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Progress Energy to invest $1 million in firm that develops fuel cells
(News & Observer, The (Raleigh, NC) (KRT) Via Thomson Dialog NewsEdge) Dec. 19--The Triangle's largest energy company is investing in one of the smallest.
Electric utility Progress Energy announced Monday that it will commit $1 million to Microcell, a Raleigh-based company with 17 employees that is developing fuel cells for residential, automotive and consumer-electronic markets.
Fuel cells are devices that convert a fuel such as hydrogen into electricity, heat and water. With applications ranging from cars to power plants, they have drawn attention as a way to help reduce the United States' dependence on foreign oil.
Microcell's fuel cells are unique because they combine all of the components needed for the energy-producing chemical reaction into bundles of microfibers, said Beth Rehbock, Microcell's vice president and chief administrative officer. The company says that its automated manufacturing process has the potential to be more efficient and less costly than other fuel-cell production methods.
The investment allows Raleigh-based Progress Energy to get in on the ground floor of a technology that could eventually be useful in the utility's power generation. "They have a product that shows some promise, and being a local company, we wanted to go ahead and invest on the front end and get in the evaluation phase of what might work for us," said Progress Energy spokeswoman Dana Yeganian.
Progress will have less than a 1 percent stake in Microcell, but its Carolinas CEO and president, Fred Day, will be an active member of the company's board, she said. While Progress Energy has no further Microcell investments planned, it will be watching for future opportunities, Yeganian said.
The utility isn't the first to see promise in Microcell's technology. Pepco Holdings, another investor, owns five power companies that serve 1.8 million customers in the mid-Atlantic region.
Microcell will put Progress Energy's $1 million toward commercializing its development-stage products, but Rehbock said the strategic partnership is even more important to the company than the investment. Progress Energy and other investors can provide important insight about product development and distribution, she said.
The company also is forming partnerships with equipment manufacturers that would incorporate its fuel cells into finished products, Rehbock said. Microcell estimates that it is about a year away from selling demonstration units of its products to potential customers.
One of the first uses of the technology will replace gasoline generators as backup power for homes. The company's 1 kilowatt to 5 kilowatt fuel cells could power critical functions such as lights and refrigeration during power disruptions, Rehbock said.
Ultimately, the company's microfibers are capable of producing tiny fuel cells for consumer electronics such as cell-phone chargers and laptop computers.
"We're the only company in the world that's developing fuel cells with this design," Rehbock said. "Everything we're doing is very novel and new."
Company president Ray Eshraghi developed and patented Microcell's fuel-cell technology, incorporating the company in 2000. A $2 million award from the federal government in 2001 supported the company's proof of concept and research and development. Microcell occupies a 12,000-square-foot space on Chapel Hill Road near the State Fairgrounds.
Progress Energy has invested millions of dollars in cash, property and time to help groups explore and test alternative energy sources. Most of those investments have been in Florida for projects such as a hydrogen fueling station for cars, a solar-powered fuel cell and a backup fuel-cell unit at an assisted-living facility.
"Obviously the future of electricity generation is going to include some new technology, and that could include fuel cells," Yeganian said.
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