Ballard Power Systems has announced the commissioning of a 1.1-megawatt ClearGen™ fuel cell system installed at the Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A., Inc. (TMS) sales and marketing headquarters campus in Torrance, California.

VANCOUVER, October 18, 2012 - Ballard Power Systems has announced the commissioning of a 1.1-megawatt ClearGen™ fuel cell system installed at the Toyota Motor Sales U.S.A., Inc. (TMS) sales and marketing headquarters campus in Torrance, California.

Powered by Ballard's proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells, the ClearGen™ system enables Toyota to satisfy peak and mid-peak power needs using electricity from either the clean energy fuel cell system or from the power grid.

"Reducing our demand for electricity from the utility will create an estimated savings of one hundred thousand dollars each summer, while at the same time reducing our environmental footprint," said Doug Beebe, Toyota Administrative Services Corporate Manager.

Hydrogen fuel is delivered directly to the system by means of an existing pipeline, which also supplies a local fuel cell vehicle fueling station. Pipeline hydrogen used on Toyota's campus will be offset with the purchase of landfill generated renewable bio-gas. "Toyota is taking advantage of the inherent load-following capability of PEM fuel cells," said Paul Cass, Ballard Vice President of Operations.

"The flexibility of our scalable ClearGen™ system is such that it can operate intermittently to provide peak power during times of high demand or continuously to meet baseload power needs."

This project represents the first deployment of a Ballard stationary fuel cell power generation platform, the development of which was supported by funding from Sustainable Development Technology Canada (SDTC), an arm's-length, not-for-profit corporation funded by the Government of Canada that helps commercialize Canadian clean technologies, readying them for growth and export markets.

"This announcement clearly shows the bottom-line impacts of clean technologies: saving money, improving efficiency and making the most of resources," said Dr. Vicky Sharpe, President and CEO of SDTC. "We congratulate Ballard on reaching this important milestone and Toyota on showing leadership through early adoption."

Project funding is also being provided through California's Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP).