Korea's top automaker Hyundai Motor Co. has been named a partner in a U.S. project to develop next-generation fuel-cell electric vehicles, the company said Saturday.

   Hyundai Motor is one of only four foreign automakers that has been named a partner for the so-called H₂USA project, it said. The others are Germany's Mercedes-Benz and Japan's Toyota Motor Corp. and Nissan Motor Co.

   The U.S. project seeks to develop new, efficient fuel-cell batteries, along with the necessary infrastructure to help promote the use of electric vehicles in the United States, such as recharge stations, according to Hyundai Motor.

   The South Korean company is expected to play a crucial, role as it is the world's only automaker with a facility for mass

production of fuel-cell vehicles, Hyundai officials said.

   The company has also agreed to provide its Tucson ix fuel-cell electric vehicle  for test runs in the U.S., they said.

   The Tucson ix FCEV is the world's only commercialized fuel-cell vehicle that can run up to 594 kilometers on each recharge, about four times more efficient than other electric vehicles.
(Yonhap News)