FuelCell Energy

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FuelCell Energy, Inc.
Company typePublic company
Nasdaq: FCEL
Russell 2000 Index component
ISINUS35952H6018
IndustryRenewable energy, Fuel cells, Carbon capture and energy storage
Founded1969
HeadquartersDanbury, Connecticut, United States
Key people
Jason Few, CEO and President[1]
RevenueUS$70.87 million (as of 2021)[2]
Websitewww.fuelcellenergy.com
Former logo

FuelCell Energy, Inc. is a publicly traded fuel cell company, headquartered in Danbury, Connecticut. It designs, manufactures, operates and services Direct Fuel Cell power plants (a type of molten carbonate fuel cell).

As one of the biggest publicly traded fuel cell manufacturers in the U.S.,[3] the company provides clean energy in over 50 locations all over the world.[4] It operates the world’s largest fuel cell park, Gyeonggi Green Energy Fuel cell park, which is located in South Korea. The park consists of 21 power plants providing 59 Megawatt of electricity plus district heating to a number of customers in South Korea.[5] It also operates the largest fuel cell park in North America, consisting of five 2.8MW power plants and a rankine cycle turbine bottoming cycle in Bridgeport, Connecticut.[6] It's customer base covers commercial and industrial enterprises including utility companies, municipalities, and universities.[7]

History[edit]

The company was founded as Energy Research Corporation (ERC) in 1969 by early fuel cell pioneers Bernard Baker and Martin Klein, both chemical engineers with experience in advanced battery technologies. From the 1970s to 1990s, with sponsorship from U.S. military and other utility companies, the company extended to low-temperature fuel cell area and high-temperature carbonate fuel systems, which proved to have greater potential in commercial applications.

It completed its IPO in 1992 and was renamed as FuelCell Energy, Inc. It spun off its battery division, Evercel, in 1999. FuelCell Energy began expanding globally in 2007 through a partnership with POSCO Energy, targeting markets in Southeast Asia, particularly South Korea, but the company announced the termination of the partnership in 2020.

In 2012, the company’s European facility was established with German-based FuelCell Energy Solutions, GmbH.[8] In the same year, it completed a joint venture with Fraunhofer IKTS and acquired Versa Power Systems, Inc.[9]

Beginning in 2012, FuelCell entered into a partnership with ExxonMobil, removing carbon dioxide from the exhaust of Exxon’s power plants through the carbon capture and sequestration (CCS) process.[4] In 2019, the two companies expanded their joint-development agreement, with a focus on enhancing carbonate fuel cell technology for the purpose of capturing carbon dioxide from industrial facilities.[10]

In 2017 FuelCell entered an agreement with Toyota to develop a facility at Long Beach, California.[11] The Tri-Gen system will convert California agricultural waste into 2.35 megawatts of electricity and 1.2 tons of hydrogen per day. The hydrogen will be used in Toyota Mirai sedans and heavy-duty trucks in short-distance fleets.[12]

Also in 2017, FuelCell was tapped by the Office of Naval Research to provide assistance on the Large Displacement Unmanned Undersea Vehicle (LDUUV) program. The LDUUV is a large unmanned submersible with a planned 70 day plus endurance that would allow the LDUUV to be based at a pier like a traditional submarine instead of requiring a dedicated launch and recovery platform.[13]

In 2018, FuelCell Energy earned a $1.5 million research grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) to develop the company’s fuel cell technology to aid the nuclear industry by converting excess power back into hydrogen.[14] That same year, FuelCell began the construction of two plants in Hartford and New Britain as part of a clean energy procurement process for the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (DEEP).[15]

In November 2018, FuelCell acquired a 14.9-MW fuel cell project in Bridgeport, Connecticut from Dominion Energy for $37 million. FuelCell had developed, built and been operating the plant since 2013. The plant is powered by five FuelCell stationary fuel cell power plants and an organic rankine turbine that converts heat from the fuel cells into additional electricity, which is sold to Connecticut Light & Power.[16]

In 2019, FuelCell entered an agreement with Drax Power Station in the UK. FuelCell will support a study to evaluate the use of the company’s carbonate fuel cells to capture carbon dioxide emissions from Drax’s biomass boilers, which generate power with sustainable wood pellets sourced from responsibly managed forests.[17]

In August 2019, Jason Few was named FuelCell’s new president and CEO. Prior to FuelCell, Few was president of cloud-based software waste and recycling optimization company Sustayn.[18]

In May 2021, FuelCell Energy signed an $8 million contract with the DOE. The DOE program is focused on developing system approaches to achieve electrical efficiency with solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) technology. It will allow FuelCell to continue research and development toward commercialization of SOFC.[19]

In June 2021, FuelCell completed construction on a bio-fuels fuel cell project with the city of San Bernardino Municipal Water Department (SBMWD). The SureSource 1500 plant treats the city’s anaerobic digester gas to produce electricity and thermal energy to support the county’s water reclamation plant.[20] As part of the agreement, SBMWD purchases electricity from FuelCell Energy.[21]

Products and services[edit]

FuelCell provides on-site power generation, combined heat and power, distributed hydrogen, carbon capture and hydrogen-based long duration storage.[22] The company today has fuel cell projects that run on natural gas and renewable biogas. The company’s products can produce hydrogen in addition to power and thermal attributes. Additionally, the company has capabilities for fuel cell-based carbon capture, long-duration energy storage and solid-oxide based electrolysis.[23]

FuelCell’s proprietary technology uses carbonate fuel cells to capture and concentrate carbon dioxide from large industrial sources. Combustion exhaust is directed to the fuel cell, which produces power while capturing and concentrating carbon dioxide for permanent storage.[10] Fuel cells take energy like natural gas or hydrogen, combine that with air, and make electricity. The process is done via an electrochemical process, which doesn’t burn fuel, making the process cleaner and more efficient than conventional methods.[14]

References[edit]

  1. ^ "www.fce.com". Archived from the original on 2019-12-29. Retrieved 2019-12-29.
  2. ^ "FCEL Financials". Finance.yahoo.com. Archived from the original on 2021-09-09. Retrieved 2021-09-09.
  3. ^ Nelder, Chris (2013-09-23). "FuelCell Energy Eyes the Grid Support Market". Greentechmedia.com. Archived from the original on 2014-02-21. Retrieved 2014-02-25.
  4. ^ a b Schwartz, John (5 May 2016). "Exxon Mobil Backs FuelCell Effort to Advance Carbon Capture Technology". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 30 August 2021. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
  5. ^ "World's Largest Fuel Cell Park Completed in South Korea". Finance.yahoo.com. 2014-01-19. Archived from the original on 2014-03-06. Retrieved 2014-02-25.[Link to precise page]
  6. ^ "Largest Fuel Cell Power Project in North America". www.ecmag.com. 2013-02-25. Archived from the original on 2014-12-16. Retrieved 2014-11-08.
  7. ^ "FCEL Stock Quote - FuelCell Energy Inc. Stock Price Today (FCEL ..." Marketwatch.com. Archived from the original on 2014-03-01. Retrieved 2014-02-25.
  8. ^ "Brief History Company Website". Fuelcellenrgy.com. Archived from the original on 2013-10-31. Retrieved 2014-02-25.
  9. ^ "FuelCell Energy Inc: NASDAQ:FCEL quotes & news - Google Finance". Archived from the original on 2014-01-03. Retrieved 2014-02-25.
  10. ^ a b "ExxonMobil expands CCS technology deal with FuelCell Energy". Power Engineering International. 6 November 2019. Archived from the original on 30 August 2021. Retrieved 30 August 2021.
  11. ^ Merchant, Emma Foehringer (12 December 2017). "Toyota and FuelCell Energy Plan to Build a Giant Renewable Power and Hydrogen Plant". GreenTechMedia. Archived from the original on 5 August 2018. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
  12. ^ Lippert, John; Martin, Chris (30 November 2017). "Toyota Plans California Fuel Cell Plant to Make Power, Hydrogen". Bloomberg News. Archived from the original on 11 September 2021. Retrieved 11 September 2021.
  13. ^ Keller, John. "Military research projects may be coming together to put large long-endurance UUVs in sight". Military & Aerospace Electronics. Military & Aerospace Electronics. Archived from the original on 5 August 2018. Retrieved 5 August 2018.
  14. ^ a b Skahill, Patrick (26 May 2018). "FuelCell Energy, Inc. Gets Federal Boost While Continuing To Gauge State Support". Connecticut Public Radio / NPR. Archived from the original on 5 September 2021. Retrieved 5 September 2021.
  15. ^ Cooper, Joe (19 July 2018). "Hartford project stimulates FuelCell Energy's growth". Hartford Business Journal. Archived from the original on 8 November 2022. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  16. ^ Patel, Sonal (6 November 2018). "Dominion Sells 14.9-MW Bridgeport Fuel Cell Facility". Power Magazine. Archived from the original on 12 January 2023. Retrieved 10 August 2023.
  17. ^ Zimmerman, Kevin (28 June 2019). "Danbury's FuellCell Energy makes deal with U.K. power company". Westfield & Fairfield County Business Journals. Archived from the original on 27 September 2021. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
  18. ^ Zimmerman, Kevin (21 August 2019). "Danbury's struggling FuelCell Energy names new CEO". Westfield & Fairfield County Business Journals. Archived from the original on 27 September 2021. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
  19. ^ Teehan, Sean (May 4, 2021), Danbury-based FuelCell Energy inks $8M contract with U.S. Dept. of Energy, Hartford Business Journal, archived from the original on May 4, 2021, retrieved September 1, 2021
  20. ^ Burgess, Molly (2 July 2021). "California: FuelCell Energy's renewable biofuel project now operational". GasWorld. Archived from the original on 28 August 2021. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  21. ^ Voegele, Erin (7 May 2020). "Construction on biofuel fuel cell project begins in California". BioMass Magazine. Archived from the original on 28 August 2021. Retrieved 28 August 2021.
  22. ^ "FuelCell Energy Inc". The Wall Street Journal. Archived from the original on 25 August 2021. Retrieved 25 August 2021.
  23. ^ Products, FuelCellEnergy.com, archived from the original on September 22, 2021, retrieved September 25, 2021

External links[edit]

  • Official website
  • Business data for FuelCell Energy:
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