Joint development of fuel cell technology in commercial energy-producing applications

Wärtsilä, provider of power solutions to both the marine and energy markets, and Versa Power Systems Inc.(VPS), developer of environmentally friendly, high-power solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC)based in Littleton, USA, announced a co-operative agreement to develop and integrate Versa Power's SOFC technology into Wärtsilä products.

A key target of the agreement is to develop commercial Wärtsilä fuel cell products that generate power and heat for various applications in the distributed energy and marine markets. The agreement allows Wärtsilä to integrate VPS fuel cell stack modules, especially for larger power range products. For VPS, the agreement provides a dedicated partner with the ability to commercialize fuel cell products in large markets around the globe.

Wärtsilä has already launched successful pilot projects using fuel cell technology supplied by Topsoe Fuel Cell A/S headquartered in Denmark, and this co-operation will continue as planned. In 2008, Wärtsilä delivered a unique fuel cell unit that operates on landfill gas and produces electricity and heat for the city of Vaasa in Finland. In the summer of 2010, a WFC20 fuel cell unit was installed onboard the "Undine", a car carrier owned by Sweden's Wallenius Lines, for tests associated with the METHAPU project. Additionally, Wärtsilä has developed 50 kW WFC50 power units for internal validation.