U.S. Department of Energy Secretary Stephen Chu has announced $41.9 million in funding to stimulate growth in fuel cell markets. This effort is designed to expand the use of clean and renewable energy sources and reduce America's dependence on foreign oil. The funding comes from American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for fuel cell technology.These efforts will accelerate the commercialization and deployment of fuel cells and will create jobs in fuel cell manufacturing, installation, maintenance, and support services. The new funding will improve the potential of fuel cells to provide power in stationary, portable and specialty vehicle applications, while cutting carbon emissions and broadening our nation’s clean energy technology portfolio.
The $41.9 million will support immediate deployment of nearly 1,000 fuel cell systems for emergency backup power and material handling applications (e.g., forklifts) that have emerged as key early markets in which fuel cells can compete with conventional power technologies. Additional systems will be used to accelerate the demonstration of stationary fuel cells for combined heat and power in the larger residential and commercial markets. The increase in manufacturing volume in key early markets will also bring costs down and encourage the growth of a domestic supplier base. A variety of technologies will be developed and deployed, including polymer electrolyte, solid oxide and direct-methanol fuel cells.
The funding includes:
$41.9 million from President Obama’s American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to fund 13 projects to deploy fuel cells – helping to build a consumer base for U.S. fuel cell manufacturers.
Approximately $72.4 million in cost-share funding from industry participants—for a total of nearly $114.3 million. This cost share demonstrates private sector commitment to developing and deploying these clean, energy efficient technologies. More information on DOE’s fuel cell activities.
State-by-State list of awards
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