Fuel Cell Vehicle Delivery Ceremony

Monday, December 2, 2002

Click photographs to enlarge

A ceremony for the delivery of two fuel cell vehicles to the Government was held at the Prime Minister's Official Residence, with Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi test driving the first commercially released fuel cell vehicles (one from each company). The fuel cell vehicles delivered on this day are powered by electricity generated from a chemical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen, and achieve higher fuel efficiency compared to gasoline fueled vehicles and zero CO2 emissions. In addition, they have superior noise performance. With this delivery, Japan becomes the first market in the world in which such vehicles are available in the market. Prime Minister Koizumi stated in his address, "I thought that fuel cell vehicles would take a lot longer, but these have come to market in Japan earlier than anywhere in the world, a lot earlier than I expected. I hope that with continued technological development, Japan can be said to have succeeded in both harmonious coexistence with nature and economic development." Afterward, Chairman Hiroshi Okuda of Toyota Motor Corporation and President Hiroyuki Yoshino of Honda Motor Co., Ltd. handed Prime Minister Koizumi the keys and the Prime Minister test drove each car around the parking lot of the Prime Minister's Official Residence. Following delivery ceremony, Chief Cabinet Secretary Yasuo Fukuda and Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Chikage Oogi drove the cars for themselves once around the parking lot. Other ministers present also inspected the vehicles eagerly. With the instruction by Prime Minister Koizumi that all general official vehicles were to be exchanged for low-emission vehicles in the next three years, the Government and the public sector are taking the initiative to introduce low-emission vehicles.