Deere & Company (Moline, IL) announced that it is working with Hydrogenics Corp. (Mississauga, ON) to develop a technology demonstrator fuel-cell-powered commercial work vehicle (CWV). The demonstrator will be a modified John Deere Pro-Gator™ utility vehicle.
"This vehicle will serve as a technology guide as John Deere moves forward with electrification of its products," said Bruce Wood, director of the company's ePower Technologies group, which plans to test the fuel-cell-powered CWV at demonstration sites across the US starting in the spring of 2003.
Deere offered no specific timetable for widespread use of electric vehicles. However, the company believes use of the technologies in its off-road equipment offers the best opportunity to commercialize significant numbers of electric vehicles due to the fact that off-road equipment is most often managed as a fleet with centralized fueling and service.
