GLOBE-Net, September 5, 2012 - The latest Fuel Cell Industry Review reports that annual fuel cell system shipments in 2011 were 24,600 - growing by 39% compared to 2010, led by increases in the stationary power sector.

2011 was by far the most successful year to date in the history of fuel cells with annual megawatts (MW) shipped exceeding 100 MW for the first time as commercialisation of the industry took hold. Growth in shipments was recorded in the majority of applications and Fuel Cell Today expects all sectors to grow through 2012.

The Fuel Cell Industry Review 2012  forecasts annual shipments in 2012 will triple compared to 2011 to reach a total of over 78,000 for the full year. Annual megawatts shipped are expected to grow by over 60%, to around 176 MW.

By the end of 2011, 215 hydrogen refuelling stations were in operation worldwide with twelve new stations being added that year. The stations are located in Europe (85), North America (80), Asia Pacifi c (47) and the Rest of the World (3).

Increases are expected across all application categories with significant growth in small stationary fuel cell systems, particularly in Japan.

However, the most dramatic growth in 2012 system shipments will be from the portable sector with the widespread commercial release of fuel cell chargers for consumer electronics.

Large stationary power deployments in South Korea and North America are expected to boost the annual megawatt figure considerably.

Commenting on the launch of the Fuel Cell Industry Review Dr Dan Carter, manager of Fuel Cell Today, said: "2011 was a very exciting year for fuel cells, the technology is proven commercially in many applications and in some cases fuel cells are now selling without subsidies. We expect 2012 to be even more successful than 2011 and could expect the first fuel cell companies to become profitable in the coming year".

In June 2012, Ballard announced the trial of 50 Dantherm systems at 30 sites in China Mobile's  telecommunications network; China Mobile is looking for a cost-effective replacement for lead-acid batteries and, if successful, the trials will lead to commercial deployment. 

The Fuel Cell Industry Review 2012 is the second edition of Fuel Cell Today's free annual publication which presents a global summary of developments in the fuel cell industry during the past four years, a forecast for the current year and an outlook for the future.

The Current State of the Industry chapter covers developments during 2011 and the first half of 2012, discussing each sub-application in turn, followed by regional developments and the latest update for each main fuel cell type.

The Outlook chapter discusses Fuel Cell Today's expectations for the full year 2012 and also includes commentary for each of the three main applications covering high-profile global developments taking place in the next three to five years.

This chapter also contains three special features: the first analyses the impact of government funding on fuel cell adoption, focusing on the success of fuel cell projects funded under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009; the second looks at the interest in fuel cells to power data centres; and the third special feature assesses the attitude of the current US Government to fuel cells and transport.

Tables of data can be found at the back of the Fuel Cell Industry Review, including historical information dating back to 2008.

Data are presented for each year in terms of annual system shipments and the total size of those systems in megawatts, both divided by application, region and fuel cell type.

The Fuel Cell Industry Review 2012 is available as a free download. Printed copies are available upon request. To download the PDF of the Review directly click here.