Coventry, England's University of Warwick recently announced that university economist professor Andrew Oswald and energy consultant Jim Oswald have authored a new article, titled "The Arithmetic of Renewable Energy," which maintains that "any move to replace the U.K.'s oil-burning vehicles with greener hydrogen-powered cars and trucks would require the erection of 100,000 new wind turbines or 100 new nuclear power plants."

"The enormity of the green challenge is not understood," said Jim Oswald. "Many people think that hydrogen is a simple alternative to oil, but in fact it will require a huge investment in either wind farms or nuclear plants."

According to the university, while the Oswalds argue that "the only practical green alternative way to run motor vehicles is to power them with hydrogen," they point out that since hydrogen is not a source of energy but a carrier, it "has to be made, transported and stored using huge amounts of renewables-based electricity."

In the paper, to be published in the next edition of Accountancy magazine, the researchers calculate that it would require approximately 100,000 new wind turbines or, alternatively, 100 nuclear power stations, to operate all of Britain's road transport with hydrogen.

The Oswalds' research paper can be viewed in its entirety at http://www.oswald.co.uk/ocl/windaccountancy04.pdf.

Contact: University of Warwick, website http://www.warwick.ac.uk.

(EIN STAFF: 10/6)

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