View full sizePD fileGrafTech employee Lennie Anderson refuels a forklift powered by fuel cells at a hydrogen station at company headquarters in Parma, Ohio in 2010.
NORTH CANTON, Ohio -- The Obama administration is turning its back on the U.S. fuel cell industry, the head of a national industry group said Tuesday.
Fuel cells, which make electricity by combining hydrogen and oxygen, could be used in cars, portable generators and by utilities to generate power during times of peak demand.
However, the administration has been skeptical that fuel cells could be commercialized anytime soon. The administration favors the development of hybrid and battery-powered electric cars.
The U.S. Department of Energy has repeatedly cut fuel cell research and commercialization funding, Ruth Cox, executive director of the Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Association, said in remarks before the Ohio Fuel Cell Coalition.
"They were disappointing and ill-considered cuts," Cox told more than 200 attending the coalition's 11th annual symposium at Kent State University's Stark County campus.
The consequences of these cuts could slow up in commercialization of fuel cells and could even ripple through the scores of Ohio companies that are part of a national fuel cell supply chain.
Working with state industry groups like Ohio's, the national association has appealed to Congress to restore part of the funding, she said.
"The industry did not stop," she said in an interview. "What stopped was the government's talk about fuel cells being part of alternative energy. They tried to zero out some budgets.
"In 2010, the administration tried to cut $200 million, she said in an interview. "We got back $174 million.
"In 2011, they proposed cutting another $37 million. They took the budget to $100 million. The House (of Representatives) has already told them not to do reduce until Congress has a chance to review," she said.
The apparent turn-about in the treatment of fuel cells comes after 10 to 15 years of federal support that put $1.5 billion to $2 billion into research and commercialization, she said.
The industry added $8 billion to $10 billion in private investments,she said.
During the last decade, Ohio's Third Frontier has awarded about $47 million in grants resulting in dozens of companies becoming parts makers for fuel cells.
In 2009, Ohio's persuaded Rolls Royce to put its North American fuel cell headquarters in North Canton. Rolls Royce is preparing to build very large fuel cells for utilities.
The federal and state investments have produced commercial results in niche markets such as fuel cell-powered fork lifts now used by scores of large companies, including Wal-Mart, in huge warehouses.
Fuel cells also have become the preferred back-up power supply for cell phone towers.
All told, fuel cells scattered across the nation, from small portable units to those as large as a tractor trailer, have a total generation capacity of about 100 megawatts (100 million watts), said Cox.
But the world is catching up as Japan, Germany, China and other nations are now pouring millions into their fledgling fuel cell industries.
The U.S. technological lead in fuel cells will be lost, Cox predicted, unless the government treats fuel cells equally with other alternative energy sources such as wind and solar.
Cox said, the industry has to focus on commercialization. "If we don't change market dynamics, we are not going to go anywhere," she said.
"The fuel cell industry is [potentially] a $200 billion per year industry."
2024-12-03 11:34
2024-12-03 11:33
2024-12-03 11:31
2024-11-28 14:07
2024-11-13 09:51
2024-11-13 09:50
2024-11-13 09:45
2024-11-13 09:44
2024-11-13 09:41
2024-10-31 10:02