On Thursday, Alameda County officials announced the completion of California’s first megawatt-class hydrogen fuel cell cogeneration pant.
The project, engineered and installed at Santa Rita Jail by Chevron Energy Solutions, will provide half of the facility’s annual power needs and benefit the environment.
The one-megawatt plant, manufactured by FuelCell Energy, Inc., will be combined with the jails’ previously-installed 1.2MW solar power array, lowering demand on California’s electric utility system, which will eliminate more than 3,200 tons of greenhouse gas emissions annually, or the equivalent to planting more than 900 acres of trees.
The $6.1 million total project cost was supported by $2.4 million in grants and incentives-$1.4 million from Pacific Gas and Electric Co.’s self-generation incentive program and $1 million from the U.S. Dept of Defense Climate Change Fuel Cell Program. The remaining $3.7 million is being funded entirely by the project’s energy cost savings under a performance contract with Chevron energy Solutions and FuelCell Energy.
Jim Davis, president of Chevron Energy Solutions, said: “This plant is a great example of how clean fuel cell technology can be successfully combined with heat recovery technology to maximize energy savings and minimize environmental impacts.”