Hydrogenics Receives Orders for Fuel-Cell Test Services and Stations
01 May 2006
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| The anatomy of a Hydrogenics test station. |
Hydrogenics Corporation has received a follow-on order from General Motors Corporation to provide fuel-cell test services which is anticipated to be fully realized in 2006. Hydrogenics’ stock climbed 8.1% to $4.25 in midday trading on the news, near a 52-week high of $4.40 from February.
Hydrogenics last week announced it had received orders for three fuel-cell test stations from GS Caltex, a leading Korean energy company. Hydrogenics will provide a FCATS G300 Test Station and two FCATS G50 Test Stations with delivery expected in 2006.
Hydrogenics makes a range of test systems—FCATS (Fuel Cell Automated Test Systems)—to test, control, and monitor the performance and durability of individual cells and stacks under a wide range of operating conditions.
The systems consist of four basic modules plus the Hyware II control and automation software:
Gas supply and mixing. Gas supply modules control the reactant gas flow rate, conducts nitrogen purge, and optionally blends gases to simulate reformate. The gas mixing option has the flexibility to supply a combination of multiple fuel and oxidant streams.
Humidification. A variety of humidification systems offer accurate control of the reactants’ dew point and relative humidity throughout the full flow, pressure and temperature ranges.
Temperature control. A temperature control system pre-heats the stack during start-up and cools the stack during normal operation. This stack coolant module controls fuel cell coolant temperature, ensuring the stack runs within specified temperature bounds.
Back pressure control. This system is capable of a wide turndown ratio with exact measurement and control accuracy.
In 2003, Hydrogenics acquired Greenlight Power Technologies, Inc., its principal competitor in the fuel-cell test business, in a $US19-million transaction. The acquisition combined the number one and number two providers of fuel-cell test equipment and testing services, and almost doubled the size of Hydrogenics’ test business at the time.
Apparently they dont agree that hydrogen is a dead end.I need NBK to give me the techno low down on where this indicates they are in their quixotic pursuit of the hydrogen age.Could the hes{home energy station}be encouraging them on their pursuit of fuel cell hy-wire vehicles.Honda still seems insistent on their pursuit of fuel cells.Hmmmm,gets curioser and curioser.
Posted by: gerald earl | 01 May 2006 at 01:20 PM
Hydrogenics seems to be in the business of making the equipment that fuel-cell developers use when creating and testing their fuel cells. They are not in the business of actually making fuel cells, nor figuring out where to use them.
The far-off nature of hydrogen fuel cell cars has been long discussed in this forum. But there are other good uses for fuel cells, even in the short term. Specialized vehicles, ranging from the Space Shuttle to indoor forklifts, already use fuel cells due to the peculiar needs of their applications. The military might have a legitimate need for something with the performance characteristics of a fuel cell, with cost less of an issue. The Honda home-energy concept (reforming NG to generate heat and electricity through a fuel cell) also relies on fuel cells.
All these applications are already enough reason for a relatively small (tens of millions in market cap) fuel cell technology company to exist. Whether any of this will see widespread use in automobies during our lifetimes is an open question.
Posted by: NBK-Boston | 01 May 2006 at 02:48 PM