Stavanger, Norway – Six months of road testing in Berlin have shown that GM/Opel fuel cell cars are reliable and that the future of hydrogen mobility is viable, the company said at the Electric Vehicle Symposium 24. The symposium is the world’s premier conference on electric drive technologies.

The company has tested ten of its HydroGen4 vehicles since December 2008 in Berlin, with eight of them in the hands of companies that use them in daily real-world use.

“The feedback from drivers about the HydroGen4 and its refuelling has been highly encouraging,” said Dr. Lars Peter Thiesen, manager of hydrogen and fuel cell deployment strategy for GM/Opel in Europe. “The vehicles have been very reliable, proving in principle the viability of hydrogen technology and fuel cell vehicles. Clearly, the HydroGen4 is a forerunner to environmentally friendly hydrogen-based transportation.”

The ten vehicles are Opel’s contribution to the Clean Energy Partnership, funded by the German Federal Ministry for Transport, Building and Urban Development, which aims to prove the sustainability of hydrogen as a vehicle fuel.