The world's first fuel cell powered scooter is expected to be unveiled at the upcoming 2004 Methanol Forum.

Staged in Houston's St Regis Hotel, the two-day conference will begin on October 13th and explore some of the commercial opportunities within the industry.

In particular, a range of applications harnessing the clean energy supply will be demonstrated, with experts discussing the future of the industry.

As well as the first fuel cell scooter, attendees will also be able to examine a range of the latest micro fuel cells for consumer electronic devices and some military prototypes.

Thomas Ollila, technology development manager for fuel cells at Parker Hannifin, will exhibit the scooter, which runs using an onboard methanol-powered fuel cell that is capable of more than doubling the operating range of a standard battery version.

The conference is sponsored by the Methanol Institute.