Bloom Energy (NYSE: BE) announced an agreement with FPM Development for 20 megawatts (MW) of Bloom’s SOFCs across two strategic locations in Los Angeles. The partnership demonstrates Bloom’s capability to rapidly add affordable and resilient generational capacity to American utilities. Bloom and FPM are working together to deliver hardware by the end of 2024.
The agreement calls for the installation of Bloom Energy’s fuel cell-based Energy Server at repurposed commercial sites, strategically selected for their location on the grid to support growing electrical demand. FPM, a developer of utility-scale projects that deliver innovative, scalable infrastructure and finance solutions, is supported by ABZ, Inc., and Montalto Energy, for rapid deployment of distributed generation projects.
“As states grapple with increasing demand and penetration of intermittent renewables, Bloom’s technology is uniquely positioned to quickly deliver reliable, distributed power and mitigate shortages,” said Aman Joshi, Bloom Energy’s global Chief Commercial Officer. “The selection of Bloom’s solution for this project clearly demonstrates our ability to address power shortfalls even in the nation’s most populous metropolitan areas.”
This agreement is part of an initial deal with FPM as they continue to drive the energy transition with utilities in California. FPM selected Bloom Energy’s solution due to the following benefits:
Rapid Deployment
Bloom’s fuel cells can be installed within months versus years to meet urgent power needs, ensuring energy generation without long delays for infrastructure upgrades.
Flexible and Scalable
- Flexible installation requirements enable integration into an existing site layout and development plan.
- Scalable solution enables expansion of capacity with increasing power needs.
Reliable and Resilient
Bloom systems deliver highly reliable power due to a modular, fault-tolerant design and can withstand extreme weather, fire and other external disruptions.
Clean and Sustainable
- Bloom’s technology generates electricity with no combustion and negligible criteria pollutant emissions. The company’s SOFCs operate on multiple fuels, including natural gas, biogas and hydrogen, providing a lower carbon footprint compared to the electric grid while maintaining grid stability.
- Bloom’s fuel cell technology provides a scalable, easy to deploy solution which is CARB Distributed Generation certified and exempt from air permitting in many air districts, including the South Coast Air Quality Management District.
“FPM is thrilled to be working with utilities, and state and local governments to deliver cleaner power to provide direct financial and sustainability benefits at the municipal level,” said FPM executive Brad Hoffman. “Bloom’s technology allows us to accomplish these goals to provide clean power solutions faster than the alternatives.”
The projects deployed under this agreement are the start of further planned development by FPM with the support from Go-Biz (Governor’s Office of Business and Development) and its partners. As electrical demand growth continues to outpace the rate of electrical capacity additions and grid upgrades, the development of reliable distributed generation solutions is key to addressing evolving challenges by the current energy transition.
