Why GM Pulled The Plug On Hydrogen
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Why GM Pulled The Plug On Hydrogen
"After all, there aren't many powertrain options out there that spit out water as a byproduct rather than hydrocarbon pollutants. But there are many barriers to adoptionprice, reliable access to fueling stations and technical maturity, just to name a few obstacles. The headaches the electric-vehicle space has are minuscule in comparison. It should come as no surprise that many automakers are calling quits on the techat least for now."
"GM is finally admitting that hydrogen cars aren't going mainstream anytime soon. The automaker announced on Friday that it's officially pulling the plug on its next-generation hydrogen fuel cell, citing high costs, infrastructure and what it politely calls a "long and uncertain" path to a sustainable business model. The scrapped plan for the Hydrotec-branded cell for vehicles includes axing a $55 million joint venture production facility that was set to be stood up in Detroit, which means cancelling a planned 140 new jobs."
"It's not a total breakup, though. GM says that it will continue to work with Honda on hydrogen for commercial applications (think power generation for data centers), but leaves out any mention of vehicle development. This tracks with Honda's announcement from March that it developed its own next-gen fuel cell, which reportedly generates around twice as much power as the outgoing FCX unit co-developed with GM."
Hydrogen fuel-cell power produces water instead of hydrocarbon pollutants but faces steep barriers. Major obstacles include high cost, limited fueling infrastructure and immature technology. These challenges have prompted many automakers to pause or abandon passenger hydrogen programs. General Motors canceled its next-generation Hydrotec hydrogen fuel-cell program, citing high costs, infrastructure issues and an uncertain path to a sustainable business model. GM also scrapped a planned $55 million joint-venture production facility in Detroit and canceled about 140 planned jobs. GM will continue collaborating with Honda on commercial hydrogen applications while Honda has developed a higher-power next-generation fuel cell.
Read at insideevs.com
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