Bloom Energy’s Fuel Cells Support AI Data Center Power Demand

American Electric Power (AEP) signed a supply agreement with Bloom Energy for up to 1 GW of its products, including an order for 100 MW of fuel cells with additional expansion orders scheduled in 2025. The fuel cell solution will be installed at customer sites, allowing AEP to meet data centers’ increasing AI loads and corresponding power demand, as well as energy and economic development goals. Previously, Bloom Energy and AEP partnered to deploy solid oxide fuel cells (SOFC) in commercial and industrial settings.

Bloom’s Fuel Cells

The company’s fuel cell products can be deployed quickly with high availability and high-power density: 100 MW per acre. It will generate power with 34% lower CO₂ emissions than modern displaced generation resources in the PJM Interconnection. The fuel cells can use 100% hydrogen or any hydrogen-natural gas blend, offering a flexible solution to lower carbon footprint. Also, when operating with natural gas, the product almost eliminates NOx and SOx emissions.

“I am delighted that there is market recognition for the Bloom Energy platform as a choice to power AI data centers,” said KR Sridhar, Founder, Chairman, and CEO of Bloom Energy. “We are thrilled to be working with AEP as they lead the charge to bring solutions to the transforming electricity market. With our proven track record of more than 1.3 GW deployed, and a fully functional factory that can deliver GWs of products per year, we are ready and able to meet this rapid electricity demand growth.”

More Bloom News

In August 2024, Bloom Energy offered a new SOFC platform that uses 100% hydrogen with approximately 60% electrical efficiency: the Bloom Energy Server power solution. Engineers achieved this efficiency rate at the company’s research and development facility in Fremont, CA. Bloom’s 60% electrical efficiency will allow wider adoption of hydrogen fuel, as hydrogen-natural gas blends reduce CO₂ emissions and future-proof the path toward a hydrogen economy.

The Bloom Energy Server is also suitable for combined heat-and-power, enabling customers to utilize high-temperature heat. Customers can use high-temperature heat for various applications, such as operating absorption chillers, industrial processes, and heating services. Upon full utilization, the SOFC technology’s combined efficiency reaches 90%. Carbon-free hydrogen SOFC technology for electricity production enables constant clean power with other renewable electricity sources. It produces electricity through direct electrochemical conversion and leads to high electric efficiency and lower environmental pollutants compared to combustion technologies, such as turbines and reciprocating engines.

In June, Westinghouse Electric and Bloom Energy announced plans to explore, identify, and implement clean hydrogen production projects across the commercial nuclear power market and jointly develop an optimized, large-scale, and high-temperature integrated electrolysis solution for the industry. The ability of nuclear plants to operate continuously and provide steam input makes them an ideal companion to electrolyzer technology, capable of producing large quantities of clean hydrogen without disrupting ongoing operations.

Hydrogen generated from nuclear plants can be applied to several industries, including renewable fuels production, oil and metals refining, ammonia synthesis, mining operations, and mobility for heavy trucks, buses, and air travel. Westinghouse and Bloom can also support the U.S. Department of Energy’s hydrogen hub development.