Temple of VTEC Rumors and News - Ballard and Honda Sign Three-Year Supply Agreement

Ballard and Honda Sign Three-Year Supply Agreement

For Immediate Release ? December 2, 2002

Vancouver, Canada - Ballard Power Systems (TSX:BLD; NASDAQ:BLDP) has signed a supply agreement with Honda Motor Co., Ltd. of Tokyo, Japan. Under the terms of the agreement, Ballard will supply Honda with up to 32 Mark 902 fuel cell modules through 2005 and support services for Honda?s fuel cell vehicle customer deliveries in the US and Japan.

?This production supply agreement with Honda Motor Co. builds on our previous developmental supply agreement with Honda R&D Co., and confirms Honda?s confidence in Ballard?s fuel cell technology and our ability to meet Honda?s stringent performance requirements,? said Dr. Andreas Truckenbrodt, Ballard?s Vice President and General Manager, Transportation Division. ?This agreement enables Honda to deliver its fleet of fuel cell vehicles, powered by Ballard?, for operation by Honda?s customers in real-world conditions.?

?This is an historic event for Honda and for Ballard,? said Mr. Dennis Campbell, Ballard?s President and Chief Operating Officer. ?For the first time, Honda is delivering fuel cell powered vehicles to its customers. This is a landmark day in the evolution of the fuel cell industry and we are very proud that Honda, a company so distinguished for its excellence in powertrain engineering, is leading the way with Ballard under the hood of their FCX fuel cell vehicle. The practical experience gained from these fuel cell vehicles will be invaluable in our efforts to develop a reliable, cost effective and high performance alternative to the internal combustion engine.?

Ballard's focus is to drive product innovation, cost reduction, and the development of volume manufacturing processes to enable automotive companies to introduce a new generation of energy efficient, environmentally friendly vehicles.

This release contains forward-looking statements that are based on the beliefs of Ballard?s management and reflect Ballard?s current expectations as contemplated under the Safe Harbor provisions of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Law of 1995. When used in this release, the words ?estimate?, ?project?, ?believe?, ?anticipate?, ?intend?, ?expect?, ?plan?, ?predict?, ?may?, ?should?, ?will?, the negative of these words or such other variations thereon or comparable terminology are intended to identify forward-looking statements. Such statements reflect the current views of Ballard with respect to future events based on currently available information and are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ materially from those contemplated in those forward-looking statements.

Ballard Power Systems is recognized as the world leader in developing, manufacturing and marketing zero-emission proton exchange membrane fuel cells. Ballard is commercializing fuel cell engines for transportation applications and fuel cell systems for portable and stationary products ranging from 1 kilowatt to 250 kilowatts. Ballard is also commercializing electric drives for fuel cell and other electric vehicles, power conversion products, natural gas and hydrogen generator sets and is a Tier 1 automotive supplier of friction materials for power train components. Ballard's proprietary technology is enabling automobile, bus, electrical equipment, portable power and stationary product manufacturers to develop environmentally clean products for sale. Ballard is partnering with strong, world-leading companies, including DaimlerChrysler, Ford, EBARA, ALSTOM and FirstEnergy, to commercialize Ballard? fuel cells. Ballard has supplied fuel cells to Honda, Nissan, Volkswagen, Yamaha, Cinergy and Coleman Powermate, among others.