DANBURY, Conn., Nov. 11, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- FuelCell Energy, Inc. (Nasdaq:FCEL) a leading manufacturer of ultra-clean high efficiency power plants using renewable and other fuels for commercial, industrial, government, and utility clients, today announced the sale of a 1.4 megawatt (MW) DFC1500 power plant to be installed at the San Jose/Santa Clara Water Pollution Control Plant in San Jose, California. UTS Bioenergy LLC will purchase the DFC1500 and sell the power generated to the San Jose/Santa Clara Water Pollution Control Plant under a 20-year power purchase agreement. FuelCell Energy will service the power plant under a long term service agreement and the unit is expected to be operational in early 2012.
"The Environmental Protection Agency recently acknowledged our Plant as one of the nation's top facilities for producing and using renewable energy on-site – about two-thirds of the energy used by our 11 megawatt facility comes from methane derived from digester and landfill processes. We want to operate as much as possible on clean, sustainably-produced electricity, and adding this fuel cell generated power to our energy portfolio will help us do that," said Dale Ihrke, Plant Manager. "We're also getting the fuel cell generated power at a reasonable, known price over the 20-year term, helping to remove uncertainty in future power costs. And because fuel cells produce clean energy with minimal air permit requirements, we've significantly reduced regulatory uncertainty compared to other power generation options. "
Fuel cells that operate on biogas such as the methane generated by the wastewater treatment process are renewable. Unlike wind and solar, DFC fuel cells deliver baseload power around-the-clock, which is critical to the operation of a wastewater treatment plant. This distributed generation attribute of fuel cells reduces reliance on the transmission grid.
Clean electricity is generated within the fuel cell by an electrochemical reaction that does not involve combustion. Due to the lack of combustion, virtually no pollutants are emitted such as NOx, SOx or particulate matter. The primary byproducts of this clean power generation process are high-quality heat and water. This ultra-clean power generation will help the San Jose/Santa Clara wastewater facility reach its sustainability goals.
When utilizing the byproduct heat from the fuel cell electrical generation process, fuel cells can achieve up to 90 percent efficiency. High efficiency results in lower energy costs as the fuel cell generates more electricity per unit of fuel than less efficient combustion based power sources. The byproduct heat for this fuel cell installation will be utilized for the wastewater treatment process.
"Fuel cells offer reliable baseload power and their ability to operate on renewable biogas offers real value to wastewater treatment plants," said Arun Sharma, Vice President Business Development, UTS BioEnergy LLC. "Our customer had demanding requirements to obtain clean and reliable power at competitive costs. DFC power plants are the solution for meeting challenging power generation requirements."
"Wastewater treatment plants represent an excellent application of our clean, efficient and dependable fuel cell power plants," said Chip Bottone, Senior Vice President and Chief Commercial Officer, FuelCell Energy, Inc.
This project is eligible for a grant under the California Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP). The SGIP promotes the installation of clean distributed power generation sources.
The San Jose/Santa Clara Water Pollution Control Plant is the largest advanced wastewater treatment facility in the Western U.S., treating the wastewater from 1.4 million people and 17,000 businesses within an eight-city service area.
UTS BioEnergy LLC develops, owns and operates alternative energy projects with a specialty on biogas production and conversion to electricity and heat. The Company, based in Encinitas, California, has extensive experience transforming a variety of waste streams into energy in a cost effective manner.
About FuelCell Energy
DFC® fuel cells are generating power at over 50 locations worldwide. The Company's power plants have generated over 600 million kWh of power using a variety of fuels including renewable wastewater gas, biogas from beer and food processing, as well as natural gas and other hydrocarbon fuels. FuelCell Energy has partnerships with major power plant developers and power companies around the world. The Company also receives funding from the U.S. Department of Energy and other government agencies for the development of leading edge technologies such as fuel cells. For more information please visit our website at
This news release contains forward-looking statements, including statements regarding the Company's plans and expectations regarding the continuing development, commercialization and financing of its fuel cell technology and business plans. 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, general risks associated with product development, manufacturing, changes in the regulatory environment, customer strategies, potential volatility of energy prices, rapid technological change, competition, and the Company's ability to achieve its sales plans and cost reduction targets, 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.
Direct FuelCell, DFC, DFC/T, DFC-H2 and FuelCell Energy, Inc. are all registered trademarks of FuelCell Energy, Inc. DFC-ERG is a registered trademark jointly owned by Enbridge, Inc. and FuelCell Energy, Inc.
CONTACT: FuelCell Energy, Inc. Kurt Goddard, Vice President Investor Relations 203-830-7494 ir@fce.com City of San Jose - Environmental Services Department Jennifer Garnett (408) 535-8554 jennifer.garnett@sanjoseca.gov