American Honda Installs Stationary Fuel Cell System that Will Produce a Megawatt of Clean Energy, Reduce CO2

Torrance, Calif., March 22, 2013 /3BL Media/ – Continuing its efforts to reduce the  environmental footprint of its operations, American Honda Motor Co., Inc. today announced the installation of a new fuel cell system on its Torrance, California campus that will produce one megawatt of clean, reliable energy, and significantly reduce CO₂ emissions from Honda’s operations in the region.

The fuel cell system consists of five energy servers each producing 200 kilowatts of power, and will provide 25 percent of Honda’s electricity needs for its 1.13 million square feet of office space, research, design and development operations, and parts distribution center on the 101 acre campus. The power generated by the fuel cell system would power approximately 750 average-sized homes each day.

For each megawatt-hour of power the fuel cell system generates, CO₂ emissions will be reduced by 18 to 25%.[1] Over a project life of ten years, the system will reduce Honda’s carbon dioxide emissions by approximately 16 million pounds.  Fuel cells convert fuels – in this case, natural gas – into electricity through an electrochemical process that is much more efficient than combustion, thereby reducing CO₂ emissions of fossil fuels. Additionally, fuel cell technology delivers extraordinary water savings as it requires no water beyond an injection of 240 gallons at start-up. Compared to the average water demands of California power plants, it is estimated that Honda will save more than 3.25 million gallons of equivalent water used per year.[2]

Over the past decade, American Honda has implemented a number of initiatives to reduce the company’s carbon footprint at its Torrance campus, including the installation of high efficiency cooling systems and a recent lighting retrofit that cut the facility’s CO₂ emissions by nearly 750,000 pounds per year.

American Honda contracted with Bloom Energy and its partner, Core States Group, to design, develop and implement this project. Bloom Energy will provide all monitoring and maintenance for the fuel cells.

Honda Environmental Leadership

Honda is a leader in the development of leading-edge technologies to improve fuel efficiency and reduce CO₂ emissions. Honda has led the Union of Concerned Scientists (UCS) rankings of overall vehicle environmental performance since 2000, and a Honda vehicle has topped the list of America's greenest vehicles from the American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy (ACEEE) for eleven out of the past twelve years. The company leads all automakers with twelve LEED-certified "Green Buildings" in North America. Ten of its 14 North American manufacturing facilities are zero-waste to landfill.

In 2006, Honda became the first automaker to announce voluntary CO₂ emissions reduction targets for its global fleet of automobile, power sports and power equipment products and its global network of manufacturing plants. Today, the company is striving for even greater reductions in CO₂ emissions that contribute to global climate change, while also working to minimize waste, water use and the total environmental footprint of its operations worldwide.

Executive Quote

“A stationary fuel cell system is a natural next step in our ongoing efforts to further reduce American Honda’s environmental impact” said Garth Sellers, Honda’s manager of North American corporate facilities  “Honda already produces a hydrogen fuel cell electric vehicle – the FCX Clarity – so we know this type of technology is an effective means of reducing our carbon footprint.”

For more information, contact:
Marcos Frommer: marcos_frommer@ahm.honda.com  / 310-783-7837

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[1] Internal calculations based on AB32 Scoping Plan and data provided by Bloom Energy.

[2] Internal Calculations based on Union of Concerned Scientists data.