<p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: verdana, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18.5714px; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;">CHALLENGES</p><div>Only a few models are now available for sale or lease, and availability is limited to areas with hydrogen fueling stations, mostly in California. Several challenges must be overcome before fuel cell vehicles (FCVs) will be a successful, competitive alternative for consumers.<br></div><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-weight: bold; line-height: 1.1; margin: 1.25em 0px 0.5em; font-size: 1em; color: rgb(26, 85, 143); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;">Vehicle Cost<br></h3><div class="thumbnail float-right" style="box-sizing: border-box; display: block; height: auto; max-width: 100%; padding: 4px; line-height: 18.5714px; border: 1px solid rgb(221, 221, 221); border-radius: 4px; transition: all 0.2s ease-in-out; margin: 0.5em 0.5em 1em 2.5em; float: right; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: verdana, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; background-color: rgb(255, 255, 255);"><div class="caption" style="box-sizing: border-box; text-align: center; font-size: 11.7px; margin-top: 0.5em; margin-bottom: 0px; padding: 9px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51);"><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-weight: bold; line-height: 1.1; margin: 0px 0px 0.5em; font-size: 1em; color: rgb(26, 85, 143);"><div><br></div></h3></div></div><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: verdana, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18.5714px; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;">FCVs are currently more expensive than conventional vehicles and hybrids, but costs have decreased significantly and are approaching DOE's goal for 2017 (see graph). Manufacturers must continue to lower production costs, especially for the fuel cell stack and hydrogen storage, for FCVs to compete with conventional technologies.<br></p><h3 style="box-sizing: border-box; font-family: 'Helvetica Neue', Helvetica, Arial, sans-serif; font-weight: bold; line-height: 1.1; margin: 1.25em 0px 0.5em; font-size: 1em; color: rgb(26, 85, 143); font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; letter-spacing: normal; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;">Getting Hydrogen to Consumers<br></h3><p style="box-sizing: border-box; margin: 0px 0px 10px; color: rgb(51, 51, 51); font-family: verdana, helvetica, arial, sans-serif; font-size: 13px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: 18.5714px; orphans: auto; text-align: start; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 1; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px;">The current infrastructure for producing, delivering, and dispensing hydrogen to consumers cannot yet support the widespread adoption of FCVs. In 2013,<a href="http://energy.gov/articles/energy-department-launches-public-private-partnership-deploy-hydrogen-infrastructure" style="box-sizing: border-box; color: rgb(66, 139, 202); text-decoration: none;">H2USA</a><span class="Apple-converted-space">&nbsp;</span>was launched as a public-private partnership between DOE and other federal agencies, automakers, state government, academic institutions, and additional stakeholders to coordinate research and identify cost-effective solutions for deploying hydrogen infrastructure. By the end of 2015, more than 50 public stations should be available, mostly in California. This is an important first step in making hydrogen available to consumers.<br></p><div><br></div>