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A Norwegian joint venture named HyNor is setting up a hydrogen-powered society, with the infrastructure 'prototype' undergoing testing throughout a 580km-long section of the country from the capital, Oslo, to Stavanger.

Norway is a country that has prospered since the discovery of massive petroleum reserves under the North Sea some decades ago. The country, with a population close to New Zealand's, but with a much larger frontier, has been reaping the benefits of freely available fossil fuel and the revenue it brings.

But the HyNor venture shows the Norwegians are not just kicking back, waiting for the sky to fall in.

Mazda has joined the project as a partner, tasked with providing a fleet of hydrogen-powered RX-8 cars for the testing. It's the first time the 'hydrotary' (more here) has been sampled outside Japan, but is a natural for the job, since it's reliant on internal combustion technology and can burn hydrogen without protracted development work.

Hydrogen, being one of constituent parts of water (the other being oxygen), burns in air (a combination of oxygen and nitrogen) to produce water as the principal exhaust emission. In other words, virtually no CO2 emissions and no burning of non-renewable resources (fossil fuels).

A memorandum of understanding between Mazda and HyNor has been signed at the Norwegian embassy in Tokyo. HyNor will purchase 30 units of the RX-8 around mid-2008.

"HyNor is very pleased to sign this agreement with Mazda and we think this cooperation will speed up the process of introducing hydrogen as a zero-emission fuel", said Ulf Hafseld, Chairman of HyNor.

"By using the Internal Combustion Engine as a feasible technology to accelerate realisation of the real hydrogen world, we can develop a hydrogen infrastructure much faster. HyNor is focusing on a carbon neutral infrastructure, and using hydrogen in the Mazda cars will ensure a complete carbon free line of fuel."

The Oslo-Stavanger project will encompass buses, taxis and other (public) transport systems converting to hydrogen fuel. Mazda has been involved in the project since August 2006, when officials from the company attended the opening of Norway's first hydrogen resupply station.

The Mazda/HyNor announcement follows the recent news that Mercedes-Benz would supply fuel cell vehicles to Iceland (more here), leading us to surmise that the search for a viable, cleaner future appears to be driven by countries north of the artic circle. Perhaps those countries are closest to the melting glaciers and icebergs. Who would have guessed?

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