Baker Hughes, an energy technology firm, and Bloom Energy, a pioneer in distributed energy, have agreed to partner on the commercialization and implementation of integrated, low-carbon power generation and hydrogen technologies to accelerate the energy transition.
Baker Hughes and Bloom Energy will immediately begin working on future consumer engagements with the goal of launching pilot projects over the next 2-3 years and commercializing and scaling applications, products, and solutions shortly thereafter. The businesses will concentrate their efforts in three areas:
Integrated power solutions: By combining Bloom Energy’s solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) technology with Baker Hughes’ light-weight gas turbine technology, the companies aim to provide customers with reliable, resilient, and cost-effective solutions for cleaner energy generation, waste heat recovery, and grid-independent power.
Bloom Energy’s effective and low-emission SOFCs, Baker Hughes’ efficient and scalable NovaLT gas turbines–which can operate on up to 100% hydrogen –and heat recovery turbines can all be used to build resilient microgrids suitable for large-scale applications.
Integrated hydrogen solutions: The companies will investigate opportunities to combine Bloom Energy’s solid oxide electrolyzer cells (SOEC) that produce 100 percent clean hydrogen with Baker Hughes’ compression technology for efficient hydrogen processing, compression, transport, and distribution. Waste heat will also be evaluated for steam generation in order to improve the performance and cost effectiveness of hydrogen production. The companies will focus on applications such as hydrogen blending into natural gas pipelines and commercial hydrogen processing on-site. These initiatives are aimed at expediting the transition to a hydrogen economy.
Bloom Energy’s SOEC technology, combined with Baker Hughes’ compression technology, has the potential to accelerate hydrogen adoption in process industries such as steel processing, where heat recovery from the steelmaking process will result in increased overall device efficiencies and customer value.
Mutual technical collaborations: The companies will evaluate opportunities to combine Baker Hughes’ extensive technology portfolio with Bloom Energy’s SOFC and SOEC solutions. Along with hydrogen and renewable energy, possible fields of cooperation include carbon capture and pollution monitoring systems, digital applications, and additive manufacturing capabilities.
“The path to net-zero carbon emissions must include partnerships and collaboration. At the core of our collaboration agreement with Bloom Energy is the potential to develop integrated technology offerings for commercialization and deployment of smarter, cleaner, and more economic energy solutions. It’s a great example of how Baker Hughes is strategically pursuing ways to advance new energy frontiers and invest for growth in the industrial marketplace.”
Uwem Ukpong, executive vice president of regions, alliances, and enterprise sales at Baker Hughes.
“We believe that in combining our industry-leading technologies and expertise to provide differentiated and customized integrated solutions to customers, we can accelerate the adoption of clean energy technologies. This collaboration will serve as a model of how we need to look for innovative ways in which we can work together and integrate technologies and capabilities to achieve our common goals for global decarbonization and resiliency.”
Azeez Mohammed, executive vice president of international business for Bloom Energy.
