Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., which brews craft beer, dedicated a one-megawatt fuel cell power plant yesterday – the largest commercial high-temperature fuel cell installation in California. Supplied by Fuel Cell Energy (NasdaqNM: FCEL), the 1 MW power plant consists of four 250-kilowatt Direct FuelCell (DFC) power plants. Its waste heat will be harvested in the form of steam and used for the brewing process as well as other heating needs.
The energy from the fuel cell (equivalent to the power needed to support 500-1000 homes for a year) will supply 100% of the brewery’s base load power requirements.
When the fuel cells generate more power than the brewery requires, Sierra Nevada sends excess electricity back to the grid system and receives credit for a portion of its generation costs.
Pacific Gas and Electric Company presented a check in excess of $2.4 million as part of its Self Generation Incentive Program (SGIP), which assists customers installing clean on-site electric generation. These cash rebates help to offset the upfront costs associated with installation.
The SGIP runs through 2007 and provides up to $66 million per year in incentive funding for purchasing ultra-clean and renewable onsite power systems, including fuel cells.
The Sierra Nevada fuel cell project also received $1 million financial support from the U.S. Department of Defense Climate Change Fuel Cell Program. The fuel cell system was installed by Alliance Power, a distribution partner of FuelCell Energy.
Sierra Nevada will purchase electricity from the fuel cells through a power purchase agreement established by Alliance Power and FuelCell Energy. They will continue to buy additional power through PG&E. Sierra Nevada has the option to purchase the fuel cell power plant from Alliance and FuelCell Energy after 12 months in operation.
FuelCell Energy has over 40 installations throughout the world, with this being its sixth in California and second DFC power plant at a brewery–the first one located in Japan. In addition to the units at Sierra Nevada Brewing Co., there are five California DFC power plant installations including LADWP Headquarters, Main Street and Terminal Island in Los Angeles, and two at waste water treatment plants in Palmdale and Santa Barbara. FuelCell Energy expects to deliver power plants to four more customers in California within the next 12 months: Sheraton San Diego Hotel and Marina, Santa Rita Correctional Facility, U.S. Postal Service’s San Francisco Processing and Distribution Center and The U.S. Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center.
“In our ongoing efforts to operate the brewery in as ecologically clean and sustainable a manner as possible, I have invested in fuel cell technology, one of the greenest and most technologically advanced methods of electric generation available today,” said Ken Grossman, Founder and Owner, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. “This project is the cornerstone of many of the ongoing initiatives we have focused on to improve our efficiency and sustainability. Our goal is to have all our operations work hand in glove with our views on energy policy, recycling, cleaning practices, wastewater treatment, and material reuse.”
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