Opening of the first hydrogen filling station in Norway - HyNor Stavanger

Minister of Transport and Communications Liv Signe Navarsete

23. Aug 2006

I would like to express my thanks to the project partners of HyNor Stavanger for inviting me here today - I am honoured to take part in the opening ceremony of the first hydrogen filling station in Norway.

I would like to start out by commending all the partners involved in the project HyNor Stavanger. In my opinion, this represents an outstanding example of partnership and cooperation between public authorities, organisations, research entities and businesses.

The political platform of the Norwegian Government states the firm objective of developing and increasing the use of environmentally friendly vehicles. This entails supporting the development of alternative fuels, as well as introducing policies that will favour low emission vehicles.

This Government has introduced a temporary exemption of taxes for vehicles with combustion engines using hydrogen as fuel, or hybrids using hydrogen and electricity. The exemption has been implemented as of July 1st this year. Our ambition is to gain experience from this measure in terms of handling hydrogen as a fuel.

Last year, the Norwegian authorities launched a new strategy, in which all hydrogen related activities were to be administered and financed based on a common platform. The activities include research and demonstration projects, development of safety standards, regulatory framework etc. The new strategy involves all aspects of the hydrogen chain; production, storage and use of hydrogen serving stationary purposes as well as within the transport sector.

The Norwegian Research Council has the main responsibility for carrying out this strategy. One of the current research programmes established is the “Clean Energy System of the Future” (RENERGI). In 2006, the Ministry of Transport and Communications allocates 155 mill NOK to development and demonstration projects within the transport sector, focusing on hydrogen, fuelcell technology and biofuels. A substantial part of this funding is allocated to the HyNor projects.

The Government is not occupied solely with hydrogen as an alternative fuel for the future. We also emphasise the promotion of biofuels and the use of cleaner vehicles in order to reduce CO2 emissions. The government is considering a proposal which recommends oil companies meeting a requirement that a certain percentage of the companies´ total trade of fuels consists of biofuels. Our reason for promoting biofuels lies in the prospect of a stricter climate policy in the long term, and the possibility of developing various industries within the sectors of forestry, agriculture and fuel-production.

I firmly believe that the Government´s involvement in these projects is an investment in the future. This might be especially true when it comes to projects concerning hydrogen. Experts have stated that hydrogen cannot play a main role in meeting the Kyoto commitments for the period 2008-2012, but would represent a good climate-friendly solution in the long term.

We need to experiment further in order to develop hydrogen related technologies and hydrogen as an energy carrier. We need the car-manufacturers to offer vehicles to the consumers at an affordable price. These vehicles need to be approved, maintained, repaired and insured. The fuel needs to be easily available to the consumer, distributed and safely stored. We need standards and regulations.

We also need to cooperate and exchange experiences across borders. Subsequently, I am very pleased that HyNor in Norway has formed an official partnership with Scandinavian partners involved in related projects in Denmark and Sweden.

I can assure you that I will follow the development of the HyNor Project and the Scandinavian Hydrogen Higway Partnership closely in the years to come. I will be eagerly awaiting the valuable experiences a demonstration project of this magnitude will, hopefully, accomplish.

Thank you – and I wish you and the project the best of luck!