GM thinks Hawaii could be paradise -- for hydrogen vehicles

General Motors' fuel-cell director thinks Hawaii is paradise -- but not the same reason as the rest of us. He thinks it could become the perfect bastion of hydrogen-powered fuel-cell cars.

Dan O'Connell believes the Aloha State could be first to lick the biggest impediment to development of super-environmentally friendly hydrogen-powered cars: lack of an adequate number of fueling stations.

Hawaii has a few built-in advantages for fostering the new fuel. It imports all of its energy. And gasoline prices are routinely among the highest in the nation. But the best news is that the local natural gas provider, The Gas Company, expects to produce hydrogen as a by-product of its production of synthetic natural gas from crude oil. Unless it finds a use for that hydrogen, it could be wasted.

O'Connell says 15 to 25 stations could blanket Oahu, the island where Honolulu is situated. The rental car market alone is vigorous. First comes the chicken, then the egg: "Our goal is to get the station put in and start putting cars in," O'Connell says. If Hawaii succeeds, maybe it could set a model for the nation.