BMW betting on hydrogen

The German car manufacturer BMW has reported that it is betting on hydrogen but will is not focussing its energy on fuel cells or electric vehicles. They plan to extract the H from H2O, and then use it to power the same internal combustion engines we use today.

BMW started its hydrogen program back in 1978, and base their currant strategy on conclusions they have reached over the last 30 years, key outcomes include:
--The world will hit peak oil in 2025, marking the day the world reaches its peak petroleum production, declining thereafter until we run out.
--Technology will allow us to mass-produce hydrogen, without burning fossil fuels to do so, in the next 10 to 15 years.
--The cost of putting a hydrogen gas station on every 40 to 50 miles of U.S. roadwways would cost between $400 billion and $500 billion.
--We will see the beginnings of hydrogen infrastructure, i.e., gas stations, by 2025.
--We will switch over totally between the years 2040 and 2050.

With those timeframes being pretty far out, BMW is developing hybrid models in the meantime. The first is expected out in 2009.

Source: Fuel Cell Today