FuelCellsWorks

The Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Technical Advisory Committee (HTAC) has issued their Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Commercialization and Technical Development Activity: 2010 Annual Report. HTAC was established under Section 807 of the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to provide technical and programmatic advice to the Energy Secretary on the U.S. Department of Energy’s hydrogen research, development, and demonstration efforts. The group includes representatives of domestic industry, academia, professional societies, government agencies, financial organizations, and environmental groups, as well as experts in hydrogen safety. View the 2010 Annual Report or learn more about HTAC.

By MICHAEL GARRY

Schenectady, N.Y., went live with a new power-generating 400-kilowatt fuel cell system at an existing store here Monday.

“Frank just fired up the fuel cell,” said Benny Smith, vice president of facilities, Price Chopper, during a webinar on fuel cells for supermarkets, referring to Frank Blake, electrical specialist for the chain.

Price Chopper’s initial 400-kilowatt fuel cell installation took place in a new store in Colonie, N.Y., which opened in June 2009. The chain, which operates 128 stores, is working on a third installation in Middletown, Conn. The fuel cells are supplied by UTC Power, South Windsor, Conn.

At the Colonie store, the fuel cell generates 60% to 70% of the electricity required during the summer, and all that is needed during the winter. The system also provides heat for a variety of store applications, including hot water, refrigeration, air handling, snow melting and floor heating.

“Supermarkets are a great facility to apply fuel cell technology because we are operating 24-7 year-round,” said Smith. “It’s not like an office building where you go home at five o’clock and the lights go off.”

Price Chopper received grants from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) to help finance both the Colonie and Glenville fuel cell projects. Even with that assistance, Smith put the cost of a fuel cell at between $1 million and $1.5 million.

“Without the grants, the projects would not be approved,” he said.

While he is still analyzing the payback period, he estimated it to be five years or less.

AFC Energy plc, a world leading developer of low cost alkaline fuel cells, will be holding its Annual General Meeting today at 2pm. At the meeting, the Board will update on the technical developments of its alkaline fuel cells.

Following a positive independent review of AFC Energy’s technology by the Centre for Process Innovation (CPI), the Company initiated work on its commercial fuel cell system in parallel with work on the development scale Alpha system. The Beta project involved a design reassessment of the entire fuel cell system.

The aim of the Beta project was to optimise performance, increase reliability and longevity, simplify operation, installation and servicing and minimise parts costs. This design work is now largely complete.

The technical focus is now about demonstrating the latest advances in the novel porous membrane in conjunction with new metal electrodes. These are incorporated in the commercial-scale Beta cells currently being built for proving trials at Dunsfold in the UK and with Akzo Nobel in Germany. It is anticipated that these Beta cells will be available in the second quarter of this year.

Laboratory trials for this new fuel cell architecture have delivered increased power output performance, significantly reduced parts count and improved both electrical current collection and catalyst support.

A recent meeting with Akzo Nobel agreed a strengthened basis of cooperation and AFC Energy now has the opportunity to submit new proposals for further structured tests with agreed rigorous system improvements to output and longevity.

In addition to the technical progress there have been very positive advances in the development of economic manufacturing processes. These include:

 the potential to manufacture the electrodes at commercially viable rates with low capital requirements, and

 a method for recovering and reusing cells to reduce replacement costs and lower environmental footprint of the fuel cell system.

Ed Wilson, Managing Director of AFC Energy, commented, “AFC Energy has a clearly defined route to delivering technically proven commercial products and looks forward to providing further technical updates as development milestones are reached.”

Boston, Massachusetts - SiEnergy Systems, an Allied Minds company commercializing thin film solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) technology from Harvard University, is pleased to announce breakthrough results in scaling up the active area of its nanometric thin film SOFC. Principal Scientist, Masaru Tsuchiya, made this advancement in collaboration with Harvard University researchers, Dr. Bo-Kuai Lai and Professor Shriram Ramanathan.

In a paper published in the April 3, 2011 online issue of Nature Nanotechnology, the researchers presented thermomechanically stable, nanometer scale electrolyte membranes with lateral dimensions on the scale of millimeters to centimeters. A metal grid placed adjacent to the fuel cell provided mechanical stability as well as enhanced electrical conductance. The demonstrated performance includes a power density of over 150 mW/cm² at 510°C with a platinum-free cathode, and a total power output of over 20mW from a single fuel cell chip, the leading performance among nanometric thin film SOFCs.

The breakthrough has practical relevance for the broad commercialization of fuel cells since thin film SOFC s offer three major advantages over conventional SOFCs:
1. They reduce the amount of materials required in making fuel cells, including rare-earth elements such as yttrium and lanthanum, thus significantly reducing the material cost of SOFCs.
2. The grid’s structure reduced the potential of breakage compared to other thin film SOFC.
3. Enhanced conductance across the nanometric thin film electrolytes enables operation at a commercially advantageous temperature of 350-550°C. Conventional SOFC temperatures (600-1,000°C) make them more susceptible to corrosion and requires more materials for insulation.

“Although proof-of-concept nanometric thin film SOFCs operating at 350-550°C have been demonstrated before, their scalability has remained a significant challenge till now. We have successfully demonstrated scalability of nanometer thin film SOFC technology through careful optimization of metallic grid design and oxide deposition parameters,” says Dr. Tsuchiya, Principal Scientist at SiEnergy and the lead author of the paper.

SiEnergy is currently expanding its operations to accelerate the commercialization of its novel thin film SOFC technology.

Berlin — Heliocentris Energy Solutions AG, a leading specialist in clean energy storage solutions, announces an OEM-agreement with Lab-Volt Systems, Inc., a global leader in technical training equipment with corporate headquarters in Farmingdale, New Jersey, USA. Heliocentris will provide both fuel cell and hydrogen educational OEM packages for Lab-Volt to develop and sell as co-branded fuel cell training systems throughout the world. Within this agreement, Lab-Volt is currently launching its Hydrogen Fuel Cell Trainer.

For 50 years, Lab-Volt has been a global leader in the design and manufacture of hands-on training laboratories for public education, industry, and the military. The fuel cell training system developed with Heliocentris uses real-world components to represent the basic functions of a hydrogen fuel cell system and is ideal for teaching foundational principles of fuel cell systems. Yet, the modular design of the Hydrogen Fuel Cell Training System enables configuration flexibility for all levels from simple to advanced, addressing the needs of students who are new to the technology as well as those with more experience.

Dr. Henrik Colell, CEO of Heliocentris Energy Solutions AG said: “We appreciate the opportunity of working together with Lab-Volt as a global leader in the field of technical training and regard this cooperation as a confirmation of the quality of our products.”

Dan Rodriguez, Lab-Volt Senior Vice President, Sales & Marketing, Americas said: “We are excited about working together with Heliocentris, the world’s leading authority on fuel cells used in education. We are experiencing an increasing demand and interest for fuel cell training and are therefore excited about introducing a Hydrogen Fuel Cell module into our EMS product line.”

Spokane, WA– ReliOn, the leading provider of high reliability fuel cell solutions for backup power applications, today announced it has secured an additional U.S. $6 million in equity financing with existing investors. ReliOn now has over 3.5 MW of its fuel cell systems, representing approximately 1,225 customer sites globally, providing clean and reliable backup power based on its proprietary fuel cell technology. The proceeds of this financing will be used to continue commercial growth in the U.S. and to expand international marketing and sales activities. ReliOn is currently engaged in two significant programs with large wireless operators in North America and is pursuing growth in Europe through ReliOn’s recently announced collaboration with HOPPECKE Batterien GmbH. ReliOn’s success in providing turn-key long run-time solutions, supported by bulk refueling capabilities in North America, is enabling opportunities in Europe, Asia and other international markets.

ReliOn CEO, Gary Flood, stated, “This is an exciting time for ReliOn. In 2010, we experienced year over year tripling of both sales and gross profit as a percentage of sales. With this funding, we are able to accelerate a number of important programs currently underway which move the company toward our objective of becoming the first profitable fuel cell company.”

About ReliOn:
ReliOn’s continuous innovation in core technology has made it a leader in the development and marketing of modular, fault-tolerant fuel cell products for customers seeking solutions to critical backup power applications. With more than 1,225 systems serving sites in 38 U.S. states and 21 countries, ReliOn customers enjoy the benefits of high reliability, low operating costs and easy maintenance. ReliOn fuel cells…simply powerful. www.relion-inc.com

Plug Power to Deliver New GenDrive System to be Used in European-Style Lift Trucks

LATHAM, N.Y. — Plug Power Inc. (Nasdaq:PLUG), a leader in providing clean, reliable energy solutions, today announces that WinCo Foods LLC will use 184 GenDrive^(R) fuel cell units to power its electric lift truck fleet at its 800,000 sq. ft. grocery distribution center in Modesto, CA. Plug Power will provide WinCo with:

• 93 class-3 GenDrive units to operate pallet jacks
• 38 class-2 GenDrive units to operate stand-up counterbalance trucks
• 53 class-2 GenDrive units to operate European-style moving mast lift trucks

WinCo will pay for the systems through a five year lease with Somerset Capital Group. Somerset was identified as Plug Power’s global customer lease provider for GenDrive fuel cell units in November, 2010. WinCo is the second customer to take advantage of the strategic arrangement put in place to leverage Somerset’s leasing capabilities to drive market penetration for GenDrive.

This transaction with WinCo Foods marks Plug Power’s first large grocery installation in California. WinCo moves produce, dry and freezer goods at their facility, a task which will be made more productive thanks to the constant power provided by GenDrive during an entire shift. For WinCo, this conversion from lead-acid batteries will mean increases in productivity, as well as a significant reduction in grid-supplied energy use, where electricity charges are in excess of $.10 per kW-hr.

At the same time, the GenDrive units being developed for WinCo’s European-style moving mast lift trucks will offer Plug Power a segue into the European material handling industry with a reliable product. The material handling industry in Europe is approximately a $5.7B USD market and provides a path for expansion for Plug Power.

“California is an important state for Plug Power to aggressively prove the commercial viability of GenDrive because of the high energy costs currently absorbed by our customers,” said Andy Marsh, CEO at Plug Power. “We can help our customers save millions of dollars over the life of these products by converting their lift truck fleet power solutions to GenDrive fuel cells.”

“WinCo Foods appreciates the opportunity to utilize the GenDrive fuel cells which will reduce our labor costs while powering our equipment in a more environmentally conscious way,” said Michael Read, WinCo Foods spokesman. “We very much appreciate the teamwork displayed by Plug Power and Somerset to meet our needs and to make this conversion as efficient as possible.”

A fully functional solid-oxide fuel cell membrane wafer. The structured surface of each square chip lends stability to the incredibly thin film that is used for the electrochemical membrane. Photo courtesy of Shriram Ramanathan.

Strong, nanostructured membrane enables scaling for practical clean-energy applications

Cambridge, Mass.– Materials scientists at the Harvard School of Engineering and Applied Sciences (SEAS) and SiEnergy Systems LLC have demonstrated the first macro-scale thin-film solid-oxide fuel cell (SOFC).

While SOFCs have previously worked at the micro-scale, this is the first time any research group has overcome the structural challenges of scaling the technology up to a practical size with a proportionally higher power output.

Reported online April 3 in Nature Nanotechnology, the demonstration of this fully functional SOFC indicates the potential of electrochemical fuel cells to be a viable source of clean energy.

“The breakthrough in this work is that we have demonstrated power density comparable to what you can get with tiny membranes, but with membranes that are a factor of a hundred or so larger, demonstrating that the technology is scalable,” says principal investigator Shriram Ramanathan, Associate Professor of Materials Science at SEAS.

SOFCs create electrical energy via an electrochemical reaction that takes place across an ultra-thin membrane. This 100-nanometer membrane, comprising the electrolyte and electrodes, has to be thin enough to allow ions to pass through it at a relatively low temperature (which, for ceramic fuel cells, lies in the range of 300 to 500 degrees Celsius). These low temperatures allow for a quick start-up, a more compact design, and less use of rare-earth materials.

So far, however, thin films have been successfully implemented only in micro-SOFCs, where each chip in the fuel cell wafer is about 100 microns wide. For practical applications, such as use in compact power sources, SOFCs need to be about 50 times wider.

The electrochemical membranes are so thin that creating one on that scale is roughly equivalent to making a 16-foot-wide sheet of paper. Naturally, the structural issues are significant.

“If you make a conventional thin membrane on that scale without a support structure, you can’t do anything—it will just break,” says co-author Bo-Kuai Lai, a postdoctoral fellow at SEAS. “You make the membrane in the lab, but you can’t even take it out. It will just shatter.”

With lead author Masaru Tsuchiya (Ph.D. ‘09), a former member of Ramanathan’s lab who is now at SiEnergy, Ramanathan and Lai fortified the thin film membrane using a metallic grid that looks like nanoscale chicken wire.

Scanning electron microscopy reveals the structured surface of the electrochemical membrane. Ramanathan’s team found circles and hexagons to provide the most stable structure. Photo courtesy of Shriram Ramanathan.

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The tiny metal honeycomb provides the critical structural element for the large membrane while also serving as a current collector. Ramanathan’s team was able to manufacture membrane chips that were 5 mm wide, combining hundreds of these chips into palm-sized SOFC wafers.

While other researchers’ earlier attempts at implementing the metallic grid showed structural success, Ramanathan’s team is the first to demonstrate a fully functional SOFC on this scale. Their fuel cell’s power density of 155 milliwatts per square centimeter (at 510 degrees Celsius) is comparable to the power density of micro-SOFCs.

When multiplied by the much larger active area of this new fuel cell, that power density translates into an output high enough for relevance to portable power.

Previous work in Ramanathan’s lab has developed micro-SOFCs that are all-ceramic or that use methane as the fuel source instead of hydrogen. The researchers hope that future work on SOFCs will incorporate these technologies into the large-scale fuel cells, improving their affordability.

In the coming months, they will explore the design of novel nanostructured anodes for hydrogen-alternative fuels that are operable at these low temperatures and work to enhance the microstructural stability of the electrodes.

The research was supported in part by the National Science Foundation (NSF) and performed in part at the Harvard University Center for Nanoscale Systems, a member of the NSF-funded National Nanotechnology Infrastructure Network.

By Yoo Seon-il

POSCO Power succeeded in producing a fuel cell for power generation on its own by completing a fuel cell stack plant. The stack is one of the key parts of a power generation-purpose fuel cell system.

The completion ceremony was held on March 31 in the Yeongilman Hinterland Industrial Complex in Pohang. It was attended by vice minister of Knowledge Economy Park Yeong-joon, POSCO chairman Jeong Joon-yang, POSCO Power CEO Jo Seong-shik, etc. The groundbreaking of the plant was a year ago.

The plant can produce fuel cell stacks worth 100MW a year, which can be used by 120,000 households simultaneously. It is located on the 43,000m2-wide site next to the BOP (balance of plant) production facility completed in 2008. A total of 70 billion won has been invested in the fuel cell stack plant, 30 billion of it for construction and the rest for the investment in kind concerning technology transfer.

POSCO Power makes an MCFC (molten carbonate fuel cell) there, which is suitable for power generation. The relevant original technology is currently owned by Fuel Cell Energy, a U.S. corporation. POSCO Power acquired its shares, on condition of transferring the technology, to become its largest shareholder in 2009.

The Korean company is going to finish the development and begin the production of a mid-sized 100kW fuel cell for building use in the second half of this year. At the same time, it is aiming to develop a 50kW cell next year. In the long term, by 2015, it makes another type of fuel cell which can power a large vessel, growing it into a main green growth item of the country.

Additional Carbon Trust Grant Funding for High Power Density Fuel Cells

ITM Power (AIM: ITM) the energy storage and clean fuel company, and the Carbon Trust, are pleased to announce additional Carbon Trust grant funding of £91,956 towards the continued development of the Company’s materials for application in automotive fuel cells.

ITM Power has previously reported fuel cell power density results (5.5W/cm2 and 10A/cm2) with hydrogen /oxygen which are approximately three times that of current commercial technology. Previous Carbon Trust funding was granted in order to establish if similarly high power densities could be achieved using the Company’s patented membrane materials with hydrogen/air systems.

Following early achievement of the challenging technical targets (in excess of 2.1W/cm2 and 4A/cm2 being reported on 1st February 2011 with hydrogen/air) the Carbon Trust have provided additional grant funding to enable ITM to further develop its unique technology offering for the emerging fuel cell automotive sector.

The focus of this follow-on program will be the examination of performance sensitivities with respect to reduced catalyst loading against industry standard protocols. In parallel, the Carbon Trust will continue to support ITM Power with introductions to further commercial end-users.

A summary of the power density performance achieved by ITM’s patented membrane technology can be seen on the Company’s website at:
http://www.itm-power.com/cmsFiles/investors/CarbonTrust_GrantAward.pdf

For research and development of SOFC or SOEC fuel cells, detailed knowledge about material properties as well as long-term behaviour and interaction of the several components are necessarily required in order to accelerate market entry of this high-efficient fuel cell technology. Cell characterization thereby is a major research part, since the MEA is the key component for the energy conversion process. Thus, cell durability and performance are critical for efficient operation of SOFC or SOEC stacks. In order to optimize the cell, R&D activities focus on both, realization of small degradation rates (<0.5% / 1000h power loss) and cost reduction. Especially the low degradation rates, in combination with high operation temperatures of SOFC cells, are challenging for qualified testing systems, because already smallest performance changes of the cell have to be measured.

With its approved process engineering, FuelCon’s test station Evaluator C50-HT meets these requirements and enables not only long-term evaluation, but also reproducible characterization of SOFC or SOEC cells by applying FuelCon’s special cell housing.

Various mix options of the anode and cathode gas supply allow display of any fuel gas scenarios, like for example operation with natural gas for SOFC applications in stationary energy systems. Integrated impedance spectroscopy provides detailed electrochemical characterization. The received data can be used for developing of realistic simulation models or material optimization. For long-term test programs, the necessary comparability of these data is assured by reproducible adjustment of test conditions like gas flow, temperature, humidity and pressure.

For performance testing and optimization of SOFC or SOEC cells, an especially for this purpose developed cell housing provides efficient and non-destructive test runs with high reproducibility. Since the housing does not require any special sealing, a fast and easy assembling is assured. Furthermore, the cell can be exchanged within a short time. The design with full-ceramic components avoids any contamination of the cell including the resultant performance loss. Due to fast assembling times, the housing is also ideal for quality assurance of SOFC cell production processes.

FuelCon presents the SOFC cell housing from April 4th to 8th at “HANNOVER MESSE 2011” fair.

Fuel cells have been touted as a cleaner solution to tomorrow’s energy needs, with potential applications in everything from cars to computers.

But one reason fuel cells aren’t already more widespread is their lack of endurance. Over time, the catalysts used even in today’s state-of-the-art fuels cells break down, inhibiting the chemical reaction that converts fuel into electricity. In addition, current technology relies on small particles coated with the catalyst; however, the particles’ limited surface area means only a fraction of the catalyst is available at any given time.

Now a team of engineers at the Yale School of Engineering & Applied Science has created a new fuel cell catalyst system using nanowires made of a novel material that boosts long-term performance by 2.4 times compared to today’s technology. Their findings appear on the cover of the April issue of ACS Nano.

Yale engineers Jan Schroers and André Taylor have developed miniscule nanowires made of an innovative metal alloy known as a bulk metallic glass (BMG) that have high surface areas, thereby exposing more of the catalyst. They also maintain their activity longer than traditional fuel cell catalyst systems.

Current fuel cell technology uses carbon black, an inexpensive and electrically conductive carbon material, as a support for platinum particles. The carbon transports electricity, while the platinum is the catalyst that drives the production of electricity. The more platinum particles the fuel is exposed to, the more electricity is produced. Yet carbon black is porous, so the platinum inside the inner pores may not be exposed. Carbon black also tends to corrode over time.

“In order to produce more efficient fuel cells, you want to increase the active surface area of the catalyst, and you want your catalyst to last,” Taylor said.

At 13 nanometers in scale (about 1/10,000 the width of a human hair), the BMG nanowires that Schroers and Taylor developed are about three times smaller than carbon black particles. The nanowires’ long, thin shape gives them much more active surface area per mass compared to carbon black. In addition, rather than sticking platinum particles onto a support material, the Yale team incorporated the platinum into the nanowire alloy itself, ensuring that it continues to react with the fuel over time.

It’s the nanowires’ unique chemical composition that makes it possible to shape them into such small rods using a hot-press method, said Schroers, who has developed other BMG alloys that can also be blow molded into complicated shapes. The BMG nanowires also conduct electricity better than carbon black and carbon nanotubes, and are less expensive to process.

So far Taylor has tested their catalyst system for alcohol-based fuel cells (including those that use ethanol and methanol as fuel sources), but they say the system could be used in other types of fuel cells and could one day be used in portable electronic devices such as laptop computers and cell phones as well as in remote sensors.

“This is the introduction of a new class of materials that can be used as electrocatalysts,” Taylor said. “It’s a real step toward making fuel cells commercially viable and, ultimately, supplementing or replacing batteries in electronic devices.”

Other authors of the paper include Marcelo Carmo, Ryan C. Sekol, Shiyan Ding and Golden Kumar (all of Yale University)

On March 29, the three B-Class F-CELL vehicles started in Sydney and embarked on their 13th leg, therewith starting the third stage of the F-CELL World Drive. Within three days the tour will cover 1,300 kilometres. On top of that, Australian media took the chance to test drive the B-Class F-CELL during a press event, one day before its start in Australia.

The international fuel cell community meets in Stuttgart: on September 26 and 27 2011, the fuel cell forum f-cell with congress and trade fair will once again be a platform for information exchange in the industry. The main topic: “Mobile applications – fuel cells and batteries moving the future”.

Stuttgart (eos) – The approximately 800 experts from companies and research facilities that meet every year at the international fuel cell specialist forum f-cell in Stuttgart come from twenty nations and four continents. In 2011, the event with congress and trade fair will take place on September 26 and 27. “The industry is converging internationally,” says Peter Sauber, chief executive of the Peter Sauber Agency which is organizing the f-cell for the eleventh time this year together with the Wirtschaftsförderung Region Stuttgart, the economic promotion agency. On the whole, visitors to the f-cell in September in Stuttgart can expect a trade fair with around 50 renowned exhibitors and approximately 70 lectures from international experts. Among others, the fuel cell researcher Professor Masahiro Watanabe from the University of Yamanashi, Kofu, a popular speaker, has already confirmed he will give a lecture at f-cell. In addition, participants can expect an attractive program of supplementary activities with evening event, f-cellaward ceremony, excursions to the fuel cell attractions in the region and, last but not least, the possibility to test drive fuel cell and battery-powered vehicles.

The main topic in 2011 is mobile applications of the fuel cell. The symposium and trade fair will also focus on battery-powered electric vehicles. The motto is: “Mobile applications – fuel cells and batteries moving the future”. “Batteries and fuel cells: a great many automobile manufacturers today are investing in both technologies, as they complement one another. Based on the electromobility model region of the federal government, in the future, the region of Stuttgart intends to play an important role in new drive technologies. “f-cell helps us strengthen our position on the world map of electromobility.“ says Dr. Walter Rogg, Managing Director of the Wirtschaftsförderung Region Stuttgart GmbH (WRS – Regional Economic Promotion). „Very soon hydrogen-driven cars are to be driven on our roads – a plan that will only work out if we have the corresponding filling stations by that time. This is why hydrogen production and infrastructure have been assigned a separate topic forum.” adds Peter Sauber.

Another topic at the industry platform is stationary applications of the fuel cell in building power supply. Special products for early markets and niche applications will also be covered. “I am particularly glad that – beyond the first commercially available devices – we are also talking about markets and market opportunities to an increasing degree,” says Peter Sauber, who has just returned from the world’s largest fuel cell trade fair, FC Expo in Japan, where he organized the joint German booth. He now hopes that all Japanese f-cell partners and speakers are safe and sound, and that they will be able to travel to Stuttgart in September.

More information and pictures are available from:

Peter Sauber Agentur Messen und Kongresse GmbH

Lena Jauernig

Wankelstraße 1

70563 Stuttgart

Tel.: +49 711-656960-56

E-mail: f-cell@messe-sauber.de

Internet: www.f-cell.de

LATHAM — Plug Power Inc. (Nasdaq:PLUG), a leader in providing clean, reliable energy solutions, today reported its financial results for the fourth quarter and year end 2010. Additional information on the Company’s performance during 2010 and its liquidity can be found in the Form 10-K filed with the SEC today.

Plug Power realized significant accomplishments during 2010, specifically increasing traction and momentum for its GenDrive^(R) product family in the material handling market. During the year ending December 31, 2010, Plug Power received new orders for 543 of its GenDrive fuel cell units and manufactured and shipped 650 units. During the fourth quarter, 419 of those GenDrive orders were received and 289 units were shipped to customers across North America.

Aggressive, cross-functional, activity from Plug Power’s sales, manufacturing, service, and finance groups resulted in a successful year close, meeting its important updated milestone of shipping at least 650 units. Plug Power added first time customers like CVS, Coca-Cola, BMW, UNFI and Wegmans to its long list of GenDrive users.

“Plug Power had a quarter, and year, unlike any other,” said Andy Marsh, CEO of Plug Power. “The market for fuel cell power solutions in material handling is opening up; we are witnessing a paradigm shift in how business is done in large distribution and manufacturing operations. Plug Power is honored to be leading the way into this revolutionary time for this industry. In 2011, we’ll work aggressively to close more deals, ship more units and continue to commercialize hydrogen fuel cell solutions in order to grow this industry for our shareholders and employees.”

Plug Power worked with its customers during 2010 to promote the message of commercial viability of hydrogen fuel cells, today. Results provided by customers using GenDrive in their daily operations as their only power source for electric lift truck vehicles were positive. As cited in customer case studies published on Plug Power’s Web site:

• “With the GenDrive fuel cells, we are saving time and money. For the 98 units of equipment, we estimate that about 1,200 hours, or approximately $24,000, is saved per fiscal quarter.” — Scott Kliever, Vice President of Finance and Plant CFO, Sysco Houston
• “With the GenDrive fuel cells, the equipment has consistent power. Hydrogen fuel cells do not have the heating cycle like there is with lead-acid batteries, which often caused the machines to break down over time. Due to this, we were able to negotiate much better equipment and maintenance contracts. We have saved over $250,000 on equipment and expect to save another $250,000 through the overall term of the service and maintenance contract.” — Dave Allar, Maintenance Manager, Wegmans RSC Pottsville
• “Our analysis of productivity gains of our 160 associates over a six-week period indicates that lead-acid batteries would cost an average of $1,900 – $3,000 in lost time per week. On the other hand, we estimate that GenDrive hydrogen fuel cells only result in an average of about $176 per week in lost time. Based on these estimates, we project a savings of $146,000 annually in manpower.” — Mike Garstak, Operations Manager, UNFI Sarasota

In lieu of a conference call, Plug Power will be discussing fourth quarter 2010 and first quarter 2011 activity and results during its annual shareholders meeting which will be held on Thursday, May 12, 2011. The shareholder meeting will be held at the Plug Power headquarters at 968 Albany Shaker Road, Latham, NY 12110.

More information on the annual meeting will be published as the meeting approaches. Please visit Plug Power’s Web site at www.plugpower.com for latest updates.

Financial Results

Net loss for the fourth quarter of 2010 and year ended December 31, 2010 was $8.6 million and $47.0 million, respectively. On a per share basis the loss for the quarter and the year was $0.07 and $0.36 respectively on a basic and diluted basis. This compares with a net loss of $12.1 million, or $0.09 per share, for the fourth quarter of 2009 and net loss of $40.7 million, or $0.32 per share for the full year 2009.

Total revenue for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2010 was $6.2 million and $19.5 million, respectively. This compares to total revenue of $3.9 million and $12.3 million for the same periods of 2009. Product and service revenue for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2010 was $5.5 million and $15.7 million, respectively. This compares to $1.2 million and $4.8 million for the same periods of 2009. Research and development contract revenue for the quarter and year ended December 31, 2010 was $0.7 million and $3.6 million, respectively. This compares to $2.7 million and $7.5 million for the same periods of 2009.

Effective April 1, 2010, the Company adopted ASU No. 2009-13 on Topic 605, Revenue Recognition– Multiple Deliverable Revenue Arrangements retroactive to January 1, 2010. As a result of implementing ASU No. 2009-13, the Company recognized approximately $4.2 million and $10.5 million of revenue in the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2010, respectively, that would have been recorded as deferred revenue under the previous guidance for multiple-element revenue arrangements.

Total cost of revenue for the fourth quarter of 2010 was $9.0 million, comprised of $7.9 million for product and service cost of revenue and $1.1 million for R&D contract cost of revenue. For the full year 2010, total cost of revenue was $29.5 million, comprised of $23.1 million for product and service cost of revenue and $6.4 million for R&D contract cost of revenue. Prior year comparable numbers for the fourth quarter were $8.4 million for total cost of revenue, comprised of $3.7 million for product and service cost of revenue and $4.7 for R&D contract cost of revenue. Prior full year comparable numbers were $19.7 million for total cost of revenue, comprised of $7.3 million for product and service cost of revenue and $12.4 for R&D contract cost of revenue.

R&D expenses for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2010 were $0.9 million and $12.9 million, respectively. This compares to the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2009 of $3.5 million and $16.3 million, respectively. The general decline in R&D expense is primarily related to our corporate restructuring plan.

Selling, general and administrative (SG&A) expenses for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2010 were $7.7 million and $25.6 million, respectively. These figures include charges of $3.7 million and $10.2 million for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2010 for restructuring charges and related write-offs of assets in Plug Power Canada. This compares in SG&A expenses to the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2009 of $3.8 million and $15.4 million, respectively. Additionally, $0.6 million was expensed for amortization of intangible assets during the fourth quarter of 2010 compared to $0.6 million for the fourth quarter of 2009. For the full year, $2.3 million was expensed for amortization of intangible assets compared to $2.1 million in 2009.

Gain on sale of assets was $3.2 million for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2010. Effective October 26, 2010, the Company licensed the intellectual property relating to its stationary power products, GenCore^(R) and GenSys^(R), to IdaTech plc on a non-exclusive basis. As part of the transaction, Plug Power also sold inventory, equipment and certain other assets related to its stationary power business. Total consideration for the licensing and assets was net against costs incurred to close the deal.

Cash and Liquidity

Net cash used in operating activities for the fourth quarter and year ended December 31, 2010 was $1.3 million and $40.8 million, respectively. On December 31, 2010, Plug Power had cash, cash equivalents and available-for-sale securities of $21.4 million and net working capital of $23.7 million. This compares to $62.5 million and $60.0 million, respectively, at December 31, 2009.

The accompanying financial statements and reconciliation tables provide additional information on the Company’s year-to-date performance as it relates to the full year 2010 milestones previously announced.

BEND, OR– IdaTech plc (AIM: IDA) a global leader in the development and manufacture of Proton Exchange Membrane (PEM) fuel cell products for telecommunications and other critical backup power applications is pleased to announce its participation in the Indonesian Hutchison Telecommunications (HCPT) fuel cell press conference.

In an effort to use alternative energy solutions that have a positive impact on the environment, more than 150 IdaTech backup power fuel cell systems have been installed on Hutchison Indonesia’s network instead of traditional diesel generators. Indonesia’s Ministry of the Environment has been encouraging local companies to aggressively adopt alternative and renewable sources of energy in an effort to reduce Indonesia’s carbon footprint. The press conference, held on March 9^th, was attended by both Indonesia’s Minister of Communication and Indonesian Renewable Energy Society. Bapak Tifatul Sembiring, Minister of Communication commented, “The use of Hydrogen gas to power BTS makes us very happy and the use of alternative energy is an innovative move which we all support. We congratulate PT Hutchison Indonesia for using fuel cells and hope this initiative can be developed by other operators as an example.”

IdaTech’s ElectraGen H2-I backup fuel cell system was on display at the press conference to demonstrate the benefits of using fuel cells as a clean technology solution. Low emissions, high efficiency, and quiet operation are a few of the “green” characteristics of a fuel cell system. Mobile network operators worldwide are increasingly implementing clean technology solutions to lower their environmental impact, improve network reliability, and reduce operating expenses.