Norway’s Crown Prince Haakon, right, takes the wheel of hydrogen car at head of Viking Rally from Oslo to Stavanger, along with Norwegian race car champ Henning Solberg. (Photo: Erlend Aas, Scanpix)
HyNor was opened by Norway's transport minister, Liv Signe Navarsete.
HRH Crown Prince Haakon Magnus of Norway joined the first stage of the EVS Viking Rally, from Oslo to Lier, together with internationally renowned racing car driver Henning Solberg.
Norway’s Crown Prince Haakon fills tank of hydrogen car at opening of both hydrogen filling station in Oslo and the Hydrogen Road between Oslo and Stavanger. To right of Prince Haakon are StatoilHydro New Energy head Alexandra Bech Gjørv and Norwegian Minister of Transportation and Communication Liv Signe Navarsete. Photo: Erlend Aas, Scanpix
Since 2003, StatoilHydro has been the driving force behind HyNor's goal to establish a hydrogen transportation infrastructure along the nearly 600-kilometre route between Oslo and Stavanger.
The first hydrogen station was opened at Forus in Stavanger in 2006, the second in Porsgrunn in 2007, and now the two new stations are open in Oslo and Lier. HyNor has some 50 partners and manages a fleet of more than 50 hydrogen vehicles made by Mazda, Toyota and Think.
"We are very pleased to open up this hydrogen infrastructure for testing and demonstrating hydrogen cars. By doing this, we nurture our ambition to help implement hydrogen as a fuel in the transport sector," says StatoilHydro's head of new energy, Alexandra Bech Gjørv.
Alexandra Bech Gjørv.
Fourteen hydrogen vehicles, two plug-in hybrid cars and 14 battery electric vehicles are starting in Oslo and will reach the beginning of the EVS (Electrical Vehicle Symposium) 24 in Stavanger on 13 May.
Events will take place along the way in Porsgrunn, Grimstad, Arendal, Kristiansand, Lyngdal and Egersund. Another 10 battery electric vehicles will join the rally in Egersund.
Hydrogen may grow significantly as an alternative transportation fuel and stored stationary energy source. One of hydrogen's big advantages is that it can be produced from many power sources, and can be efficiently produced and used without emitting any pollutants. In addition, hydrogen cars possess many of the same qualities found in today’s conventional automobiles.
"As a future clean transport alternative, hydrogen and fuel-cell technology have big potential. Hydrogen is potentially a game changing transportation fuel," says Ms Bech Gjørv.
