Investors are now recognising the importance of fuel cell electric vehicles ( FCEVs ) as a growth driver of platinum demand . Electricity from hydrogen fuel cells is fast gaining momentum as a low-carbon alternative to electricity from fossil fuels , generating electricity through an electrochemical reaction that combines hydrogen and oxygen to generate electricity , with heat and water the only by-products . Already widely deployed in the public and private sectors as power back-up sources , and in material handling ( fork-lift trucks ), mobile fuel cells in the automotive industry require platinum as their catalyst in order to provide the performance demanded by consumers . Fuel cell electric cars provide the same zero emissions as a battery electric car , while retaining the range and refuelling speed of conventional internal combustion engine cars . Current commercially available fuel cell cars use over 30g of platinum per vehicle and this is expected to fall over time and with higher production volumes , to around 15g per vehicle . This is still materially higher than the 6-12g of platinum in the emissions control system of a diesel car Trevor Raymond , Director of Research at WPIC

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