In an interview with Leslie Stahl of the 60 Minutes evening news program (linked above), CEO of Bloom Energy K.R. Sridhar lifted a cube half the size of a loaf of bread and proclaimed that it could power an entire European household, half of an American household, or 4 Asian households.
Fuel cells are a lot like an open-ended battery. There is a central catalytic membrane that separates two chemicals that, when combined, generate electricity with their reaction. A battery has a set amount of each chemical available, but a fuel cell pumps the agents in continuously and harnesses the power generated. There are lots of different fuels including fossil and renewable options that work in these applications. However, fuel cells are generally very expensive to make with substantial amounts precious metals required.
Sridhar's Bloom Box was repurposed by Sridhar from a device he developed for NASA to generate oxygen on Mars. Venture capitalists have jumped on board, with a reported $400 million plus capital raise. Until now, however, no information or products had been released, and the company website is cryptic at best and Sridhar claims that in 5-10 years there will be a Bloom Box in every home, at a $3000 price point.
They have a long way to go. Currently production capacity is at one box per day and while some large companies have tested boxes and are now endorsing the company, it doesn't escape attention that all of these installations have been in California where a state tax credit combines with federal incentives for a 50% price cut.
Fuel cell technology is not exactly new, and few successes have been known in reducing the cost of close-cousin battery technologies. Several articles and the linked segment have all pointed out the same thing- fuel cells and other energy technologies can be successful and experience cost reductions when appropriate long-term policies are established to encourage the market. Policies such as these have been instrumental in the development of telecommunications and computer technologies and can do the same for energy.
The problem is the degree of politicization. Energy is not a partisan issue, it's a practical one. Commerce and industry require energy abundance, and relying on outside sources of this energy is foolish at best. Fostering high tech local job creation in the long term while stabilizing our economy through energy security is good for everyone.
Stay tuned for the product launch this Wednesday, February 24th!
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