We will all be driving electric cars soon, but will they be battery-powered? All of them? Some manufacturers, such as Toyota and Hyundai, believe that at least some of our cars and trucks should be powered by hydrogen fuel cells. And while they still are very expensive, they are rapidly becoming cheaper.
Hyundai is celebrating that sales of its FCEV Nexo in Europe have surpassed 1,000 units since the start of production in 2018. One thousand doesn’t sound that many, especially in comparison with conventionally-powered cars. However, for hydrogen-powered cars these numbers are amazing. And they might get better.
Autocar reported that Hyundai’s fuel cell centre head Sae Hoon Kim remembers how expensive fuel cells used to be. Kim said that back when Hyundai started experimenting with FCEVs in 2013, fuel cells cost three times as much as his house in Seoul. And that’s an unbelievable about of money – real estate in South Korea’s capital city is very pricey. However, the principle of economy at scale works. In 2006 manufacturers slashed the price of fuel cells by half. And in 2013 Hyundai Tucson FCEV the price of the fuel cell was just around 10% of the 2003 system.
And that’s encouraging. Hyundai is one of the rare car manufacturers who still believe in the future of hydrogen cars. The problem is that the infrastructure is not ready – do you even know where you would find a hydrogen fuel station? Where would you fill up your tanks? These fuel stations are few are far between. But what should come first? People are afraid of buying FCEVs because the infrastructure is not ready. And infrastructure is not being developed because the demand is really small.
This should change. Hyundai expects to sell more than 110,000 passenger and commercial FCEVs globally every year by 2025. Korean industrial giant is also looking for ways to popularize hydrogen as fuel by 2040. Hydrogen is often criticized because its production is particularly energy-hungry. However, it can be produced using renewable energy, when the demand for electricity is low.
The good thing about hydrogen fuel cell cars is that they are electric – they just make their own electricity. Therefore, they can enjoy all the same benefits of electric cars – silence, great torque and, of course, zero emissions. Well, almost – FCEVs emit a little bit of pure water. And while charging a battery can take from 30 minutes to several hours, filling up hydrogen tanks doesn’t take longer than filling up a petrol or diesel car.
Would you drive a hydrogen car? Or do you think a more efficient battery-electric car would be preferred? Regardless, it is interesting to see that fuel cells are becoming cheaper and car manufacturers are not giving up on this idea.
Source: Hyundai