Oct 25 - Business Wire
'Ultra-Clean' Fuel Cell Power Plant to Provide Base Load Power and Heat for Alameda County's Correctional Facility
FuelCell Energy will provide Alameda County a DFC1500 power plant and related
operating and maintenance services. Chevron Energy Solutions will act as overall
project manager and integrator, providing design, engineering, construction, and
installation services to Alameda County. The DFC1500 power plant is expected to
provide 90 percent of base load power requirements for the Santa Rita Jail.
"The addition of this 1 megawatt (MW) fuel cell power plant to the
jail's existing 1.18 MW solar power system gives the County the most
environmentally-sound distributed power system in the country. We are excited to
be able to combine the base load capabilities of this fuel cell plant with the
daytime peaking characteristics of photovoltaics. This will be the
first-of-its-kind facility to take advantage of these two clean emerging
technologies," said Alameda County's Energy Program Manager Matt Muniz.
"This project demonstrates that our 'ultra-clean' DFC power plants can
provide a cost-effective and environmentally sound energy solution for
institutional customers," said Stephen R. Torres, FuelCell Energy's Western
Region Vice President. "Correctional facilities, with their stable base
load power requirements, provide another key vertical market for our DFC
products."
The market for combined heat and power applications for correctional
facilities in the U.S. is estimated to be 2,700 megawatts, based on a January
2000 study prepared for the U.S. Department of Energy by ONSITE SYSCOM Energy
Corporation.
"We applaud Alameda County officials for their innovation in
implementing a totally environmentally friendly approach to reducing their
energy consumption and costs," said Jim Davis, President of Chevron Energy
Solutions. "We believe this can be a model to be followed by other
municipalities and institutions in California."
The new Santa Rita Jail is recognized as one of the most technologically
innovative jails in the world. The facility holds about 4,000 inmates in 18
modern housing units. It is considered a "mega-jail" and ranks as the
third largest facility in California and fifth largest in the nation. Santa Rita
is accredited by the American Correctional Association, thus making it the only
facility in California holding this prestigious award.
Alameda County is receiving up to $1.4 million in project funding from the
California Public Utilities Commission's Self Generation Incentive Program, as
well as a $1 million grant from the U.S. Department of Defense's 2003 Climate
Change Fuel Cell Program.
About Direct FuelCells
Direct FuelCells efficiently generate clean electricity at distributed
customer locations, including hospitals, schools, universities, hotels and other
commercial and industrial facilities, as well as in grid-support applications
for utility customers. Direct FuelCells operate similar to large, continuously
operating batteries except they utilize a fuel to generate electricity, such as
natural gas or digester gas from wastewater treatment facilities. DFC power
plants are hydrogen generators, and because of this are ready today and do not
require the creation of a hydrogen infrastructure. This high-efficiency
technology generates more electric power from less fuel and with less carbon
dioxide emissions than traditional combustion methods. The sub-megawatt fuel
cell power plant is a collaborative effort using Direct FuelCell(R) technology
of FuelCell Energy and the HotModule(R) balance of plant design of MTU CFC
Solutions, GmbH, a subsidiary of DaimlerChrysler.
About Chevron Energy Solutions
Chevron Energy Solutions, a subsidiary of ChevronTexaco, partners with
institutions and businesses to improve facilities and increase their efficiency,
help reduce energy expenses and help ensure reliable, high quality power for
critical operations. Its customers include federal government agencies; state,
county and municipal government agencies; schools, colleges and universities;
and many other public institutions and commercial and industrial businesses.
With about two dozen offices nationwide, the company maintains in-house
engineering, monitoring and project management capabilities, provides financing
options and delivers solutions designed to address each customer's particular
needs without promoting specific vendors, products or commodities. More
information is available at www.chevronenergy.com.
About FuelCell Energy, Inc.
FuelCell Energy, Inc., based in Danbury, Connecticut, is a world leader in
the development and manufacture of high temperature hydrogen fuel cells for
clean electric power generation. The Company has developed commercial
distribution alliances for its carbonate Direct FuelCell products with Chevron
Energy Solutions, Caterpillar, PPL Energy Plus, Alliance Power and LOGANEnergy
in the U.S.; MTU CFC Solutions in Europe; Marubeni Corporation in Asia; and
Enbridge Inc. in Canada. FuelCell Energy developed its patented Direct FuelCell
technology for stationary power plants with the U.S. Department of Energy
through its Office of Fossil Energy's National Energy Technology Laboratory.
FuelCell Energy is also developing next generation high temperature fuel cell
products, such as a diesel fueled marine Ship Service Fuel Cell, a
combined-cycle DFC/Turbine(R) power plant and solid oxide fuel cells for
applications up to 100 kilowatts. More information is available at http://www.fuelcellenergy.com.
This news release contains forward-looking statements, including statements
regarding the Company's plans and expectations regarding the development and
commercialization of its fuel cell technology. All forward- looking statements
are subject to risks and uncertainties that could cause actual results to differ
materially from those projected. Factors that could cause such a difference
include, without limitation, the risk that commercial field trials of the
Company's products will not occur when anticipated, general risks associated
with product development, manufacturing, changes in the utility regulatory
environment, potential volatility of energy prices, rapid technological change,
and competition, as well as other risks set forth in the Company's filings with
the Securities and Exchange Commission. The forward-looking statements contained
herein speak only as of the date of this press release. The Company expressly
disclaims any obligation or undertaking to release publicly any updates or
revisions to any such statement to reflect any change in the Company's
expectations or any change in events, conditions or circumstances on which any
such statement is based.