Clean energy fuel cell provider Ballard Power Systems recently secured a four-year, $6.2 million project in funding with the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE); Ballard was also selected as a subcontractor to U.S. technology organizations funded by the DOE. Ballard’s subsidiary, Ballard Material Products, received $4.1 million as prime for a contract for modifications in fuel cell durability and cost.
Dr. Rod Borup is fuel cell program manager for Institute for Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Research at Los Alamos National Laboratory, one of Ballard’s project partners. Dr. Borup said Ballard’s partnership efforts with the DEO will help to accelerate commercialization of fuel cell technology.
“We are excited to be working with a technology leader such as Ballard Power Systems,” Dr. Borup stated in the press release. “This is important work in support of the DOE goal to move fuel cell technology closer to large scale commercialization. Our collaborations with Ballard are in the areas of understanding and improving fuel cell durability and reducing technology cost, which are the primary enablers to rapid market adoption of fuel cell systems.”
More than 80 percent of the DOEs funding is channeled for durability and cost reduction projects; the remaining 20 percent fund water management modeling.
Ballard Material Products’ project is designed to better analyze fuel cell materials and component degradation, which will lead to strengthened mitigation strategies to hit the ultimate goal of fuel cell commercialization for a wide range of applications, including power generation.
Dr. Christopher Guzy, CTO at Ballard Power Systems, said the contracts represent the DOEs attraction to fuel cell applications.
“The receipt of significant funding from the DOE clearly demonstrates the Department of Energy’s interest in fuel cell market adoption,” Dr. Guzy stated. “This funding is completely aligned with Ballard’s plans to continue investing in strategic enhancements of non-automotive fuel cell products.”
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