Nissan to Develop Bioethanol-Powered Fuel Cell Vehicle

Tokyo, June 14 (Jiji Press)--Nissan Motor Co. <7201> said Tuesday it will develop a fuel-cell system using bioethanol as its power source, in an effort to create a vehicle that emits little carbon dioxide during driving. The Japanese automaker aims to put the bioethanol-powered fuel-cell vehicle into practical use around 2020. The new system stores bioethanol in the vehicle instead of hydrogen in conventional fuel-cell vehicles sold by Toyota Motor Corp. <7203> and Honda Motor Co. <7267>. Under the Nissan system, hydrogen produced by decomposing bioethanol reacts with oxygen to generate electricity to power the vehicle. Bioethanol, safer to use than hydrogen, is widely used in Latin America and Asia outside Japan. In Brazil in particular, it is available at gas stations. Nissan plans to promote the use of bioethanol-powered fuel cells overseas for the time being. END