A Guide to Investing in Fuel Cell Stocks

We recently published a piece on how hydrogen fuel cells might be used to power drones that carry humans, leading one of our readers to remark, “not the ‘hydrogen economy’ again!” We share those sentiments, having watched fuel cell technology take off at a crawl with no widespread adoption apparent. While fuel cells are being used for large-scale energy backup solutions, we’re still a long way from having fuel cell products that can power our smartphones. Elon Musk said fuel cells for cars are b******t, yet one of his competitors has now pre-sold billions worth of fuel cell-powered semi-trucks. It’s a good time to catch up on what’s going with the hydrogen economy. Before we do that, here’s a quick primer for anyone that’s coming up to speed on the promise of hydrogen fuel cells.

What are Fuel Cells?

At some point in the past, you’ve probably heard of the promise that fuel cells hold for generating electricity cleanly and cheaply. Using only hydrogen and oxygen, a fuel