Robert Bosch GmbH has joined Clean Power Net, the German fuel cell industry organization for reliable power supply.
This provides additional support to the innovation cluster’s aim of developing a potential sustainable environmentally friendly source of energy. Bosch provides an important building block for achieving renewable energy supply with its highly efficient solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) systems. The first systems are already up and running at a few customers, and series production of SOFC systems is expected to begin in 2024.
For more than ten years, CPN has collaborated with users and producers from industry and commerce, as well as research institutions, to achieve a climate-friendly and more effective energy supply for industrial users in the long run. The network has acquired a significant innovator in the field of stationary solid oxide fuel cell technology with Robert Bosch GmbH. The basic unit of the Bosch SOFC systems achieves a 60 percent electrical efficiency with a ten-kilowatt electrical output. The overall performance can be increased to 85 percent with the addition of heat, making it obviously superior to any other energy converter. The units can be scaled up to megawatt levels.
SOFC plants can be powered by a variety of energy sources, including carbon-neutral biogas or natural gas, and are even hydrogen-capable for the energy system of the future. In comparison to the German electricity mix, when operated with biogas or natural gas, no nitrogen oxides or particles are formed, and carbon emissions are reduced by nearly 40%. CO2 emissions are zero when green hydrogen is used. SOFC systems are a crucial technology for energy supply because of their simplicity, and they already exist. Stationary fuel cell systems provide a stable power supply, assisting in the transition from fossil to renewable energy sources. Any number of systems with the same output can be interconnected in the future, depending on the energy demand. This unit networking can be used to build virtual power plants that provide a needs-based energy supply at the point of consumption.
“The joining of such an important partner as Bosch not only constitutes a political statement, but is also an economic signal: We anticipate a win-win situation for our entire network in order to work together on a future with an environmentally friendly energy supply, The cooperation paves the way for our partners and German industrial companies along the entire value chain to activate and introduce fuel cells to the market in business and industry.”
Andreas Saft, spokesperson of the Clean Power Net
Despite increasing competition in a highly diversified market with different types of technologies, the exchange of knowledge and cooperation are indispensable for the transition to renewable energies. This is also something Wayne Kern, Commercial Director SOFC, emphasises: “We want to ensure that climate protection is technically possible and economically viable. With the SOFC system, we are taking on a technological pioneering role and bringing an energy source-flexible solution to the market, which is based on existing infrastructures and can thus already be used as a demand-oriented solution in a decentralised manner. In the coming decade, it will be more important than ever for us to take the necessary steps towards the industrialisation of fuel cell technology. By joining the CPN, we are forging an important new partnership.”
Despite increased competition in a highly diversified market with a wide range of innovations, information sharing and collaboration are critical for the transition to renewable energy sources. Wayne Kern, SOFC’s Commercial Director, emphasizes this point: “We want to make sure that climate security is both technically and economically feasible.” We are taking a technical lead with the SOFC method, bringing to market an energy source-flexible solution that is built on existing infrastructures and can thus be used as a demand-oriented solution in a decentralized manner. It will be more critical than ever in the coming decade to take the requisite steps toward industrializing fuel cell technology. We are forming a vital new alliance by joining the CPN.”
