nozferatu said:
Pegasus said:
TonyWilliams said:
The change to 300% more credit for a hydrogen ZEV over a battery one...
Wait, WHAT?! I'd like to hear the lawmakers' explanation for that! It doesn't make any physical sense at all, between zero local emissions being, you know, zero (so each should get the same credit,) and the fact that it takes more energy to make hydrogen than to charge a battery (so an H2 car should get _less_ of a credit than a battery one, if they want to split hairs.)
It's a tactic they use nothing more. It doesn't mean EV's will go away.
EV's have never "gone away"... they've been here since before oil burning cars, and before the first public USA gasoline station in 1913.
But, the 300% credit advantage does mean that Honda, Toyota and Hyundai absolutely won't be selling battery electric cars in the USA. The "tactic" for CARB is to incentivize hydrogen cars over battery electric ones (that Toyota calls only good for the "last mile" solution to travel).
The state has also committed about $100 million to build state taxpayer funded hydrogen refueling facilities (see attached email that I got yesterday). You can guess how much they will spend on a California statewide fast charging network.
Anybody who thinks GM and German car makers aren't looking at these latest developments in hydrogen as a potentially cheaper method to comply with CARB is fooling themselves. That doesn't mean that's what will happen (beyond the obvious Toyota, Honda and Hyundai), but when 2018 rolls around, the screws get much tighter for CARB-ZEV compliance. We will see which way the pressure squeezes.
News Release
For Immediate Release
July 31, 2014
Media Contacts:
Teresa Schilling, Energy Commission, (916) 654-4989
Dave Clegern, Air Resources Board, (916) 322-2990
Brook Taylor, GO-Biz, (916) 322-0667
California Agencies Roll Out Red Carpet for Hydrogen Electric Vehicles
State partnerships accelerate the transition to zero-emission vehicles
Sacramento - California state agencies are collaborating on a range of initiatives to support the goal of 1.5 million zero-emission vehicles on the road by 2025. [http://opr.ca.gov/docs/Governor's_Office_ZEV_Action_Plan_(02-13).pdf]
Last week, the California Energy Commission [http://www.energy.ca.gov] carried out one of these initiatives, voting to use nearly $50 million to put in place 28 new, public hydrogen refueling stations and one mobile refueler by the end of 2015. The move was one of several actions designed to help achieve a key goal of the state's zero-emission vehicle (ZEV) plan: to accelerate construction of hydrogen refueling infrastructure across the state.
"California is rolling out the carpet for Californians who choose these ultra-clean hydrogen powered electric cars and for the companies that make them," said Air Resources Board Chairman Mary D. Nichols. [http://www.arb.ca.gov/homepage.htm] "These private-public partnerships to build dozens of hydrogen fueling stations set the stage for hydrogen fuel cell electric cars to become commonplace on our streets and provide a new generation of long-range zero-emission vehicles for California consumers."
"Making the transition to cleaner, lower polluting near-zero and zero-emission vehicles is a critical component to addressing California's clean air and climate challenges. The transportation sector accounts for about 40 percent of the state's greenhouse gas emissions," said Commissioner Janea A. Scott, the Energy Commission's lead commissioner on transportation. "We are pleased to be part of this state collaboration and will continue to work diligently on standing up hydrogen fuel cells and other electric vehicle technologies."
