The first European conference on the “hydrogen revolution” was held in Brussels in recent days, followed by the first general Assembly of the European Platform for hydrogen and fuel cells. The European Commission has in fact decided to speed up the timetable for the achievement of the strategic objective of reducing energy dependence on fossil fuels (in particular oil), while at the same time curbing emissions of carbon dioxide and other pollutant gases. The need to move as soon as possible to new forms of energy is underlined by an analysis of two fundamental data: Europe’s dependence on oil now equivalent to 50% of EU energy demand is set to increase to over 70% by 2005; as regards the transport sector alone, moreover, EU dependence on oil is equivalent to 90%. The Union has decided to allocate almost three billion euros for hydrogen research over the next ten years, beginning with the development of the technology for fuel cells, able to generate electricity by combining hydrogen and oxygen and producing water as the main residue.
