The two Direct FuelCell (DFC) units, sold through FuelCell Energy’s distribution partner Alliance Power, will be located at the warehouse now being built in Stockton, California. The new facility will provide 5.32 million cubic feet of refrigerated and frozen storage.
In its Stockton warehouse, M&L/ICS will use the 600kW of electricity from the power plants to run the warehouse 24/7. The thermal energy generated by the DFC300(tm) plants will be used to either heat the building’s floor – required in cold storage to prevent the ground from freezing and damaging the structure’s foundation – or to provide absorption chilling. With Combined Heat and Power (CHP) applications such as these, the DFC plant efficiency can be as high as 80%, resulting in significant energy savings.
Gary Guesman, project development partner and contractor for M&L/ICS, said: We selected DFC fuel cells because they give us ultra-clean, reliable electricity at competitive rates and increase our energy efficiency through CHP. The other solutions we looked at did not match the DFC fuel cell advantages, either in terms of overall cost-of-ownership, 24/7 operation, or environmental benefits.
