THE WORLD'S FIRST HYDROGEN ECONOMY

Iceland has taken the first ambitious steps towards becoming the world's first hydrogen-powered economy. The first non polluting buses are already being tested on the streets of Reykjavik, fuel-cell driven cars are to follow. In time the all-important fishing fleet will also be powered by hydrogen power and then Iceland can say goodbye to the world's dwindling oil resources.

Reykjavik means "Smoky Bay" which was the name the Vikings gave the present capital, because of all its steamy hot springs. As late as in 1940 Reykjavik was remembered by visitors mostly for its grimy grey sky, thanks to all the coal that was burned to heat the houses.

Today the sky is blue and and you don't see any hot springs close to the capital because they have all been harnessed to provide heating for the 130 000 private residences in Reykjavik. The electricity comes from similarly clean hydro power. Of the total energy consumption in Iceland, 67% is based on sustainable energy.

Now the country wants to do something about the remaining 33% and that's where fuel cells are considered to be the solution.

As fossil and nuclear fuel reserves are becoming increasingly scarce, the world is looking to alternative energy sources. Hydrogen happens to be plentiful and is expected to become one of the most important power supplies in the future. All that is required to make hydrogen is electricity and water, electricity being used to split hydrogen from a water molecule.

Most often the hydrogen is then liquefied and fed to fuel cells. This is a relatively simple procedure, but what has been holding back mass production has been the high cost and the difficulty with storage. Experts expect these problems to be solved within the next decade, making hydrogen-powered vehicles more attractive, not only because of tougher emission controls, but also for their price competitiveness. The main advantage is obvious: hydrogen's only by-product is water. While gasoline engines produce massive amounts of greenhouse gas, carbon dioxide, nitrogen oxides, and acid rain, hydrogendriven motors actually clean the air they pass through. An added plus is that vehicle efficiency can be improved by 50 per cent.

Hydrogen fuel cells can produce electricity for a wide variety of uses, from small designs to applications fit for huge plants. Last year the Icelandic eco-energy consortium Vistorka signed an ambitious deal with Daimler Chrysler, Norsk Hydro and the Royal Dutch/Shell Group to set up the joint venture Icelandic Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Company. The company will test and explore various applications using hydrogen or hydrogen carriers with fuel cells.

Daimler Chrysler and its partner, the Canadian fuel-cell designer Ballard Power Systems already have a vast knowledge in fuel-cell powered vehicles and the company plans to mass market the zero emission NECAR-4 prototype within five to ten years. Iceland has many advantages that makes it an ideal "school example" of a country switching to a hydrogen economy. In proportion to its population of 280 000, Iceland possesses abundant energy resources. Only about 15 percent of its harnessable hydroelectric power has been used (compared to 7090 for Sweden). Only 1 percent of its geothermal power is used.

Iceland has already been producing hydrogen at the Icelandic Fertilizer Plant for almost 50 years, enough to power all the capital's buses. The country's many aluminum and iron smelters that today emit 618 000 tons of CO and COZ annually could instead mix the emissions with hydrogen to produce 450 000 tons of methanol that in turn could be sold in any gas station thus replacing 60 percent of imports. That is also a 55 percent cut in greenhouse gas emissions. Half a century ago Iceland replaced oil and coal with geo-thermal- and hydroelectric power for household use. Now it will provide an ideal testing ground for a massive conversion to hydrogen and, by being first, it could eventually become a net exporter of hydrogen power.

Scandinavian Press, Issue 3, 2000