The future of fuel cells in a long term inter-technology competition framework

New technological options generally represent solutions to new requirements or constraints. While the solutions in the framework of existing technologies are generally expensive, clean technologies are often considered as best alternatives for meeting sustainable development targets [24]. Nevertheless new technologies have to compete with the existing ones, whose environmental performances appear unsatisfactory today but may improve, sometimes significantly, in the future. Thus new technological options involve significant risks and costs but also anticipations of future opportunities and profits that play a central role in the decisions to involve in new development.