Nissan CEO Says Fuel Cell Vehicle Development Too Costly

Fuel Cells Today, Feb 4, 2005

Reuters recently reported that Nissan Motor Company chief executive officer (CEO) Carlos Ghosn commented late last week during a speech at the annual meeting of the National Automobile Dealers Association in New Orleans, LA that he believes the expectations for commercial fuel cell vehicle development are too high, especially considering the approximately $800,000-per-vehicle manufacturing cost.

"Do the math and you figure out that we will have to reduce the cost of that car by more than 95 percent in order to gain widespread market acceptance," said Ghosn.

Similarly, Ghosn said he does not see hybrid electric vehicle development as cost-effective, commenting that Nissan is only introducing a new hybrid Altima in an effort to achieve compliance with new, stricter fuel economy standards.

(REUTERS: 1/29)