity fuel-cell vehicle to drivers in southern California due to infrastructure limits. While a handful of Clarity SUVs have hit California streets since fall 2008, Honda only plans to lease 200 units in California by 2012. In addition to helping Honda and other automakers expand their leasing programs, CaFCP’s hydrogen road map would help FX Clarity drivers paying $600 a month take trips to northern California and points beyond.
