Fuel Cell

BOC Group PLC (BOX) has been awarded a U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) grant for a 3-year, $3.8 million project to develop an advanced hydrogen generation and delivery system. BOC, as the project leader, is partnering with Canada-based Membrane Reactor Technologies (MRT) and HERA Hydrogen Storage Systems Inc. (HERA) to develop and demonstrate advanced hydrogen generation and delivery systems that integrate MRT's membrane reactor and HERA's thermal hydride compression into a single package. The companies are working to develop a solution for the economic and technical challenge of delivering low-cost, high-purity hydrogen to industrial users, vehicles and stationary/mobile...

Infectech Inc (IFEC) has signed a feasibility study with the Department of Environmental Science and Engineering of Gannon University in Erie, PA to develop a bioreactor which utilizes Infectech's patented bacterial culturing methods in order to produce hydrogen inexpensively. Infectech believes the most likely method for low cost production of massive quantities of hydrogen as an alternate energy source is hydrogen combustion using Clostridia bacteria, which produces hydrogen as a by-product. Infectech has ascertained through its patent counsel that there are eleven relevant U.S. patents concerning the database containing the terms "Clostridia" and "Hydrogen Production." Infectech presently owns...

A survey of 18 fuel-cell developers around the world found none of them was profitable last year, although their combined revenues rose 20 per cent to $243 million US, accounting firm PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) said.

Ballard Power (BLDP) announced it will demonstrate three distinct applications utilizing Ballard® fuel cells for backup power in cooperation with the Government of Canada under the h2 Early Adopters (h2EA) Program. The h2EA Program will fund Cdn. $2 million of the $4 million program with the balance of funding to be provided by the program participants. Field demonstrations such as this support the Canadian Government's aim to accelerate the development of a hydrogen economy by encouraging innovation, expanding industrial capacity, and meeting climate change objectives.

Hydrogenics Corp (HYGS) announced the sale of two FCATS G50 fuel cell test stations to Asahi Glass Co. Ltd., a leading fuel cell component maker. The stations are expected to be delivered before the end of the year. The FCATS G50 is specifically designed to offer accuracy and reliability for fuel cell testing in low power ranges, at an attractive price. The 'G' Series test stations offer superior reliability and maintainability as a result of thorough in-house testing, selection of high quality components and well-designed accessibility to the test station's internals.

Modine Manufacturing Co (MOD) presented today along with ChevronTexaco Technology Ventures, a ChevronTexaco subsidiary, a paper based on proprietary research and development regarding a new approach to increase the efficiency, and reduce the cost and complexity of hydrogen generation for distributed energy stations. The Modine and ChevronTexaco team is presenting the paper on advanced steam methane reforming (SMR) at the National Hydrogen Association conference. ChevronTexaco is working to develop and commercialize fuel-processing technologies that leverage existing energy infrastructures and convert a variety of feedstocks such as natural gas, into hydrogen. This is a critical step to enable the...

Ballard Power (BLDP) announced significant progress in three areas crucial to the commercialization of automotive fuel cell stack technology- freeze start capability, durability and cost reduction - without compromising performance. Ballard scientists and engineers have demonstrated a stack design that can start repeatedly from -20 degrees C (-4 degrees F) and operate for more than 2,000 hours at a substantially reduced cost with no performance tradeoff.

BTU International, Inc. (BTUI) announced the receipt of an order, valued at approximately $2 million, for an integrated manufacturing line for solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) manufacturing. The order is from one of the largest European-based, global leaders in fuel cell technology. This order for a turnkey production line for manufacturing solid oxide fuel cells features multiple Convection Heat Treat drying systems and BTU's unique Elevator Hearth System for high temperature sintering. The order also includes multiple screen-printing systems, a laser marking and bar code reading system as well as the automated handling equipment to fully automate the...

BOC Group PLC (BOX) will display a full range of supply, safety and other fuel cell technology support services during the Hydrogen and Fuel Cells 2004 Conference and Trade Show at the Sheraton Center, Toronto, Ontario, Canada, September 25-27. BOC has a solid track record of delivering hydrogen production and supply solutions tailored to meet our customers' needs. BOC is supplying its full range of products and services to emerging hydrogen energy markets across the globe, participating in high profile demonstration projects, supporting the development of new technology, creating innovative customer solutions, and investing in new ventures. ...

Fuelcell Energy Inc (FCEL) has entered into a Cooperative Research and Development Agreement (CRADA) with the U. S. Army Engineer Research and Development Center/Construction Engineering Research Laboratory (ERDC-CERL) and will provide a 250-kilowatt Direct FuelCell® (DFC®) power plant to the Department of Defense (DoD) Fuel Cell Test and Evaluation Center (FCTec) for evaluation in a combined heat and power application. This distributed generation fuel cell system will supply electricity, and the byproduct heat will be coupled with an adsorption chiller.

I purchased shares in Altair Nanomaterials (ALTI) this morning for both my personal portfolio and also the mutual fund. ALTI is a holding company that specializes in nanomaterials and also contains a life sciences division. The materials company has research in high performance batteries, fuel cells, and photovoltaics. Altair announced earnings today and the stock is up on the morning trading. Revenue Increases 68 Percent for Third Quarter and 230 Percent for Nine-Month Period "An increase in revenue of 230 percent for the first three quarters of 2005 is representative of the significant progress Altair has...

Honda Motor Co (HMC) said it has built scooters powered by fuel cells and gasoline-electric engines, extending the technology for the first time to two-wheeled vehicles. The automaker developed a scooter with a fuel cell-power plant the size of a normal 125 cubic centimeter gasoline engine as well as a so-called hybrid two-wheeler with a 50cc engine, Honda President Takeo Fukui told reporters at the company's research center in Tochigi Prefecture, north of Tokyo.

UPS on Thursday announced it was deploying three delivery vans that run on non-polluting hydrogen and fuel cells, and said it hopes to some day have zero-emission engines for its entire fleet of 88,000 vehicles. The three vans will be used in Los Angeles, Sacramento, Calif., and Ann Arbor, Mich. Once again, these Fuel Cell trucks are made by DaimlerChrysler AG (DCX) and are using Ballard Power (BLDP) for the cell stack.

I placed several trades for the mutual fund this afternoon to start building a position in some of the fuel cell companies. This sub-sector has been under pressure the last couple of months but seems to be building a nice base of support at the current levels. I feel this entire sub-sector is ready for a nice up move and the stocks have been behaving nicely the last week or so. The one stock I seriously considered not adding was Quantum. The stock has been in a steady decline and there is no sign that it’s going to slow...

Fuelcell Energy Inc (FCEL) announced today that Chevron Energy Solutions, a ChevronTexaco (NYSE: CVX - News) subsidiary and FuelCell Energy distribution partner, has sold a 250-kilowatt Direct FuelCell® (DFC®) power plant to the U.S. Postal Service's (USPS's) San Francisco Processing and Distribution Center (P&DC). Chevron Energy Solutions will develop, engineer and construct the project over the next year and provide a turn-key on-site generation solution to the facility. FuelCell Energy will provide the DFC300A power plant, technical support and system commissioning services.

Quantum Fuel Systems Technologies Worldwide Inc (QTWW) announced that it was awarded a United States patent for portable and transportable hydrogen refueling systems. Quantum's patent covers portable and transportable hydrogen refueling systems that incorporate self-contained hydrogen producing subsystems or accept low pressure hydrogen from external sources, and are capable of compressing and dispensing at either 5,000- or 10,000-psi (35 or 70 MPa). Transportable hydrogen refueling stations play a major role in developing a hydrogen refueling infrastructure, for both commercial and military applications.