Hyundai Preps Hydrogen Energy Generation And Fueling Station In Chino, Calif. For First-Ever Public Opening

CHINO, Calif., Aug. 5, 2013 /PRNewswire/ -- The California Energy Commission (CEC) has awarded Hydrogen Frontier, Inc. a $3 million grant to build a new 100 percent renewable hydrogen fueling station for fuel cell electric vehicles at Hyundai's hydrogen energy generation and fueling station in Chino, Calif.  

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The project will include:

• 100 percent of the energy consumed in generation and operation of the station and 100 percent of the fuel dispensed will come from a renewable source, a new path of innovation and sustainability in California
  • Energy used to create hydrogen will be purchased from a renewable energy provider
  • With this upgrade, the station will be able to produce at least 100 kilograms of hydrogen per day, enough to dispense approximately 6,000 to 9,000 vehicle fill-ups with hydrogen annually
• Capability to produce hydrogen from the electrolysis of water on site
• System pressures of 350 Bar and 700 Bar will allow fueling of all fuel cell vehicles (FCV) including fast refueling

The station, situated at a testing facility for Hyundai America Technical Center, Inc., will be located at the site of an existing hydrogen station originally constructed in 2005 to support Hyundai's fuel cell vehicle fleet. On top of the $3 million rebuilding project funded by the California Energy Commission grant, an additional $1.7 million funded by partners Hydrogen Frontier Inc., Powertech and ITM Power will go toward modernizing the facility to meet the latest industry standards for hydrogen generation, storage and dispensing.

The required completion date for the renovations is October 2014, at which point the fueling station will open to the public for the first time. The facility will increase the existing hydrogen fueling network in California and will be the first publicly accessible hydrogen fueling station in San Bernardino County.  http://cafcp.org/stationmap#st-map

"Hyundai has been supporting governments, energy companies and other organizations globally to develop an easily accessible and affordable hydrogen infrastructure," said Dr. Sung Hwan Cho, president, Hyundai America Technical Center, Inc. "With world-class partners like Hydrogen Frontier and the support of the California government, we are expanding the hydrogen fueling infrastructure and taking one more step toward mass production of a fuel cell electric vehicle."

Production of the Hyundai Tucson Fuel Cell began at the company's Ulsan manufacturing plant in Korea in January 2013, making Hyundai the first automaker to begin commercial production of a hydrogen-powered vehicle. The first complete car rolled off the assembly line on February 26, 2013. Hyundai is investigating potential demand for the Tucson Fuel Cell Vehicle in the U.S. market, particularly in California, where most of the hydrogen refueling infrastructure development has taken place.

"Hydrogen Frontier Inc. is excited to work with this innovative group of companies for this unique opportunity," said Daniel Poppe, vice president, Hydrogen Frontier Inc. "This was our first hydrogen station in 2005 that we were asked to contribute to. Now, less than 10 years later, we get to do a complete comprehensive update of that same site."

Hyundai has researched hydrogen-powered fuel cell vehicles in the United States since 2000. It is a member of the California Fuel Cell Partnership and has conducted fleet testing of three generations of SUV-based hydrogen vehicles across the United States.

Hydrogen fuel cells use hydrogen to create electricity which powers the electric-drive vehicles. Fuel cell vehicles have no tailpipe greenhouse emissions and their extended range between fill-ups and the speed at which they refuel are comparable to that of conventional vehicles. The development of fueling stations, such as the Chino facility, is crucial to the success of fuel cells in the marketplace. In California today, there are eight public stations, and 17 more are in development. The goal is to have 68 stations in place to support the larger rollout of the vehicles in the next few years.

HYDROGEN FRONTIER INC.
Hydrogen Frontier, Inc., located in Gardena, Calif., continues to be active in hydrogen infrastructure development. Hydrogen Frontier has grown out of Daniel A. Poppe Electrical Contracting, a company owned by HF Vice President Poppe. While Hydrogen Frontier has been supporting hydrogen fueling infrastructure on as many as nine stations in California, Hyundai's Chino site is the first hydrogen fueling station installation led by Hydrogen Frontier.

Hydrogen Frontier currently operates a hydrogen fueling station in Burbank that was recognized for its reliability as the station was operational 99 percent of the time during 2012. With funding partners such as the South Coast Air Quality Management District, California Air Resources Board and National Renewable Energy Laboratory, Hydrogen Frontier has shown its ability to develop and collect relevant operations and performance data.  Hydrogen Frontier has supported Chevron and Shell to successfully analyze station components and troubleshoot, repair, and optimize station performance. This hands-on experience with many different station technologies has allowed Hydrogen Frontier to obtain a large knowledge base for hydrogen fueling infrastructure support and development.

HYUNDAI MOTOR AMERICA
Hyundai Motor America, headquartered in Costa Mesa, Calif., is a subsidiary of Hyundai Motor Co. of Korea. Hyundai vehicles are distributed throughout the United States by Hyundai Motor America and are sold and serviced through more than 820 dealerships nationwide. All Hyundai vehicles sold in the U.S. are covered by the Hyundai Assurance program, which includes the 5-year/60,000-mile fully transferable new vehicle limited warranty, Hyundai's 10-year/100,000-mile powertrain limited warranty, and five years of complimentary Roadside Assistance. Hyundai Assurance includes Assurance Connected Care that provides Hyundai owners with proactive safety and car care services made possible by the Hyundai Blue Link telematics platform, complimentary for three years. These services include Automatic Collision Notification, Enhanced Roadside Assistance, Vehicle Diagnostic Alert, Monthly Vehicle Health Report and in-vehicle service scheduling.

For more details on Hyundai Assurance, please visit http://www.hyundaiassurance.com/

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