Petro-Canada Jumps on Fuel-Cell Bandwagon: A Shift in the Energy Industry

Strategic Insights -

Petro-Canada, a Canadian oil company, has formed a five-year alliance with Ballard Power Systems and Methanex, the world's largest methanol producer, to study the establishment of a commercially viable fuel distribution network for fuel-cell vehicles. This alliance marks a significant shift in the energy industry, as Petro-Canada has openly supported methanol as the initial fuel for fuel-cell vehicles, contrary to the preferences of international majors, which favor the use of gasoline. The agreement aims to develop a network to meet expected demand from fuel-cell vehicles, with the first commercial fuel-cell buses expected to hit the roads in 2002, followed by cars in 2004.

Key Takeaways:

  • Petro-Canada has formed a five-year alliance with Ballard Power Systems and Methanex to develop a commercially viable fuel distribution network for fuel-cell vehicles.
  • The alliance will involve a pilot project of one or more filling stations to test the distribution technology, initially in Vancouver, British Columbia.
  • Petro-Canada supports methanol as the initial fuel for fuel-cell vehicles, citing its technical simplicity for early vehicles.
  • The company plans to evolve into an energy supplier, rather than a gasoline supplier.
  • Other oil companies, such as Royal Dutch/Shell Group, Exxon Corp., Atlantic Richfield Co., and Texaco Inc., have formed similar alliances with auto companies, but have targeted gasoline as the preferred fuel.
  • Fuel-cell vehicles will use compressed hydrogen, methanol, or gasoline to create electricity chemically, without combustion or moving parts, and will produce few or no pollutants.

Statistics:

  • The alliance will involve a five-year partnership between Petro-Canada, Ballard Power Systems, and Methanex.
  • The first commercial fuel-cell buses are expected to hit the roads in 2002, with cars following in 2004.
  • Cancer-causing sulfur and aromatic compounds are currently present in gasoline and must be removed to make it suitable for fuel-cell vehicles.
  • Petro-Canada is one of the largest suppliers of natural gas in Canada.

Sources:

  • The Oil Daily (exact wording: "Petro-Canada has become the latest oil company to forge an alliance on fuel-cell vehicles...")
  • Petro-Canada communications director Robert Andras (exact wording: "Petro-Canada is, like Ballard, 'fuel neutral.'")