For years, hydrogen cars were hailed as the next great leap in sustainable automobile technology: clean, efficient, and capable of refueling as quickly as their gasoline counterparts. However, the dream of a hydrogen-powered future has remained largely out of reach, not because of a lack of interest or demand but due to infrastructural shortfalls. Specifically, the hydrogen-powered car market has been hampered by the lack of hydrogen gas production plants, distribution networks, and refueling stations.
In fact, as of 2024, there are fewer than 60 hydrogen fueling stations across the entire United States, and Canada has only one. Despite this, hydrogen vehicles — like the Toyota Mirai and Hyundai Nexo — garner excitement from consumers and automakers alike for their zero-emission promise. So, what’s been holding hydrogen cars back? Simply put, the chicken-and-egg problem: without fueling stations, consumers don’t buy hydrogen cars, and without hydrogen cars, investors don’t build fueling stations.
But a recent breakthrough from Visual Link and Teklium may be the key to finally unlocking the full potential of hydrogen-powered vehicles.
A Hydrogen Car That Fuels Itself
In a bold move that aims to disrupt the current limitations of hydrogen cars, Visual Link and Teklium have unveiled a new version of a plug-in hydrogen car that produces its own hydrogen fuel on demand. Instead of relying on hydrogen gas delivered to refueling stations, this innovative vehicle uses electricity from standard electric car charging stations to power a built-in system that generates hydrogen from distilled water.
Essentially, this new vehicle operates like an electric car in that you can plug it in at any of the existing 145,000 electric vehicle (EV) charging stations across the country. But instead of charging a large, heavy lithium-ion battery, the electricity is used to perform water electrolysis, producing hydrogen that fuels the car’s onboard hydrogen fuel cell.
This breakthrough technology solves the fundamental issue facing the hydrogen car market: infrastructure dependency. Now, drivers can refuel their vehicles using the same charging stations as electric cars, making hydrogen vehicles just as accessible as EVs.
As Jason Ho, CEO of Teklium, explained in a recent press release: “The beauty of this technology is that it offers drivers the flexibility of an electric vehicle without the range anxiety that plagues traditional battery-powered cars. As more hydrogen fueling stations are built, drivers will have the option to refuel with hydrogen gas, but until then, they can generate their own fuel on the go using electricity.”
A Dual-Fuel Future: The Best of Both Worlds
What makes this technology especially promising is that it gives consumers the best of both worlds. In the short term, drivers can charge their hydrogen cars at existing EV charging stations. But as more hydrogen fueling stations are built, drivers will have the option to refuel quickly at these stations, giving them the same convenience and speed as gasoline and diesel cars but with the environmental benefits of hydrogen.
While this new plug-in hydrogen system is revolutionary, BMW has also developed a similar solution: a hydrogen plug-in hybrid that features both a lithium-ion battery and a hydrogen fuel cell. The dual-technology approach offers longer-range options and the ability to switch between battery power and hydrogen fuel, providing even more flexibility for drivers.
Together, these advancements from Visual Link, Teklium, and BMW could finally spark the kind of consumer demand needed to encourage more investment in hydrogen fueling stations, helping to solve the infrastructure bottleneck that has kept hydrogen vehicles on the sidelines for so long.
Driving Toward a Solar-Powered Hydrogen Future
To further accelerate hydrogen’s adoption, Visual Link and Teklium are also working on developing solar-powered hydrogen fueling stations that produce hydrogen on-site, eliminating the need for massive centralized production plants and distribution networks. These stations use solar energy to split water molecules into hydrogen and oxygen, creating a clean, renewable source of fuel.
This solution represents a major leap forward in the effort to create a self-sustaining hydrogen economy — one where hydrogen can be produced and consumed at the local level, reducing both the cost and environmental impact of hydrogen production.
BMW, too, is exploring this concept with its own solar-powered hydrogen stations, believing that this dual-fuel future will help build the necessary momentum for widespread hydrogen adoption.
Political Spotlight on Hydrogen Cars
The promise of hydrogen cars hasn’t gone unnoticed by political leaders, either. Former President Donald Trump, during a stop in Savannah, Georgia, recently mentioned the challenges and potential of hydrogen vehicles. According to Trump, hydrogen cars are “the new thing.”
While his comments highlighted the very real infrastructure challenges, they also underscored the growing recognition that hydrogen technology could be a game-changer for the auto industry — if the infrastructure can be developed.
Building Momentum for a Hydrogen-Powered Future
With Visual Link and Teklium’s latest innovation, the future of hydrogen cars looks brighter than ever. Their new plug-in hydrogen car could be the solution the industry has been waiting for, bridging the gap between today’s limited infrastructure and a future where hydrogen fueling stations are as ubiquitous as gas stations.
As these companies work toward building more solar-powered hydrogen stations, they are also helping to create a virtuous cycle: more hydrogen cars will drive demand for fueling stations, which will, in turn, increase the number of cars on the road.
For drivers, this means they will soon have the option to choose between refueling at a charging station or pulling up to a hydrogen pump. The convenience of fast refueling combined with the long-term sustainability of hydrogen could finally deliver on the promise of hydrogen-powered vehicles that have long been just out of reach.
