FuelCell Energy to build combined heat and power fuel-cell solution for UC Irvine Medical Center
FuelCell Energy, al leader in the design, manufacture, operation
and service of fuel cell power plants, announced
the development of a project to install a 1.4 megawatt (MW)
fuel cell power plant to provide both electricity and
usable high quality heat to the University of California, Irvine
Medical Center.
The power plant will generate about 30 percent of the
facility power needs, while the heat produced will be used in a direct
exhaust absorption chiller to produce 200 tons of cooling for an office
building and associated institutional requirements. The medical center,
a campus with a 412-bed acute care facility, will enjoy the benefits of
clean, quiet and affordable on-site power while avoiding a capital
investment by purchasing the power and heat under a multi-year power
purchase agreement. FuelCell Energy will install, operate and maintain
the plant.
"The University of California is a national leader in sustainability
and effective actions to reduce greenhouse gases as we work towards
carbon neutrality by the year 2025," said Morris Frieling, chief
financial officer, UC Irvine Medical Center. "This fuel cell
installation fits perfectly with our ambitious goals of adopting
alternative energy sources, embracing energy efficiency, and supporting
California's carbon Cap and Trade Program, all while enhancing our
power reliability with on-site power generation."
"Stationary fuel cell power plants are a solution whose time has come
for addressing the myriad of power generation challenges facing our
society," said Professor Scott Samuelsen, Director, National Fuel Cell
Research Center at UCI. "The value is clear, ranging from the avoidance
of costly and inefficient power transmission, to enhanced power
reliability from on-site generation, to the attractive emission profile
of fuel cells with their low carbon footprint and virtual absence of
criteria pollutants."
The power plant will be configured for combined cooling, heating and
power (CCHP) so that the same unit of fuel generates both ultra-clean
power and usable high quality heat that will be used both for heating
water and converting a portion of the heat into cooling for air
conditioning. By reducing usage of electricity based chillers for space
cooling, the medical center will benefit financially through avoided
electricity costs and support the environment by avoiding the
pollutants and greenhouse gases emitted by centralized conventional
power plants.
The heat will be turned into cooling via a direct exhaust
absorption chiller. This CCHP Direct FuelCell(R) (DFC(R)) power plant
installation is exempt from air permitting under the California South
Coast Air Quality Management District Rule 219, due to the low carbon
and virtual absence of criteria pollutants, accelerating the project
development process.
"This project is a private/public partnership demonstrating how private
capital can support public goals with clean and affordable power for a
public institution," said Chip Bottone, President and Chief Executive
Officer, FuelCell Energy, Inc. "Due to the highly efficient power
generation process, stationary fuel cell power plants are virtually
absent of the pollutants that cause smog and acid rain and are exempt
from the State of California Cap-and-Trade Program so UC Irvine Medical
Center will see its Compliance Obligation reduced, avoiding carbon tax
payments and increasing savings."
FuelCell Energy is developing this project and expects to close on
permanent financing on or before the commercial operation date of the
power plant. The medical center has entered into a multi-year power
purchase agreement to buy the electricity produced by the fuel cell
power plant, while the cooling benefits are provided as an additional
benefit to the medical center.
Since the fuel cell power plant generates power without combustion, its
exhaust is virtually pollution-free. Compared to the electric grid, the
fuel cell installation will annually avoid the emission of 28 tons of
smog-producing nitrogen oxide (NOx), 64 tons of sulfur dioxide (SOx)
that causes acid rain, 3,000 pounds of particulate matter (PM10) that
can aggravate asthma, and more than 7,000 tons of CO2, a greenhouse
gas, which is equivalent to removing more than 1,000 cars from the
road.
The National Fuel Cell Research Center analyzed the attributes and
value streams of stationary fuel cells, monetizing their value compared
to other distributed generation power technologies in relation to both
criteria pollutants and greenhouse gases. The principal conclusions of
the analysis is that fuel cells provide significant value (1) through
cogeneration, digester gas use, avoided central station generation, and
associated avoided emissions, and (2) to significantly reduce
greenhouse gas emissions.
