Test Drive for Fuel Cell Automobiles Thursday, December 13, 2001

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Prime Minister Junichiro Koizumi was joined by Minister of Economy, Trade and Industry Takeo Hiranuma and Minister of the Environment Yoriko Kawaguchi in the parking area on the front garden of the Diet Building for a test drive of fuel cell automobiles developed by four Japanese automobile manufacturers. Prime Minister Koizumi was taken for a drive once around the garden with the President or Chairman of each of the automobile manufacturers at the wheel. Prime Minister Koizumi stated, "The ride is even smoother than ordinary automobiles. These are the ultimate environment-friendly cars, and considered from the perspective of ensuring the energy safety of our nation, this is an extremely important area of research and development." The Prime Minister added, "If this technology can be applied to practical use in the year 2003, I think that all of the Cabinet Ministers should drive fuel cell automobiles," indicating the Government's policy of encouraging grater adoption of this technology. Fuel cells generate electricity using an electrical reaction between hydrogen and oxygen and achieve a much higher level of fuel efficiency and greater reduction of CO2 emissions compared to gasoline and other fuels. Moreover, they operate very quietly and are expected to be adopted for use in many industries in addition to automobiles. The Government intends to support development of this technology and experiments to demonstrate its practicality.