Ballard supplying fuel cells in Bella Coola

VANCOUVER, BRITISH COLUMBIA - Ballard Power Systems, a world leader in clean energy fuel cell products, announced that it is partnering with Dantherm Power A/S to provide BC Hydro, through its wholly owned subsidiary Powertech Labs Inc., with a 100 kW supplemental power product for deployment in the community of Bella Coola, British Columbia.

Ballard is supplying 60 units of its Mark1020 ACS fuel cell product, each sized to deliver 2 kW's of gross power, together with technical support services.

John Sheridan, President and CEO of Ballard, said, "Delivery of a clean supplemental power solution to a major public power utility is an exciting new opportunity for fuel cell products. We are effectively building on our partnership activities with Dantherm, with whom we have been providing fuel cell-based backup power solutions for the wireless telecom industry. This project supports our ongoing strategy to accelerate fuel cell product adoption across a growing range of applications."

The 100 kW supplemental power unit is a key part of BC Hydro's Hydrogen-Assisted Renewable Power (HARP) initiative. The product will help reduce fuel consumption at the Ah-Sin-Heek diesel power generation facility, by increasing the utilization of existing renewable power at BC Hydro's Clayton Falls hydroelectric generation facility near Bella Coola, a community of 2,500 people on British Columbia's central coast.

HARP is part of BC Hydro's efforts to facilitate the use of renewable power and reduce greenhouse gas emissions in remote communities. The project is being funded by BC Hydro, General Electric and the federal government through the Sustainable Development Technology Canada foundation. In addition to Bella Coola, there are over 50 remote communities in BC, and over 300 across Canada, which are not connected to power grids or gas pipelines and could therefore benefit from alternative clean energy solutions.

Dantherm will provide system components and design work, as well as integration expertise and the supplemental power unit will be deployed by BC Hydro in 2009.

Per Albaek, Managing Director of Dantherm Power A/S, added, "This contract with BC Hydro and Powertech Labs is not only evidence of opportunities for fuel cells in emerging application areas like supplemental power, it is also an important stepping stone for Dantherm's participation in the North American marketplace."

Related News

Hydro One CEO Mayo Schmidt

Hydro One’s takeover of U.S. utility sparks customer backlash: ‘This is an incredibly bad idea’

TORONTO - “Please don’t sell us to Canada.” That refrain, or versions of it, is on full display at the Idaho Public Utilities Commission, which admittedly isn’t everyone’s go-to entertainment site. But it is vitally important for this reason: the first big test of the expansionist dreams of the politically tempest-tossed Hydro One rests with its successful acquisition of Avista Corp., provider of electric generation, transmission and distribution to retail customers spread from Oregon to Washington to Montana and Idaho and up into Alaska.

The proposed deal — announced last summer, but not yet consummated — marks the first time the…

READ MORE
california-welcomes-70-volvo--vnr-electric-trucks

California Welcomes 70 Volvo VNR Electric Trucks

READ MORE

Clorox accelerates goal of achieving 100% renewable electricity in the U.S. and Canada to 2021

READ MORE

canada electricity lines

Cleaning up Canada's electricity is critical to meeting climate pledges

READ MORE

power plant

ACORE tells FERC that DOE Proposal to Subsidize Coal, Nuclear Power Plants is unsupported by Record

READ MORE