Feb. 21--FuelCell Energy Inc., of Danbury, which employs about 225 workers at a manufacturing facility in Torrington, said Friday it sold a fuel cell power plant to the U.S. Marine training center in Palms, Calif., one of the largest military training centers in the world.

The 300-kilowatt Direct FuelCell, or DFC300, power plant will supply onsite power to help meet the expanding electricity requirements of the Marine Corps Air Ground Combat Center in Palms, the company said. The fuel cell's surplus heat will be fed into the base's main steam line where it will be used to produce hot water and space heating.

The company did not release financial details of the deal.

The DFC300 power plant will be used to add reliable electricity to the base's grid on a "24/7" basis, "while helping the U.S. Department of Defense meet its obligations to increase its energy efficiency and use more clean generation sources as set forth in the Energy Policy Act of 2005," said Bill Foster, FuelCell Energy's vice president for government business development.

With a population of more than 11,000, the training center at Palms has a significant need for secure, reliable power, Foster said. Additionally, the base requires around-the-clock, dependable power for heating and cooling because the temperature ranges from 120 to 15 in its Mojave Desert location.

Fuel cells are self-contained electrochemical power plants that operate like large batteries. They convert fuels such as natural gas into electricity. Their primary byproducts are water and heat.

Fuel cells run more efficiently than conventional power plants and without combustion. Generating electricity without combustion significantly reduces harmful pollutants, such as mono-nitrogen oxides and particulates, while the improved fuel efficiency results in lower emissions of carbon dioxide, a major component of harmful greenhouse gases.

Improved fuel efficiency also results in less fuel needed per kilowatt hour of electricity generated and BTU of heat produced, enabling the purchaser/user to reduce its operating costs as well as its carbon footprint, the company said.

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