California fuel cell maker Bloom Energy will provide one of its units to power the Hartford microgrid the city received $2.1 million in state money to start.
Hartford selected Bloom over Connecticut fuel cell manufacturers FuelCell Energy of Danbury and Doosan of South Windsor. Part of the reason Gov. Dannel P. Malloy developed these government subsidy programs for energy project was to create a clean energy industry in the state. Bloom also has won a significant portion of other Connecticut subsidy projects, including the $300 million Low-emissions Renewable Energy Credit (LREC) program.
Bloom’s selection to provide the Hartford fuel cell came after the company made a deal with Baltimore energy giant Constellation to develop 40 megawatts of Bloom fuel cell projects in Connecticut, California, New York and New Jersey, including the Hartford project.
Under that agreement, Constellation will provide financing to more than 170 fuel cell projects for Bloom customers, where there will be no upfront costs and the customers will buy the power from Constellation for 15 years. In addition to Hartford, other customers of this plan include AT&T and Walmart.
The Hartford microgrid in the city’s Parkville section was one of nine to receive funding from Connecticut, in order to establish islands of critical importance that could operate under their own power if the main electric grid ever went down. Hartford received $2.1 million for the Parkville microgrid and $2.3 million for a separate microgrid project near St. Francis Hospital & Medical Center.
The Parkville microgrid is in the design phase and will be operational by August 2016, according to the Hartford Department of Public Works.