Oct 5 - Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News - James D. Mcwilliams The State, Columbia, S.C.

Savannah River National Laboratory now counts the world's top two automakers as partners in research on hydrogen fuel technology.

General Motors, No. 1, announced this week that it is cooperating with Savannah River National Laboratory to develop hydrogen-fuel technology for future automobiles.

GM is working with the lab to test a hydrogen-storage tank, spokeswoman Michelle Bunker said Tuesday. The automaker also is working on a second contract with the laboratory to develop hydrogen-storage materials, she said.

"I'm not able to say how much we're investing in the project," Bunker said, but she called the amount "significant."

Earlier this month, the Savannah laboratory said the world's No. 2 automaker, Toyota Motor Corp., was investing $1 million at the Savannah lab to develop a lighter-weight and cost-effective hydrogen fuel storage system.

G. Todd Wright, director of the lab, said Tuesday, without naming GM, that his institution had an agreement with a major U.S. automaker to do three years of hydrogen-fuel research for an amount of less than $1 million.

GM pursued hydrogen-fuel work with the Aiken lab at the Savannah River Site because of its years of experience with hydrogen technology, Bunker said.

"We're looking at being able to produce the first (hydrogen-fuel) vehicle ready to be sold to the public by 2010 -- realizing mass production probably won't be until years after, like 2015," Bunker said.

Successfully positioning South Carolina to compete in the hydrogen and fuel cell industries has huge economic implications for the state. By 2021, the industries are projected to generate more than $2.6 trillion.

"This is another sign the hydrogen initiative in South Carolina is gathering momentum and attention worldwide, U.S. Rep. Bob Inglis, R-S.C., said in a statement. "The research at Clemson University, the University of South Carolina and Savannah River Site means the state can lead in the hydrogen economy."

Other lawmakers gave thumbs-up reviews of prototype hydrogen vehicles during test drives Tuesday at the Engenuity '05 technology conference at the Columbia Metropolitan Convention Center.

"The car drives very well," U.S. Rep. Jim Clyburn, D-S.C., said after a spin in a blue GM minivan powered by hydrogen fuel cells. "It's very quiet. I was sitting in it trying to figure out when this thing would start."

The vehicle, a modified Opel Zafira built in Germany, starts silently when a driver turns the "ignition" -- which doesn't ignite anything, but instead starts a chemical reaction that produces electricity, explained test engineer Eric Roskey.

After the car starts, a radiator fan creates a soft, constant hum reminiscent of the noise in a jet.

The traditional gear shift is replaced by four buttons for forward, reverse, neutral and park. The accelerator -- not a "gas" pedal -- starts a smooth ride comparable to one in a traditional automobile. The vehicle has a top speed faster than 100 mph, and it travels as much as 150 miles on each tank of hydrogen fuel, said Robert F. Babik, a GM chemical engineer.

U.S. Rep. Gresham Barrett, R-S.C., said the vehicle was "not quite as good as my Ford pickup, but almost."

"It's the wave of the future," Barrett said. "I'm excited about what's happening in our nation."

He said rising gasoline prices after the hurricanes in the Gulf of Mexico are driving increased interest in vehicles that do not require fossil fuels.

Clyburn said he would give political support to improving hydrogen-vehicle technology. Hydrogen vehicles "will definitely sell" once they cost about what a regular car costs, he said.

Each vehicle costs about $1 million, following more than $1 billion in research by GM, Roskey said.