The Gas Co. and General Motors opened a service center on Kamakee Street on Thursday that will be used to support a fleet of prototype GM hydrogen fuel cell vehicles that are being tested on Oahu.
The center, complete with two service bays and a hydrogen fueling station, will be used to service 16 hydrogen-powered Chevrolet Equinox SUVs on loan to the military as part of a recently launched pilot project.
General Motors will continue testing its fuel cell technology in Hawaii and elsewhere with prototype vehicles before commercializing the technology, which it expects to do sometime in 2015 or 2016, said Charles Freese, executive director of GM Fuel Cell Activities.
"This technology is just in its infancy. It hasn’t been put into production yet anywhere in the world," he said.
As fuel cell vehicles gain popularity, The Gas Co. hopes to be major supplier of the hydrogen, which it generates as part of its production of synthetic natural gas.
The utility could deliver the hydrogen to fueling stations on Oahu via the company’s network of 1,000 miles of underground pipelines on the island. Hydrogen could be delivered to the neighbor islands in tanks.
"Today marks another milestone in Hawaii’s diversified energy portfolio," said Jeffrey Kissel, president and chief executive officer of The Gas Co.
"With this facility and The Gas Co.’s ability to produce enough hydrogen to power the equivalent of up to 10,000 vehicles annually, we will be promoting a greener and more sustainable transportation solution that further reduces our petroleum dependency."
GM officials said the company’s long-term plan is to work with 25 of the 170 gas stations on Oahu to sell hydrogen delivered via the The Gas Co. lines.
Hydrogen also can be extracted from water using electrolysis.
The military uses the process to generate hydrogen at a solar-powered facility at Joint Base Pearl Harbor-Hickam.
Although there is no pricing for hydrogen at the consumer level, Freese said he believes it could be made available to motorists for $2 to $3 a kilogram, or the equivalent of gasoline at a price of $1.50 a gallon.
