It is no secret that fuel-cell technology has snuck in the back door and started giving automakers another option to consider for alternative fuel. One company that has recently jumped on this bandwagon of sorts is Audi, and its 2015 A7 h-tron quattro concept is proof of this. If you needed even more proof that Audi is serious, then consider the fact that it just laid out some cash to buy a package of fuel-cell patents.
The patents were purchased from Ballard Power Systems Inc., a Canadian clean-energy company that focuses on reducing customer costs and risks associated with proton-exchange-membrane fuel cells. Though Audi didn’t disclose exactly what patents it bought, it’s obvious that the German automaker means business in the fuel-cell vehicle game. Audi also made it clear that it didn’t buy these patents to keep them all for itself, as Dr. Ulrich Hackenberg, Audi AG board member, said that it will share these patents across the entire VW group.
This could spell trouble for a lot of automakers, as the VW Group’s reach is so broad that it can almost corner the FCV market if these patents are as strong as I think they might be.
In addition to these patents, the VW Group has also renewed its ongoing cooperation with Ballard Power System until 2019, so it will have direct access to the brains of the company it bought the patents from.
Click past the jump to read more about this purchase and Audi’s future fuel-cell systems.
Audi Buys Fuel-Cell Patents; Hints at New Fuel-Cell Systems originally appeared on topspeed.com on Thursday, 12 February 2015 16:00 EST.
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