Chris Fay - speech at the launch of the Zevco taxi,

Westminster, 30 July 1998

Today's event is a timely and important one. Today is not just about the launch of an exciting new vehicle which promises cheaper, more efficient and environmentally friendly travel. It's about broader issues - the future of transport, the quality of the air we breathe, and ultimately, the quality of life both here in the capital and in all of our major towns and cities. Last week, the Government's White Paper on Transport spelt out the choices that lie before us. I don't need to rehearse those arguments this morning, but there is now a growing consensus that traffic pollution, particularly in our congested cities, needs to be addressed with urgency and sensitivity.

The launch of Zevco’s hydrogen powered

Millenium taxi, a zero emissions vehicle, gives us an exciting glimpse of the future. Not so very long ago, this type of event would have been unthinkable. But working together, energy companies, car manufacturers and niche market specialists such as Zevco, are pushing back the technological barriers of what can be achieved. Further developments in fuel technology and vehicle manufacturing will need creativity, initiative and risk taking - precisely the qualities demonstrated by Zevco, with support from the City of Westminster, at today's launch.

But companies like Zevco cannot do it all by themselves. In the future, it's predicted that low emission or zero emission vehicles will become common-place. So it's up to us to ensure that we continue planning and preparing now for a radically different approach to transport, to fuel technology, and to energy consumption.

And that applies to all of us - central and local government, energy companies, manufacturers, and crucially, consumers. One thing is certain. Long-term improvements in air quality can only come about through positive partnership between government, regulators, manufacturers, the energy industry and consumers. Partnership is the key.

Many promising technological options for the ‘engine or fuel of the future’ are being evaluated. At this stage, it is far too early to say which ones will emerge as ‘winners.’ Their success will depend on both technical feasibility and consumer acceptance. For our part, we aim to play an active role in enabling and evaluating the feasibility of such options. We believe that our marketing experience and its technological know-how gives us something positive to contribute in a number of areas.

Hydrogen is a potentially important development in the search for ‘sustainable transport’ and ‘sustainable energy.’ That's why Shell has established a Hydrogen Economy team dedicated to investigate opportunities in hydrogen manufacturing and new fuel cell technologies in collaboration with others. We believe that hydrogen fuel cell powered cars are likely to make a major entrance into the vehicle market throughout Europe and the US by 2005. In addition, we see potentially enormous opportunities opening up in the domestic fleet bus and taxi market as government encourages cleaner alternatives to conventionally powered vehicles.

This trend poses a real challenge to a company like Shell to develop new products, new technologies and to prepare and to inform our customers for the changes that lie ahead. This isn't going to happen overnight, but substantial planning and technological progress has already been made. I can assure you, we are in this for the long haul.

No-one here should find that surprising. As we made clear in the Shell UK Report to Society, Shell has long acknowledged the importance of the air quality issue. We have been at the forefront of moves to develop cleaner fuel alternatives. And we have taken positive steps to offer consumers a wide range of fuels designed to help cut traffic pollution.

These include Shell Advanced Low Sulphur Diesel, Shell Advanced Diesel XL, Shell Advanced Low Lead 4-Star, and Shell Liquefied Petroleum Gas. Shell Advanced Diesel XL for example, was the first ‘city’ type diesel to be manufactured in Britain. It provides fleet operators such as the Go Ahead Group with a cleaner diesel alternative which cuts particulates by 10% and gives a 30% reduction in black smoke emissions.

On Monday, Irish Shell announced the launch of a new purified petrol, Shell Pura. Shell Pura will offer consumers the choice of a top-quality unleaded petrol which produces fewer exhaust emissions than standard unleaded.

Clearly, Shell remains committed to supplying the fuels and products which the consumer needs and wants. But sometimes it's not enough to wait for consumer demand to dictate product development. Sometimes, we have to take the lead. And that's precisely what we've done with Liquefied Petroleum Gas.

Auto LP Gas gives low emissions, attracts less duty and provides a cleaner and cheaper alternative for bus and coach operators. It's my view that the story of LP Gas so far, may hold some important lessons for the future development of the hydrogen fuel market.

The most critical of these are the importance of long-term investment and the use of consumer incentives. Two weeks ago, Shell UK announced a major £10 million investment plan to develop a network of 200 auto LP Gas sites on UK forecourts by 2001. This followed the freezing of duty on auto LP Gas in this year's Budget, which made it the cheapest road fuel on the market.

Of course, there will always be those who criticise investments like this as too little too late. But, I am personally very proud of the lead we are taking on this issue. We are the first company in the UK to invest heavily in a nation-wide forecourt gas network. By 2001, most drivers should be able to fill up with auto LP Gas on a Shell forecourt wherever and whenever they want.

So I'm proud of our record on cleaner fuels. But I'm also realistic about how we can best ensure the more widespread take up of cleaner fuel alternatives. And here, I'd like to sound a word of caution.

Technological advance in isolation can never provide all the answers. If only life were that simple. As we look ahead to further developments in fuel and vehicle technology, let's not fall into the trap of leaving the consumer behind. For Shell UK, the customer is a key ‘stakeholder’ and customer attitudes can have an immense impact on our business.

The good news is that consumers are beginning to make the switch to low emission fuels. But where technology continues to outpace consumer preference, we must do more to close the gap, to provide clear and relevant information, and to inform and educate where necessary. Changes in consumer habits and preferences will of course take time. They may well require further tax incentives and concerted Government action at local and national level. Nor should we forget that there may be limits to the amount consumers are willing to pay for cleaner alternatives.

But at Shell, we are convinced that hydrogen, like auto LP gas, represents one of the fuels of tomorrow.

Hydrogen can form part of a serious national strategy for tackling the air quality problem and for providing consumers with cost-effective and efficient alternatives to conventional fuels.

Members of the Shell Hydrogen Economy team are with us this morning and will answer any detailed questions you may have later in the press conference. I’m also delighted that Keith Williams is here. For those of you who don’t know, in the 1960s, Keith led the design team of the first UK fuel-cell car while working for the Shell Research and Technology Centre at Thornton.

I'd like to close by wishing today's launch and Zevco every success. Thank you.