SOUTH WINDSOR, Conn., March 4 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — UTC Power, a
United Technologies Corp. (NYSE: UTX) company, announced today that its
PureCell(R) Model 200 stationary fuel cell system at St. Agnes Hospital in
Bocholt, Germany, has attained a major milestone: 10 million kilowatt-hours
of generated power and more than 52,000 operating hours with its original
fuel cell stack. The stack is the heart of any fuel cell power unit and key
to its durability.
St. Agnes Hospital, with close to 500 beds, has been an early adopter
of new, environmentally responsible energy solutions. It installed the fuel
cell in 2000 to meet increased demand for on-site power due to new medical
equipment. The fuel cell provides the hospital with baseload electric
power, heating in winter and air conditioning in summer as well as domestic
hot water. The availability of the fuel cell has been as high as 97 percent
in most years.
Fuel cells are one of the cleanest power sources available today,
producing electricity without combustion. They operate at much higher
efficiencies than internal combustion engines, extracting more electricity
from the same amount of fuel. In addition, they operate quietly and can be
configured to provide electricity when the local power grid fails.
UTC Power has installed more than 260 stationary fuel cell power plants
for customers in 19 countries on five continents and its fleet has
accumulated more than 8 million hours of field operation. The current UTC
Power PureCell unit produces 200 kilowatts of electric power plus about
870,000 Btu/hour of heat for combined heat and power applications.
The company is now finalizing development of its next-generation
phosphoric acid fuel cell system for commercial on-site power applications.
It will have a 20-year operating life and provide 400 kilowatts of power
and more than 1.6 million Btu/hr of thermal output — twice the power and
heat output of the company’s current model.
“For on-site power applications, the UTC Power PureCell system is the
demonstrated leader in durability,” said Jan van Dokkum, UTC Power
president. “No other firm has come close to matching our 8 million-plus
hours of stationary fuel cell fleet operation.”
UTC Power is a full-service provider of environmentally responsible
power solutions. With 50 years of experience, UTC Power is the world leader
in developing and producing fuel cells for on-site power, transportation,
space and defense applications, as well as a leader in innovative,
renewable energy solutions and combined cooling, heating and power
solutions for the distributed energy market. Its new Dome-Tech business
unit offers energy and engineering consulting services to optimize building
performance, reduce energy expenses and improve building sustainability
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