FOXNews.com  - May 04, 2010

101 years ago, physicist and inventor Nikola Tesla predicted a device that would let a businessman in New York wirelessly communicate with his office in London or elsewhere — a gizmo just like the Blackberry

The physicist’s comments were from an interview with the New York Times, printed in the October 1909 issue of Popular Mechanics and referenced by the magazine’s current technology editor, Seth Porges. 

Porges, at a presentation for futurism enthusiasts in New York City, brought up the prediction for a presentation titled “108 Years of Futurism,” made by Seth Porges. At the time, Tesla had spoken about the “primitive” wireless telegraph technology. Noting that only electric waves were being used, he described the potential of instead transmitting electric currents. 

Watch the presentation

“It will soon be possible to transmit wireless messages all over the world so simply that any individual can carry and operate his own apparatus,” Tesla had told the Times, describing a “an inexpensive instrument not bigger than a watch, which will enable its bearer to hear anywhere on sea or land for distances of thousands of miles. One may listen or transmit speech or song to the uttermost parts of the world,” he wrote.

By George Pyle – BUFFALO NEWS - May 05, 2010

 Two Western New York companies are among those receiving 25 grants from a state agency to help develop and bring to market products that promise to improve the clean generation and storage of energy.

Graphene Devices of Amherst and Precision Electro Minerals of Niagara Falls have been notified that they are to receive awards from a pool totaling $11.3 million from the state’s Regional Greenhouse Gas cap and trade auction and the Systems Benefit Charge funds.

Graphene Devices is to receive funding for developing a process that will manufacture films consisting of a one-atom-thick layer of carbon that should be able to replace higher-cost materials in the manufacture of solar power cells. It and six other companies will divide up a total of $4.1 million in product development funds.

Precision Electro Minerals is one of 13 firms and colleges that are to split $2.6 million allocated for feasibility studies. The company is studying the practicality of a new process for making solar-grade silicon. The grants are allocated by the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority, and in each case are to be matched by private investment, for a total of $22.6 million in project investment. They were selected from 71 proposals received.

“The products that emerge from these initiatives will help create jobs and develop the tools needed to help us mitigate our impact on the environment for the next generation,” Gov. David A. Paterson said in a statement.

The exact amount to be received by each developer is not made public at this stage of the process, officials said, because contract talks are ongoing. In many cases, authority officials said, contracts will include a requirement that the grants be repaid once the products involved become profitable.

gpyle@buffnews.com

Bismarck-Mandan News - Chris.Bjorke@bismarcktribune.com - Saturday, March 20, 2010

A “buy American” proposal for wind energy funding pending in Washington could slow development and hurt job creation, according to some in the industry.

“At a time when the construction unemployment rate is nearly 25 percent and the manufacturing unemployment rate is 13 percent, this proposal would cost 50,000 American workers their jobs,” according to a statement by the head of the American Wind Energy Association, Denise Bode.

The stipulation put forward by Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., and supported by three other senators, would cut off funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to wind energy developers that use foreign-made components. According to Schumer’s office, $1 billion in ARRA funding has gone to foreign companies.

The Senate proposal is meant to create jobs in the United States, but according to AWEA, it would “torpedo one of the most successful job creation efforts of the Recovery Act.”

Dennis Randall of Schuff Steel, the company that plans to build a Bismarck facility to make wind towers, said the proposal was a frequent topic of conversation at a recent wind conference he attended. Schuff is an American company that has been awarded ARRA tax incentives to bring wind-related manufacturing to North Dakota. However, Randall said it could hurt the market for towers if it slows the development of wind farms.

“Demand could slow down, pending the outcome,” he said. Schuff is in the process of lining up customers for towers, but the expected growth of demand could be stunted. “That expected ramp-up has been put into question,” he said.

Tim Simons, chief executive of Mandan-based developer Crownbutte, said that the majority of turbine components are foreign-made, and attaching new strings to federal funding would further complicate an already drawn-out process of bringing new energy projects online.

“In the wind industry they’re always creating bottlenecks for us,” Simons said. “You go inside those turbines and it’s all foreign-made stuff.”

The perception that recovery money is being funneled directly overseas has been exaggerated, said Jan Johnson, spokeswoman for Iberdrola Renewables, which has a 149-megawatt wind farm near Rugby.

“That’s simply not the truth,” Johnson said. “Every single dollar given to us has been reinvested in the U.S.”

ARRA funding “saved the day” after financial markets collapsed in 2008, she said, and has been a part of Iberdrola’s plans to invest $6 billion in renewable energy by 2012.

One of the bigger developers of wind farms in the state, Basin Electric Power Cooperative, has been erecting wind turbines since 2003, well before the stimulus spending was passed in 2009. The components it uses originate in U.S. plants like LM Glasfiber in Grand Forks and DMI Industries in West Fargo.

“All the wind projects we’ve been involved with since 2003 have been GE-produced components,” said Basin spokesman Daryl Hill, referring to General Electric, a major domestic producer of wind parts.

Elizabeth Salerno, an analyst for the AWEA, said her organization and the Schumer proposal both share the goal of increasing domestic manufacturing jobs in wind power — which provide nearly

50 percent of the U.S. demand for components — but the buy American requirement takes away the certainty desired by investors in new projects.

“It creates a chilling effect on the ability to raise capital,” she said. “In the long-term, certainty is what drives investment.”

By George Pyle – Buffalo News - January 19, 2010

An industrial park under development in the Town of Tonawanda has been rebranded as New York’s first “solar ready” commercial development, as its owners Monday celebrated the signing of a deal expected to bring Chinese know-how and investment to the site.

Leaders of TM Montante Development, the owners of the newly renamed Riverview Solar Technology Park, and the Shanghai New Energy Industry Association held a ceremonial signing of a memorandum of understanding Monday morning at the offices of the Buffalo Niagara Partnership in downtown Buffalo.

The text of the memo was not made public, but it was described by leaders of both parties as a promise and plan to link the renewable energy industries of China, where 35 percent of the world’s solar energy modules are made, and Western New York, where solar and other renewable energy sources are seen as an environmentally responsible route to economic renewal.

In addition to its previous designation as a “shovel ready” development site by state officials, meaning that it has already received its environmental and development permits, Montante Development President Thomas M. Montante said the project will be “solar ready.”

Fifty of the park’s 180 acres, which sit along River Road northeast of the South Grand Island Bridge, will be set aside for solar energy collectors that will generate 10 megawatts of power for use on site.

That power, together with the area’s availability of pollution- free hydropower from the New York Power Authority, means park businesses not only can make products that do not create greenhouse gas emissions but also can make them in an environment that is pollution- free.

“We intend to be New York’s leader in solar development,” Montante said. “Energy and the environment are at the forefront of the battle for attracting and retaining business throughout the country. We decided to address this reality with a strategy of integrating solar as an enhancement of our core business.”

The Shanghai organization is a consortium of about 300 member companies from the Shanghai area’s renewable energy sector, which also maintains an office in San Jose, Calif. Its executive vice chairwoman, Yeu Mi, signed the document Monday on behalf of the association.

“I am 100 percent confident in this new era of energy development in New York State,” Mi said through a translator. “We are going to develop our products not only in the United States but in the whole world.”

A link between the two parties was provided by Daniel Montante, son of the company president and a director of Montante Development, who is a veteran of four years of business experience in Shanghai as an acquisitions and mergers representative for DuPont.

The younger Montante said the Riverview development plan allows a form of commerce that does not demand so much of a sacrifice from nature and forms a cooperative rather than a competitive relationship with growing Chinese businesses.

“We look forward to progressive and productive relations that will benefit both parties,” he said.

Also on hand to praise the agreement were State Sen. George D. Maziarz, R-Newfane, and Assemblyman Robin Schimminger, D-Town of Tonawanda.

“You have picked the right partners,” Maziarz said to the Shanghai delegation, “and you have picked the right location.”

State economic development officials announced recently that the state had awarded a $1 million grant to the Town of Tonawanda for its Riverwalk East Park Connector project to build roads and utility services for the Montante project and for the town-owned North Youngmann Commerce Center nearby.

gpyle@buffnews.com

May 7, 2009

BUFFALO—In its effort to promote renewable energy technologies throughout New York State and in response to Governor Paterson’s call to expand New York’s renewable energy portfolio, the New York Power Authority (NYPA) today joined with the University at Buffalo (UB) to announce a major, multi-million dollar award to the university to construct a 1.1 megawatt solar energy array on UB’s North (Amherst) Campus. The solar array, consisting of approximately 5,000 photovoltaic panels, will generate clean energy directly from the sun for students living in UB’s apartment complexes.

NYPA will work with UB to provide site design, engineering and construction services for this project.

The award to UB will serve as a cornerstone of NYPA’s $21 million statewide renewable energy program and will advance the UB 2020 strategic plan’s focus on making the university’s three campuses great places to live, work and learn, in part by improving their environmental sustainability. 

It will be the largest solar installation on any college or university campus in New York State and one of the largest on any campus in the United States, according to the American Solar Energy Society.

“This partnership between NYPA and UB exemplifies how New York State is poised to become the leader in this new energy economy,” said Governor David A. Paterson. “This project also demonstrates my Administration’s commitment to achieving the clean energy goals of the ambitious ’45 by 15’ program, which will create clean energy jobs throughout New York State, and result in greater energy independence and a cleaner environment.”

Richard M. Kessel, NYPA president and chief executive officer, said, “NYPA is committed to investing in Western New York, and the University at Buffalo is the perfect partner for promoting, developing, educating and training in photovoltaic technologies for a cleaner environment, energy independence and green-collar jobs.

“Through this project, NYPA is making great strides in advancing Governor Paterson’s ‘45 by 15’ initiative, which sets a date of 2015 by which New York State is to meet 45 percent of its electricity needs through improved energy efficiency and clean renewable energy.” 

According to NYPA, UB’s North Campus solar array will reduce carbon emissions at UB by more than 500 metric tons per year.

Designed to produce 1.1 megawatts (1.1 million watts) of electricity, the UB solar array is expected to be operating by fall 2010.  It will provide power to UB’s Flint, Hadley, South Lake and Creekside Village apartments, a total of 735 apartments, housing nearly 2,000 undergraduate and graduate UB students.

According to NYPA, the UB solar array will be specially designed to operate in a cold weather environment and to withstand heavy snowfall, serving as a benchmark for future systems in similar climates. In doing so, the UB/NYPA project will promote the development of innovative solar technologies.

As a result of this project, Western New York could become a new center for green-collar jobs, as the UB/NYPA partnership includes collaborations with the university and area colleges to start training and certifying personnel in the installation of solar panels.

UB President John B. Simpson said UB “takes great pleasure in accepting this exciting award from the New York Power Authority.”

“This award not only recognizes UB’s long record of environmental leadership, but it commits us to a greener, more sustainable future that is exactly in keeping with the goals of UB 2020 and Building UB,” he said.

“By helping us generate our own power on campus, this solar array helps us take a significant step toward meeting one of the primary goals of the American College and University Presidents Climate Commitment, in which the university has pledged to go ‘climate-neutral,’” Simpson added.

Combined with existing clean energy purchases, this project puts UB well past the 15 percent interim renewable energy target set for signatories of the Presidents’ Climate Commitment.

Simpson noted that the project also will foster UB education and research with the School of Engineering and Applied Sciences in the area of renewable energy. It will provide students and researchers with the opportunity to study and track the real-time functioning of an on-site clean energy system. The system will include a data acquisition feature that will be especially useful in research and education.

New York State Senator Michael H. Ranzenhofer, said, “As a graduate of SUNY at Buffalo, I am very supportive of the solar panel project which will be one of the largest solar projects in New York State.”

New York State Assemblyman Dennis Gabryszak, said, “This joint project between NYPA and UB will prove to be a blueprint for other campuses across the nation.  UB once again is spearheading a new era in WNY as we look to conserve energy, reduce carbon emissions and generate green collar jobs.”

Contrary to the conventional wisdom about Buffalo’s weather, data from the National Weather Service shows that from May through November, Buffalo is the sunniest and driest city in the Northeast, making it an ideal candidate for generating solar power.

The project will give many UB students the unique experience of living in apartments where their electricity is provided not by the burning of fossil fuels hundreds of miles away but by the clean, renewable power of the sun here on campus with virtually no greenhouse gas emissions, Simpson noted. 

UB student Emily Bauer, member of the UB Environmental Stewardship Committee and a delegate to the State University of New York Student Assembly, said she and her fellow students look forward to construction of the solar array on UB’s campus.

“Climate change is one of the biggest problems facing the next generation and is of great concern to UB students,” she said. “By stepping up as a leader in solar energy, UB has shown it is committed to a bright future for our environment.”

State Senator Antoine Thompson said the NYPA/Buffalo partnership is a step forward for green energy in Western New York. “As Chair of the Senate Environmental Conservation Committee, I have been focused on making Buffalo an epicenter for green initiatives,” Thompson noted. “An institution of the size of UB making the decision to run on solar panels instead of electricity is a step in the right direction.  Conserving energy and resources in this way benefits the environment greatly.”

The new solar installation at UB will be the largest ground-mounted PV system in New York State.

Its 5,000 panels will be installed on or adjacent to the North Campus grounds of the Melvin H. Baker Chilled Water Plant on Flint Road, which delivers utility services to the 1,200- acre suburban campus.

This will be UB’s second solar electric system; in 2006, UB installed a 73.5 kilowatt demonstration solar system on top of Norton Hall, which provides at least 6 percent of that building’s power.

By Aaron Besecker - NEWS NIAGARA REPORTER – Bflo News - March 19, 2010

Students, administrators and staff at Catholic schools across the region are warming to their shiny new rooftops.

Crews already have installed solar panels at elementary schools in Buffalo, Niagara Falls, Amherst, Hamburg, Lancaster and Lockport, and the Catholic Diocese of Buffalo hopes to have 43 solar projects installed during the next several years.

A state authority, a private company and the diocese have teamed up on the project.

“This isn’t someday in the future, or someplace down south or some rich company. This is us,” said Viki Ingersoll, energy manager for the diocese.

The new solar energy projects are being implemented with dual goals in mind, Ingersoll said. In addition to lowering energy costs, students will learn firsthand about the environmental benefits of solar power.

The effort is being funded through a grant from the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority and a donation from Solar Liberty Energy Systems of Williamsville.

When all school projects are completed, they will produce about one and a half megawatts of solar electricity, enough to power 186 homes.

The latest panels were installed last week at Catholic Academy of Niagara Falls, the former Prince of Peace School.

Panels at the school have the capacity to generate 49,000 watts of electricity. Once up and running, they will save the school an estimated $5,000 to $7,000 a year in energy costs. That’s equivalent to about 22 percent of the school’s annual electric costs, said Solar Liberty marketing manager Jim Walters.

Over 25 years, the solar panels will reduce the amount of carbon dioxide emissions by about 849 tons, Walters said. They also will save about $322,000 in electrical costs over their warrantied lifetime, the company predicts.

The system at the Catholic Academy, which took four days to install but has not yet been hooked up to the power grid, also will allow the school to benefit from all the electricity they produce, even if they don’t use it right away.

The electric meters run backwards, generating a credit, when power is sent out to the grid. When the school starts to draw power, the meter moves forward again, Ingersoll said.

“The school is a working model for homeowners and businesses in the community,” Adam Rizzo, president of Solar Liberty, said in a written statement. “It’s important to demonstrate that solar energy is a viable way to power a building, while reducing its environmental impact.”

Six solar projects were installed last year at parishes across the Buffalo Diocese and are now generating electricity: St. Andrew, Town of Tonawanda; St. Gregory the Great, Amherst; Our Lady of Pompeii, Lancaster; St. Mary of the Lake, Hamburg; Notre Dame Academy, Buffalo; and Immaculate Conception, East Aurora.

Several other projects have also been installed this year, including at DeSales Catholic School, Lockport; St. Christopher, Town of Tonawanda; Our Lady of the Blessed Sacrament, Depew; Queen of Heaven, West Seneca; and Nativity of the Blessed Virgin Mary, Williamsville.

Our Lady of Mount Carmel School in Niagara Falls also has been approved for a solar project.

The local effort to increase solar-generating capacity mirrors a statewide initiative. The New York Power Authority is in the process of developing 100 megawatts of solar electricity capacity at public buildings statewide, under an initiative announced in January.

abesecker@buffnews.com

By Nancy Gish – - SOUTHTOWNS CORRESPONDENT- BFLO NEWS – Jan 16, 2010

The Elma Town Board on Wednesday heard a presentation from a solar panel consulting company seeking the town’s business to install solar panels on property behind Town Hall on Bowen Road.

Supervisor Michael Nolan initially asked the board to consider solar panels on the roof of Town Hall but TVGA, a local engineering company, suggested the panels be installed on the ground behind Town Hall.

Grant money is available for the project through stimulus aid and no town funds would be required. However, TVGA, which would build the infrastructure to contain the panels, suggested the town pay for 10 percent of the project to speed up the grant process.

The consulting company, NYSOL, would procure the products, do the grant writing and hire the installers.

The goal is to reduce Town Hall electrical use by 15 percent by 2015 while increasing renewable energy, promote climate protection and support green innovation and the economy. Excess power generated by the panels would go back into the grid, officials said during the board’s workshop session.

The town would see a $6,000 saving in its electric bill and reap renewable energy credits. The project would employ about 100 16-square-foot solar panels.

Nolan, long a proponent of the panels, said, “We need to be proactive with energy efficiency. It is a lot to gain for the local taxpayer. It’s an investment in the future.”

However, Councilman Dean Puleo is not so sure.

“The whole idea is very distasteful to me,” he said. “It is clearly not cost-effective and is a horrible investment. . . .”

He said the $120,000 cost would take the town 20 years to recoup at the estimated electrical savings of $6,000 a year.

The issue will be on the agenda when the board meets on Wednesday.

By KATHARINE Q. SEELYE -  April 28, 2010

BOSTON — After nine years of regulatory review, the federal government gave the green light Wednesday to the nation’s first offshore wind farm, a highly contested project off the coast of Cape Cod.

Multimedia

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The approval of the 130-turbine farm gives a significant boost to the nascent offshore wind industry in the United States, which has lagged far behind Europe and China in harnessing the strong and steady power of ocean breezes to provide electricity to homes and businesses.

With Gov. Deval Patrick standing beside him, Interior Secretary Ken Salazar announced at a news conference at the Massachusetts Statehouse that the government had approved a permit for Cape Wind Associates, a private venture, to build the farm.

“I am approving the Cape Wind project,” Mr. Salazar said. “This will be the first of many projects up and down the Atlantic coast.”

The Cape Wind turbines would lie in Nantucket Sound, about five miles from the nearest shoreline, and cover 24 square miles, roughly the size of Manhattan. The tip of the highest blade of each turbine would reach 440 feet above the water.

But the project is hardly shovel ready. Several regulatory hurdles remain, and opponents of the wind farm have vowed to go to court, potentially stalling Cape Wind for several more years.

For years the Cape Wind project has been the focusof pitched battles splitting politicians and environmental groups. While some environmentalists are prepared to go to court to stop the project, other major groups, including the Sierra Club and Greenpeace, support it.

Senator Edward M. Kennedy of Massachusetts, whose family compound overlooks Nantucket Sound and who died last year, had opposed the project, saying it was a giveaway to a private developer.

Senator Scott Brown, Republican of Massachusetts, issued a statement opposing the decision immediately after it was announced, saying it would hinder tourism and boating in the area.

But Mr. Patrick, also a Democrat, has supported it.

“America needs offshore wind power, and with this project, Massachusetts will lead the nation,” Mr. Patrick declared at the Statehouse on Wednesday. While there are differences of opinion, he said, “on balance, Cape Wind is good for our environment and good for our energy needs.”

He added that construction could begin within a year. “We are on our way,” he said. “If we get clean energy right, the whole world will be our customer.”

Ian Bowles, secretary of the Massachusetts executive office of environmental affairs, called the announcement “the shot heard ’round the world for American clean energy.”

At least half a dozen offshore wind farms have been proposed along the East Coast and the Great Lakes. Their relatively shallow waters make wind energy more feasible than off the West Coast, where the ocean floor drops off precipitously.

Supporters say the $1 billion Cape Wind project would provide a clean, renewable source of energy that could meet up to 75 percent of the power needs on Cape Cod, Martha’s Vineyard and Nantucket. They also say it would provide hundreds of construction jobs, decrease the region’s reliance on fossil fuels and benefit the environment by lowering emissions of greenhouse gases.

Opponents say it would be an industrial blot in an area of pristine beauty and change the region’s historic character. They also warn that the costs to consumers are likely to be double or triple the costs for conventional power. Improvements to the region’s electrical grid and transmission lines could cost $10 billion.

Audra Parker, president and chief executive of the Alliance to Protect Nantucket Sound, said that several groups would go to court to halt the project. While the permit is “a significant piece of the puzzle,” she warned, other pieces must still be put in place to get the project under way.

The Federal Aviation Administration has yet to make a final determination on the project, which it has rated “a presumed hazard” because of potential interference with airplane radar, she said. And Cape Wind has yet to sign a contract with the local utility, National Grid, to carry the wind power, she noted.

She said that nine state and local permits were still being appealed in the courts. And nearly a dozen parties have filed notices of intention to sue, saying the project violates various environmental rules and regulations.

Asked about future hurdles, Mr. Salazar said, “This is the final decision of the United States of America.” While delays could result from challenges, he said, he was “confident” that the courts would uphold his decision.

Officials said the official record of the decision, to be made available later, would spell out ways in which the government could mitigate any negative effects on coastal views by adjusting he number, orientation and color of the turbines.

The coastal Wampanoag tribe, which requires unobstructed views of the sunrise for sacred ceremonies, said Monday that it was preparing to challenge the project for violations of tribal rights.

“We will not stand by and allow our treasured public lands to be marred forever by a corporate giveaway to private industrial energy developers,” Ms. Parker said.

Can This Object Save the World?

By Jeremy A. Kaplan - Fox News  - February 24, 2010

At a press conference Wednesday, Silicon Valley startup Bloom Energy showed off its new, heavily hyped technology, which harnesses chemical reactions to create energy. The company’s mission: to revolutionize the world’s fuel sources.

• Bloom Energy’s fuel cells are flat, solid ceramic squares made from a common sand-like “powder” and are painted with patented inks to create anode (green) and cathode (black) sides. Each fuel cell represents 25 watts of power or enough for one lightbulb.

At a press conference Wednesday, Silicon Valley startup Bloom Energy showed off its new, heavily hyped technology, which harnesses chemical reactions to create energy. The company’s mission: to revolutionize the world’s fuel sources. 

Bloom’s main product is the Bloom Energy Server, a generator based around a smart new fuel cell technology. Fuel cells rely upon chemical reactions to generate energy rather than fossil fuels, and as such are considered cleaner, more affordable, and more reliable than the traditional energy sources.

Fuel cell technology has been under development for decades, primarily concentrating on chemical reactions using hydrogen — an element that can be volatile and difficult to store. Bloom’s fuel cell technology is fundamentally different, running on a wide range of renewable or traditional fuels.

The technology has roots in NASA’s Mars space program, where Dr. KR Sridhar, principal co-founder and CEO of Bloom Energy, was charged with building technology to help sustain life on Mars. His mandate: Use solar energy and water to produce air to breathe and fuel for transportation. 

Sridhar’s invention converts air and nearly any fuel source — ranging from natural gas to a wide range of biogases — into electricity via a clean electrochemical process, rather than dirty combustion. Even running on a fossil fuel, the systems are approximately 67% cleaner than a typical coal-fired power plant, explains Bloom. When powered by a renewable fuel, the company’s Energy Server can be 100% cleaner. Each Energy Server consists of thousands of Bloom’s fuel cells, flat, solid ceramic squares made from a common sand-like “powder.”

Silicon Valley startup Bloom Energy just unveiled its new, heavily hyped technology, which harnesses chemical reactions to create energy. Here’s how it works

Bloom Energy Fuel Servers are shown installed at eBay’s headquarters.

SLIDESHOW: How the Bloom Box Works

Bloom Energy states that to date, Bloom Energy Servers, currently in deployment for several Fortune 500 companies, have produced more than 11 million kilowatt hours (kWh) of electricity, with CO2 reductions estimated at 14 million pounds.

The technology industry breathlessly watched and waited for Wednesday’s unveiling. John Doerr, a partner at investment firm Kleiner Perkins Caufield & Byers and Bloom Energy board member, shared in the hype.

“For years, there have been promises of new energy solutions that are clean, distributed, affordable, and reliable; today we learn that Bloom, formerly in stealth, has actually delivered,” he said. “Americans want clean, affordable, energy, 24×7 — and all the jobs that go with it. Bloom’s boxes are a breakthrough, serving energy, serving demanding customers, and serving our country.”

The company’s customers seem to echo Doerr’s enthusiasm, many of which are leading businesses. Coca-Cola, Cox, eBay, FedEx, Google, Staples, and more have been running the Energy Servers. 

Coke’s 500kW installation at its Odwalla plant in Dinuba, CA, will run on re-directed biogas and is expected to provide 30% of the plant’s power needs while reducing its carbon footprint by an estimated 35%.

“This new fuel cell technology has great promise and represents an important step for Coca-Cola in continuing to grow our business without growing the carbon footprint,” said Brian Kelley, President and General Manager, Coca-Cola North America. He noted that the Bloom Servers can help the company reduce carbon emissions while improving efficiency and using cleaner forms of energy.”

In a video shown at the event, California Senator Dianne Feinstein, Cypress Semiconductor CEO T.J. Rogers, New York Mayor Michael Bloomberg and others raved about the new innovation. 

Mayor Bloomberg said he was excited from the first time he saw the technology in action: “My first reaction was this was a company guaranteed for greatness.” 

“When we look at Bloom Energy,” he added, “we are looking at the future of business, at the future of the economy, at the future of America.”