In a move that could benefit West Virginia customers struggling with unreliable electric service, Hope Gas and WATT Fuel Cell announced a partnership in mid-July that will supply 500 residential gas customers in the state with natural gas fuel cells.
According to Jeffrey S. Nehr, Hope Gas’ senior vice president for gas supply and development, West Virginia is among the top three states with electric reliability issues, with many residential customers forced to rely on backup generators.
“About 50% of homes in West Virginia are currently heated by electricity,” Nehr told American Gas. “Even if customers are not prepared to fully convert their homes and appliances to natural gas, a fuel cell can be used to provide baseload power to homes.”
He explained that the fuel cells do not combust natural gas but instead convert it into hydrogen, which is then converted into electricity through a chemical reaction like that of a battery. Nehr says the fuel cells, which use a blend of natural gas and 20% hydrogen “out of the box,” can be converted to use 100% hydrogen, and they also can be paired with solar panels and batteries to provide additional power to homes.
Fuel cell technology is attractive for many reasons, Nehr says, including the fact that in many cases, a monthly payment for a fuel cell can be a more affordable way to ensure electric reliability to a home.
“Because fuel cells are always on, there is no need to perform checks to ensure the unit is operating correctly,” Nehr said. “In addition, fuel cells require less maintenance than generators because there are fewer moving parts.”
Beyond that, they are extremely quiet, Nehr adds, with the only noise coming from a cooling fan.
Hope Gas reports that it will begin rolling out the program’s first fuel cells in 2024, with no upfront capital cost to customers.
“Fuel cells will give Hope Gas customers an option to have reliable electricity using natural gas in an environmentally responsible way,” said Morgan O’Brien, president and CEO of Hope Gas. “These fuel cells are also built to allow customers to transition to clean energy when that technology is available. Fuel cells provide customers with electric reliability today and renewable energy options for tomorrow.”