Plug Power tests fuel cells in India

Fuel-cell maker Plug Power said today it completed a field test in rural India with Tata Teleservices and Hindustan Petroleum.

Latham, N.Y.-based Plug Power (Nasdaq: PLUG) tested the performance of its liquid petroleum gas-powered fuel cell at a Tata Teleservices cell tower in Bijnor, Uttar Pradesh, India. The trial also tested the refueling needs for fuel cells on cell phone towers.

Plug Power says its GenSys prime power fuel cell eliminates the need for a hydrogen supply because the GenSys extracts it from the liquid petroleum gas. The company promotes GenSys as an alternative to diesel generators for places with unstable or no grid access.

Plug Power says its GenSys prime power fuel cell was the Tata Teleservices site's primary power source for equipment, air conditioning and lighting.

Tata Teleservices is part of the Tata Group, India's largest conglomerate valued at $29 billion USD. Tata Teleservices, which does business under the brand name Tata Indicom in India, says it has a subscriber base of 24.3 million, more than 9 percent of the Indian market. Mumbai, India-based Hindustan Petroleum is a government-owned oil refiner and marketer.

Plug Power has promoted its fuel cell technology as a backup system for telecommunications in India and the U.S. (see Plug Power signs fuel cell system distributor in India). The company is also active in Europe, the Middle East, Russia, South Africa and South America.

India's booming mobile phone market and fragile electric grid are creating strong opportunities for backup and primary-power fuel cells, Plug Power officials have said. The telecommunications market in India grew by 9 million, to reach 287 million mobile users in June.

Plug Power's stock price was up 1.76 percent at the end of the trading day, up 5 cents to $2.89. 

While one of the higher profile publicly traded fuel cell companies, Plug has watched its share price decline from a high of $150 per share in 2000. The company laid off 80 employees this past June (see Can't we all just get along?).

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