August 23, 2010, Danbury, CT – FuelCell Energy, Inc., a manufacturer of
power plants using renewable and other fuels, recently announced the
sale of a 1.4-megawatt (MW) fuel cell power plant to G3 Power Systems,
Inc. (G3).
August 23, 2010, Danbury, CT – FuelCell Energy, Inc., a manufacturer of power plants using renewable and other fuels, recently announced the sale of a 1.4-megawatt (MW) fuel cell power plant to G3 Power Systems, Inc. (G3).
The power plant will be installed at Olivera Egg Ranch, LLC, a poultry ranch located in French Camp, CA. It will utilize renewable biogas for fuel, converting what is currently a waste problem for Olivera Egg Ranch into clean electricity that is generated at the point of use. FuelCell Energy will service the power plant under a five-year service agreement.
Olivera Egg Ranch presently uses a solid waste lagoon for waste disposal. An anaerobic digester will be installed and the waste stream will be directed into this structure where heat and microorganisms will reduce the volume of waste and create methane gas as a byproduct. The fuel cell power plant will utilize 100 percent of this methane waste byproduct as fuel to generate renewable electricity.
“This … fuel cell power plant project demonstrates my commitment to the environment, enabling me to convert the waste stream from my poultry operations into biogas, which in turn is processed into clean, green power,” said Ed Olivera, owner of Olivera Egg Ranch.
With the new technology, he is hoping his waste disposal costs will decrease along with his power bill.
The power generated by the fuel cell power plant will be adequate to meet approximately all of the power needs of the Olivera Egg Ranch facilities. The byproduct heat from the fuel cell energy conversion process will be directed to the anaerobic digester, avoiding the need for a combustion-based boiler to provide the necessary heat for the anaerobic digester process and increasing the overall efficiency of the fuel cell power plant while reducing greenhouse gas emissions. The power plant is expected to be operational by mid 2011.
Olivera Egg Ranch is a third generation family farm producing approximately 14 million cartons of eggs per year for stores and restaurants in the San Francisco Bay area. Founded in 1949, the operation has three locations producing and distributing chicken, duck, quail and goose eggs.
“We evaluated all of the power generation options available in the marketplace today and identified fuel cell power plants as the best commercial technology available to meet baseload power needs in an efficient and environmentally friendly manner,” said Ray Brewer, president, G3 Power Systems, Inc, adding the company has also identified a number of other opportunities in agriculture that are suited to fuel cell applications.
G3 provides complete turnkey fuel cell installations along with engineering and construction services and power purchase agreements and has completed 14 energy projects including fuel cells, solar and biomass applications.
