LATHAM, N.Y., Dec. 2, 2010 (GLOBE NEWSWIRE) -- Plug Power Inc. (Nasdaq:PLUG), a leader in providing clean, reliable energy solutions, today announced that CEO, Andy Marsh, presented to an influential audience at the California Hydrogen Business Council's (CHBC) General Meeting on December 1, 2010. Mr. Marsh used several customer examples to illustrate the viability of hydrogen fuel cells for the material handling market.
Plug Power has over 800 GenDrive fuel cells installed in applications across North America, accumulating over 2 million hours of run time. By the end of the forth quarter of 2010, Plug Power customers will perform an estimated 4,000-5,000 fuelings of the GenDrive® fuel cells each week. The use of fuel cells in material handling applications not only benefits the long term viability of the hydrogen economy, but positively impacts the environmental initiatives for the State of California. "Today, total greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions created by forklift trucks in California are estimated to be over 2M tonnes each year. By using hydrogen fuel cells instead of lead-acid batteries, this number could be reduced by as much as 90%, the equivalent of removing 300,000 cars from California roads each year," said Andy Marsh.
The CHBC conference attracted over 70 attendees including Catherine Dunwoodie, Director of the California Fuel Cell Partnership and Mike McGowan, Co-chair of the newly formed Fuel Cell and Hydrogen Energy Association (FCHEA). Other cooperating companies included the South Coast Air Quality Management District, California Air Resource Board, American Honda Motor Co., Inc. and Air Products.
Mr. Marsh continued, "It was a pleasure meeting with industry influencers who understand the value and benefits created by the continued build out of the hydrogen economy. California is a very important state for Plug Power to continue the communication of fuel cell products in the material handling market."
About Plug Power Inc.
The architects of modern fuel cell technology, Plug Power revolutionized the industry with cost-effective power solutions that increase productivity, lower operating costs and reduce carbon footprints. Long-standing relationships with industry leaders forged the path for our key accounts, including Wegmans, Whole Foods, and FedEx Freight. With more than 1,000 units in the field and over 1.5 million hours of runtime, Plug Power manufactures tomorrow's incumbent power solutions today. Visit us at http://www.plugpower.com/">www.plugpower.com.
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Plug Power Inc. Safe Harbor Statement
This communication contains forward-looking statements within the meaning of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995, including but not limited to expectations regarding revenues and product orders for 2010. These statements are based on current expectations that are subject to certain assumptions, risks and uncertainties, any of which are difficult to predict, are beyond our control and that may cause our actual results to differ materially from the expectations in our forward-looking statements including statements regarding the risk that unit orders will not ship, be installed and/or convert to revenue, in whole or in part; the cost and timing of developing our products and our ability to raise the necessary capital to fund such development costs; the ability to achieve the forecasted gross margin on the sale of our products; the actual net cash used for operating expenses may exceed the projected net cash for operating expenses; the cost and availability of fuel and fueling infrastructures for our products; market acceptance of our GenDrive system; our ability to establish and maintain relationships with third parties with respect to product development, manufacturing, distribution and servicing and the supply of key product components; the cost and availability of components and parts for our products; our ability to develop commercially viable products; our ability to reduce product and manufacturing costs; our ability to successfully expand our product lines; our ability to improve system reliability for GenDrive; competitive factors, such as price competition and competition from other traditional and alternative energy companies; our ability to manufacture products on a large-scale commercial basis; our ability to protect our intellectual property; the cost of complying with current and future governmental regulations; and other risks and uncertainties discussed under "Item IA-Risk Factors" in our annual report on Form 10-K for the fiscal year ended December 31, 2009, filed with the Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") on March 16, 2010, and the reports we file from time to time with the SEC. Plug Power does not intend to, and undertakes no duty to update any forward-looking statements as a result of new information or future events.