The year 2020 could see hydrogen and fuel-cell powered vehicles the norm instead of the exception.
Adreas Renschler, Daimler Trucks Division Head, noted at the IAA, a commercial vehicle show in Hanover, Germany, that the urgency to get more of these hydrogen and fuel-cell powered vehicles on the market has substantially increased as "diesel fuel is almost becoming a luxury items these days." Take the US for instance, President Bush enacted the Stimulus Plan – an amount of money for American tax payers – in hopes the tax payers would use it for purchases in the US therefore “stimulating” the economy. However, many reports surfaced that instead, the purchase of luxury items were being put on the backburner. Even credit cards were being used to pay debt and basic needs.
Renschler said that if per capita oil consumption in the booming markets of India and China should reach only half of that in the US, the global oil demand would more than double, which would also see emissions increase dramatically.
"Most experts also believe that we will reach the limits of oil production capacity by 2020. For many freight forwarders, the diesel price may then exceed the pain threshold," he emphasized.
