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May 12, 2006
S.C. LEADS HYDROGEN
ECONOMY CHARGE
C. GRANT JACKSON,
Business Editor
It might seem an odd
position for a state
some still consider part
of the nation's
backwater, but South
Carolina is leading the
charge into the hydrogen
economy.
Much of the credit goes
to two of the state's
congressional leaders:
U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham
and U.S. Rep. Bob Inglis.
But S.C.' s ascendancy
from hardly a blip on
the hydrogen economy
radar screen to national
reputation is a true
collaboration involving
federal, regional, state
and local efforts.
On Wednesday, the U.S.
House overwhelming
passed legislation
Inglis introduced
creating the "H-Prize."
"Momentum is gathering
toward a national
commitment to the
hydrogen economy," the
Greenville Republican
said. "This is no
science project. A
hydrogen future is
closer than we think."
Graham introduced
identical legislation in
the Senate on Thursday.
"Hydrogen holds
tremendous promise for
the future," the Seneca
Republican said. "The
H-Prize is a clear
signal from the federal
government that we are
interested and believe
in a hydrogen-based
transportation economy.
The H-Prize puts our
money where our mouth
is."
The bill would award:
* Four prizes of up to
$1 million each every
two years for
technological
advancements in the
areas of hydrogen
production, storage,
distribution and
utilization
* One prize of up to $4
million every two years
for working hydrogen
prototype vehicles
* One grand prize of $10
million for
transformational
technologies that
enables hydrogen to
become a widely used
fuel
Inglis has pushed
development of the
hydrogen economy as a
way to reduce the
nation's dependency on
foreign oil, create new
jobs and clean the air.
He is chairman of the
House Science
Committee's research
subcommittee and he is
chairman of the Hydrogen
and Fuel Caucus. Graham
is co-chairman of the
Senate Hydrogen and Fuel
Cell Caucus.
Graham and Inglis,
working with other
members of the state's
congressional
delegation, also have
helped shepherd the
state's internal
efforts.
During a meeting with
state and local
officials last year in
Washington, Graham
admonished them to come
together on a plan to
move the Hydrogen
Economy forward in South
Carolina.
The result has been a
coordinated effort that
has led to creation of:
* The S.C. Next Energy
Initiative and the S.C.
Hydrogen and Fuel Cell
Economy Strategy
* The S.C. Hydrogen and
Fuel Cell Alliance to
coordinate initiatives
around the state
involving universities,
government and the
private sector
* The Center for
Hydrogen Research, a
6,000-square-foot
facility in Aiken
designed for
collaborative hydrogen
research with Savannah
River National
Laboratory
Locally, the Greater
Columbia Fuel Cell
Challenge has been
launched with the help
of funding from the S.C.
Research Authority to
create a plan to make
the region a center for
fuel cell use.
Fuel cell companies and
service providers have
been invited to propose
projects for the region.
All of those efforts
build on top of the work
being done at USC, which
houses the National
Science Foundation's
only Industry/University
Cooperative Research
Center for Fuel Cells.
Evidence of South
Carolina's ascendancy in
the coming hydrogen
economy came at the
FuelCellSouth 2006
annual conference held
in Columbia last month.
In its third year, the
conference brought
together many of the
leading figures in the
hydrogen economy.
Valri Lightner, fuel
cell team leader for the
U.S. Department of
Energy; Bob Rose,
executive director of
the U.S. Fuel Cell
Council; and Shannon
Baxter-Clemmons, who is
involved in the
California Hydrogen
Highway project, all
spoke at the conference,
along with a host of top
fuel cell industry
executives. Attendees
came from as far away as
Oregon.
The message was clear:
South Carolina has
gotten the attention of
the hydrogen fuel cell
world.
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Copyright (c) 2006 The
State
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