My retirement has a good chunk of Ballard Power Systems (BLDP) and if it’s any indication of what the market thinks the future of hydrogen fuel cells is, we’re actually moving backwards on that technology. If you think it’s the future, now is a good time to pick up the stock because it’s hard to believe it could go any lower.
I’m not 100% convinced by some of the terrestrial applications for H2, on the economics side.
In my opinion, the aviation industry can handle the cost increases inherent to greener fuel. People fly because it’s fast, not because it’s cheap. As long as the planes are still fast, there’s still a market.
By contrast, people ride the bus because it’s cheap. According to Tokyo, H2 busses cost 2.6x as much to operate as diesel. According to Montpellier, H2 busses cost 6.3x as much to run as battery-electric busses (that’s including amortization). So while the tech seems like a great fit, the commercial case is weak.
Shipping with semis is a toss-up. H2 can transport more cargo a longer distance than batteries, and I think some people will pay the premium for next-day shipping. But personally… I’d get the cheap-but-slow shipping 90% of the time.
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My retirement has a good chunk of Ballard Power Systems (BLDP) and if it’s any indication of what the market thinks the future of hydrogen fuel cells is, we’re actually moving backwards on that technology. If you think it’s the future, now is a good time to pick up the stock because it’s hard to believe it could go any lower.
I’m not 100% convinced by some of the terrestrial applications for H2, on the economics side.
In my opinion, the aviation industry can handle the cost increases inherent to greener fuel. People fly because it’s fast, not because it’s cheap. As long as the planes are still fast, there’s still a market.
By contrast, people ride the bus because it’s cheap. According to Tokyo, H2 busses cost 2.6x as much to operate as diesel. According to Montpellier, H2 busses cost 6.3x as much to run as battery-electric busses (that’s including amortization). So while the tech seems like a great fit, the commercial case is weak.
Shipping with semis is a toss-up. H2 can transport more cargo a longer distance than batteries, and I think some people will pay the premium for next-day shipping. But personally… I’d get the cheap-but-slow shipping 90% of the time.