Alameda County Completes CA's First Megawatt-Class Hydrogen Fuel Cell

[jpak]

http://finanzen.net/news/news_detail.asp?NewsNr=421655

DUBLIN, Calif., Aug. 10 /PRNewswire/ -- Alameda County officials today announced the completion of California's first megawatt-class hydrogen fuel cell cogeneration plant, an alternative energy system that transforms hydrogen from natural gas into electricity and water without combustion, and captures waste heat to improve efficiency.

The project, engineered and installed at Alameda County's Santa Rita Jail by Chevron Energy Solutions, a Chevron subsidiary, will provide half of the facility's annual power needs, save county taxpayers more than $260,000 a year, and benefit the environment.

The quiet one-megawatt (MW) plant, manufactured by FuelCell Energy, Inc. is Alameda County's latest accomplishment in its Climate Change Leadership Strategy to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. The power from the new unit, along with the jail's previously-installed 1.2-MW solar power array and energy efficiency upgrades, will shrink Santa Rita's power purchases by as much as 80 percent during the peak-demand summer months, when California's electric utility system can face capacity constraints. This lower demand will eliminate more than 3,200 tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually, equivalent to planting more than 900 acres of trees.

Completion of the ultra-clean energy plant was celebrated today at a ceremony adjacent to the jail, followed by a tour of the DFC 1500 fuel cell unit by the manufacturer, FuelCell Energy. Representatives from state and local government participated in the event along with business, academia and environmental organizations.

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[ThomCat]

1. Awesome! Now let's see this spread.

Less waste, more green energy, less reliance on imported energy. It's not an ideal situation because it still requires natural gas, but it's a definite step in the right direction.

[4dsc]

2. US supply of natural gas is what??

The US only has a 10 years of reserves of natural gas and must repy upon foriegn sources more and more in order to satisfy its needs..

So why are they using natural gas??