Opening Press Conference

Monday, April 19, 10:00 am
at the Forum in the center of the Group Exhibit, Hall 13, Booth F45

The Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Group Exhibit, now in it’s 10th consecutive year, breaks all previous records regarding the number of exhibitors, the amount of floor space and the number of countries represented at this year’s HANNOVER FAIR.
Another record, which will be broken, is the number of top speakers in the field of Hydrogen and Fuel Cells. 114 speakers will present ideas, products and future direction here on stage throughout the five-day Forum Program.
We are looking forward to another dynamic display of latest developments and various applications of Hydrogen and Fuel Cells. In the next six days, we will show the complete chain, from the energy carrier – Hydrogen – to various commercial applications of Fuel Cell Systems. During our opening press conference today, we have selected some representatives from relevant exhibitor groups.

Participants:

Deng Jiangshan, Officer of China Technology Market Management & Promotion Center (MOST), Beijing, China
Andres Cloumann, Head of Sales/Marketing of Norsk Hydro Electrolysers AS, Notodden, Norway
Dr. Karl Föger, Chief Technology Officer of Ceramic Fuel Cells Limited, Noble Park, Victoria, Australia
George Lagios, President of TROPICAL S.A., Athens, Greece
Uwe Küter, CEO of h-tec Hydrogen Energy Systems, Lübeck, Germany
Arno A. Evers, Founder, Owner and Operator of the Hydrogen + Fuel Cells Group Exhibit, Arno A. Evers FAIR-PR, Starnberg, Germany
Ulrich Walter, Moderator, Arno A. Evers FAIR-PR, Starnberg, Germany

Deng Jiangshan
Ministry of Science and Technology (MOST)
Beijing, P.R. China
We are very glad to be here. It has taken one year to organize for a Hydrogen and Fuel Cells Group Exhibit to take place in Shanghai in November. But I can tell you that the Chinese Government places great importance in this undertaking specifically in Hydrogen and generally in Fuel Cells. The Government sees it as an important part of Chinese future development, especially concerning the environment. A particular emphasis will be placed on such energy in time for the Beijing Olympics in 2008.
Hydrogen and Fuel Cells in China also represents a great opportunity for foreign investors. The Government is highly supportive and encourages foreign investment in this field. Today, there are over 100 research bodies in China involved in Hydrogen and Fuel Cells research. China has not yet reached the development level in the Hydrogen and Fuel Cells field that some countries in the West have reached.

Andres Cloumann, Head of Sales/Marketing
Hydro Electrolysers
Notodden, Norway
We have electrolyzer projects in many places, including Iceland, Utsira and Hamburg, here in Germany. These are basically demonstration projects, but they work! Where we don’t get enough power from the wind, we supplement with Hydrogen. We must be here at the Group Exhibit in Hannover because this is where our customers are.

Dr. Karl Föger, CTO
Ceramic Fuel Cells Limited
Noble Park, Victoria, Australia
I think that SOFC is very important. In our case, we run a system using methane. A big advantage is that heat is also produced. So, for example, one of our products also produces household hot water. I believe that Home Fuel Cells represents a great opportunity towards a Hydrogen future. I must add that this a very well organized Group Exhibit and I must congratulate the organizers.

George Lagios, President
TROPICAL S.A.
Athens, Greece
The Greek Government really supports Hydrogen research. As one of the only private companies involved in the H2/FC field in Greece, we receive many benefits from the Government. We also conduct projects in cooperation with the University of Athens.
We have recently been involved in creating mobile offices using fuel cells. For example, creating the Athens Olympics' security and safety offices. Unfortunately, we have run into bureaucratic problems with this project which could mean authorisation for only one of them.
I’ve been here at the Group Exhibit for a few years, but this is my first time as an exhibitor. But now, we’ll definitely be back in future years.

Dipl.-Phys. Uwe Küter, CEO
h-tec
Wasserstoff-Energie-Systeme GmbH
Hydrogen Energy Systems
Luebeck, Germany
For the first time, we can give a price estimate for stacks, for all watt-configurations.
We keep coming back to the Group Exhibit here. Not just because it is the best organized Group Exhibit, but because it’s good for our business. In our business, you HAVE to be here.

Arno A. Evers, owner and operator of Group Exhibit H2/FC
Arno A. Evers FAIR-PR
Starnberg, Germany

Ulrich Walter (UW): Congratulations to the 10th anniversary of the Group Exhibit! When you started it for the first time in 1995, did you expect it to grow this big?

Arno A. Evers (AAE): To be honest, I knew that it would grow. However, I was not sure at the beginning that our Group Exhibit would grow at such speed.

UW: What about the next 10 years? Will there be a big breakthrough for H2/FC? Do you think the Group Exhibit can break all records each following year?

AAE: This I’m not quite sure about. But I’m quite sure that the breakthrough which is expected by everybody worldwide will not come necessarily with the applications everybody is working on today. It might be a completely different thing or idea. Not necessarily in the fields of classical hydrogen and fuel cells application development being work on now: stationary, portable and automotive.

UW: Can you explain this in a bit more detail?

AAE: What I mean is a completely new service, unknown today, which will benefit the daily life of everybody world wide. In this case, money will not be the question because will be desperate to use this new service which coincidently powered by hydrogen using fuel cells.

UW: What are the highlights this year on our Group Exhibit?

AAE: Highlights include first step real life applications of the before mentioned classical hydrogen and fuel cell uses. Forklift truck, cars, stationary and portable solutions. The beauty of our Group Exhibit is that all visitors get first hand experience in a very time efficient way.

UW: You are planning a similar Group Exhibit at the Shanghai International Industry Fair, November 4-9 in China this year. Do you think the Chinese market is ready for this technology? Are our exhibitors ready for the Chinese market?

AAE: Due to the magnitude of the Chinese market, in my opinion, the breakthrough will come there. The standard of living of the Chinese population is getting better every day. The usage of electrical appliances is reaching, in some cases, above western standards. Here again, money is not the question. Young Chinese ladies working in office jobs pay a one-month's salary for their mobile phones, as well as, they pay a one-day’s salary for a cup of Starbucks coffee. They do this, even without thinking about it; it is quite normal for them. Coming to our exhibitors, if they really want to be on the worldwide market, it would be a good idea for them to follow our motto: “Go to where the Market is!”. That is why we recommend to attend the new Group Exhibit-Hydrogen + Fuel Cells in China.

Ulrich Walter, Moderator
Arno A. Evers FAIR-PR
Starnberg, Germany

Zhang, Hao (Angela), Translation
Arno A. Evers FAIR-PR
Starnberg, Germany

Click here for the Opening Press Conference HANNOVER FAIR '03