Australia may double green car fund

Michael Brear, a Melbourne engineer who has built a zero-emissions hydrogen engine, has welcomed the proposal to double the green car fund, which would make A$1billion (US$793.77 million) available for low-carbon vehicle research by 2011. Brear, a leader of a joint research project between Melbourne University and Ford, said the expanded fund was an exciting prospect for anyone working in research and development of alternative fuels. This is the first time government support of industry has been targeted at green cars, said Brear, whose prototype hydrogen-fuelled combustion engine was presented to the Victorian government in August. Previously packages had been aimed at selling more cars, whether or not they had lower greenhouse emissions. His project has received A$1.2million (US$952.52 million) in funding from the state government’s energy technology innovation strategy. (August 18, 2008)