noteworthy wrote:
] "They make a nice story, but they're not a good business
] story yet because the value is lower than their costs," said
] Nissan Chief Executive Carlos Ghosn.
]
] He also poured cold water on hydrogen fuel cell vehicles,
] which many automakers see as the industry's next big
] technological breakthrough.
]
] "The cost to build one fuel cell car is about $800,000. Do the
] math and you figure out that we will have to reduce the cost
] of that car by more than 95 percent in order to gain
] widespread marketplace acceptance."
]
]
] Did you know that Nissan is actually owned (partially, but
] substantially) by Renault?

If this CEO isn't a glaring example of why corporations shouldn't run the gov't, I don't know who is. He's concerned more with his fucking bottom line than changing the gluttonous mindset of industrialized nations. Oil is not forever. Period. It doesn't take a genius to disern that we had better start looking farther down the line than just the next payback period. And, his facts are wrong -- a hydrogen fuel system adds $10k to $100k to a car's MSRP, which, while high, is nowhere near $800,000.

I've read the SAE report that says to implement just 10% of the hydrogen fuel transport infrastructure would cost $4B and God knows how much PR. Hell, I'm as pessimistic as the next guy about the hydrogen economy. Mr. Ghosn, however, is just plain talking out of his ass.

Source:
http://www.arlingtoninstitute.org/library/Appendix%20G-End.pdf