As the most comprehensive resource available for those involved in technology-based economic development, SSTI offers the services that are needed to help build tech-based economies. Learn more about membership...
Freedom CAR Sheds Light on Fuel Cell Technology
Against a backdrop of futuristic vehicles at the Detroit Auto Show on Wednesday, Secretary of Energy Spencer Abraham and executives of Ford, General Motors and DaimlerChrysler announced a new cooperative automotive research partnership between the U.S. Department of Energy and the U.S. Council for Automotive Research (USCAR).
Under the new program, Freedom CAR (Cooperative Automotive Research), the government and the private sector will fund research into advanced, efficient fuel cell technology, which uses hydrogen to power automobiles without creating pollution.
A part of the President's National Energy Plan, Freedom CAR is intended to promote the development of hydrogen as a primary fuel for cars and trucks and help reduce U.S. dependence on foreign oil. America's transportation sector presently is 95 percent dependent on petroleum, with transportation consuming 67 percent of the petroleum used in the U.S.
The long-term results of the cooperative effort, Abraham said, will be cars and trucks that are more efficient, cheaper to operate, pollution-free and competitive in the showroom.
Freedom CAR replaces the Partnership for a New Generation of Vehicles (PNGV) program begun in 1993 under the Clinton administration. Abraham's remarks and a fact sheet on Freedom CAR is available at: http://www.energy.gov/HQPress/releases02/janpr/pr02001.htm