Ballard Power Systems has signed a product development agreement with Hydrogene de France (HDF Energy), an independent power producer dedicated to renewable power generation, for the development and integration of a multi-megawatt (MW) scale fuel cell system into HDF Energy’s Renewstable power plant designed for stationary power applications.

HDF Energy’s Renewstable power plant is a multi-MW baseload system enabling large-scale storage of intermittent renewable wind or solar energy in the form of hydrogen through the process of electrolysis as well as electricity generation using that hydrogen feedstock together with a fuel cell system. This power plant can produce zero-emission power on a 24/7 basis from intermittent renewable energy, in order to support electrical grids.

Under the Development Agreement, we are planning for two phases of work. The first phase involves the design, build and supply of two next-generation MW-scale containerized stationary PEM fuel cell systems totaling 3-megawatts, based on our new high-durability LCS fuel cell stack [earlier post]. Second, after HDF Energy incorporates these systems into their Renewstable power plant in an initial project, we plan to proceed with a technology transfer program to enable HDF Energy to assemble these fuel cell systems for global market sales of their Renewstable power plants.

—Kevin Colbow, Ballard Chief Technology Officer

In the initial HDF Energy project, an installation is planned in French Guiana, an overseas department and region of France located off the northern Atlantic coast of South America, under the Centrale Electricité de l’Ouest Guyanais (CEOG) project. The project will involve 90MWh of energy storage from hydrogen, representing a first for the fuel cell industry.

Subject to certain conditions, the collaboration contemplates a future technology transfer of Ballard’s new MW-scale containerized PEM fuel cell system to HDF Energy with an exclusive royalty-bearing, non-transferable, multi-year global license for the manufacture and sale of MW-scale fuel cell systems for Renewstable power plant systems. The collaboration also contemplates Ballard supplying LCS fuel cell stacks for these systems based on an exclusive long-term supply agreement. HDF Energy is planning to establish a manufacturing facility in Bordeaux, France.

The transaction is subject to completion of definitive agreements and is reliant in part on the CEOG project, which is subject to customary conditions for multi-year programs of this scope, including but not limited to permitting and regulatory approvals, financings and project execution activities.