The California Air Resources Board today unveiled Advanced Clean Car Regulations aimed at reducing smog causing emissions and addressing concerns about global warming. Somehow the ARB has concluded, in at least one scenario, that about 35% of of light duty vehicle in 2040 will be hydrogen fuel cell cars. And when more than 10,000 of these cars are sold in an air basin the Clean Fuels Outlet regulation will require the construction of hydrogen fueling stations. But don’t worry, “Staff projects that, with high station utilization, fuel providers will be able to sell hydrogen at an affordable price and realize a return on their investment within three to four years.”
In contrast, Exxon Mobil’s 2012 The Outlook for Energy: A View to 2040, doesn’t even mention hydrogen fuel cell cars playing a part in 2040.
The ARB apparently still remembers Governor Schwarzenegger’s Hydrogen Highway vision. No one else seems to.