NREL is a national laboratory of the U.S. Department of Energy, Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy, operated by the Alliance for Sustainable Energy, LLC.

Evaluation of Stationary 

Fuel Cell Deployments, 

Costs, and Fuels

2013 Fuel Cell Seminar and 

Energy Exposition

Keith Wipke (presenter) for 

Chris Ainscough, Jennifer Kurtz, 

Michael Peters, Genevieve Saur

October 23, 2013

Columbus, Ohio

NREL/PR-5400-60903 STA32-1
2

Technology Validation at NREL

• Confirmation of component and system technical targets

• Evaluation, optimization, and demonstration in integrated 

energy systems

• National Fuel Cell Technology Evaluation Center (NFCTEC)

Photo by Dennis Schroeder, NREL

Figures and illustrations: NREL
3

www.nrel.gov/hydrogen/proj_tech_validation.html

NFCTEC Analysis Approach

National Fuel Cell Technology 

Evaluation Center

NFCTEC

Analysis and reporting of real-world operation data
4

Major Ramp-Up of Fuel Cell Stationary System Deployments 

Began in 2010

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 0

50

100

150

200

250

300

Total = 295 units

Cumulative Deployment Count by Year*

Project Count

Total

CHP

Electric Only

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 0

50

100

150

Total = 121 MW

Capacity [MW]

Cumulative Capacity by Year*

Total

CHP

Electric Only

NREL cdp_stat_01

Created: Sep-25-13 9:08 AM | Data Range: 2001Q2-2013Q2 *Data from the California SGIP.

Majority of deployments and nearly all capacity is electric only
5

Contractual Status of Stationary Fuel Cell Systems in 

Deployment

3%

5%

15%

69%

Deployment Count By Status*

Other Categories:

ICF Review

ICF Inspection

RRF Technical Review

RRF Reserved

PPM Technical Review

ICF Technical Review

Definitions: RRF = Reservation Request Form, is the first step in the SGIP incentive claim process.

PPM = Proof of Project Milestone; the applicant must prove progress and committment to the project.

ICF = Incentive Claim Form is the step where the appliant, after meeting all SGIP requirements requests payment of the incentive.

PBI = Performance Based Incentive is the way in which the incentive is paid out over time based on performance of the system.

Other

ICF Pending Payment

Payment PBI in Process

PPM Confirmed

Payment Completed

NREL cdp_stat_02

Created: Sep-25-13 9:21 AM | Data Range: 2001Q2-2013Q2 *Data from the California SGIP.

New projects 

since 2011 

receiving the 

performancebased incentive

Payment 

Completed
6

Stationary Fuel Cell System Count and Capacity by Fuel Type

(ALL Fuel Cell Systems)

5%

10%

12%

74%

Site Count by Fuel Type* Biomass

Digester Gas

Landfill Gas

Natural Gas

4%

17%

14%

65%

Installed Capacity by Fuel Type

NREL cdp_stat_04

Created: Sep-27-13 10:12 AM | Data Range: 2001Q2-2013Q2

Includes Status Categories:

Completed

Advancement

Pending Payment

Payment Completed

ICF Inspection

ICF Pending Payment

ICF Review

ICF Technical Review

Payment PBI in Process

PPM Confirmed

PPM Technical Review

RRF Reserved

RRF Technical Review

Total Sites: 295 Total Capacity: 121 MW

Installations by Fuel Type

(All Fuel Cell Systems)

Definitions: RRF = Reservation Request Form, is the first step in the SGIP incentive claim process.

PPM = Proof of Project Milestone; the applicant must prove progress and committment to the project.

ICF = Incentive Claim Form is the step where the appliant, after meeting all SGIP requirements requests payment of the incentive.

PBI = Performance Based Incentive is the way in which the incentive is paid out over time based on performance of the system. *Data from the California SGIP.

Natural gas is the most-used fuel. 

However, renewable fuels make up 

one-third of capacity.
7

Installations By Fuel Type (CHP Fuel Cells Only)

1%

99%

Site Count by Fuel Type*

Digester Gas

Natural Gas

18%

82%

Installed Capacity by Fuel Type

NREL cdp_stat_20

Created: Sep-27-13 10:12 AM | Data Range: 2001Q2-2013Q2

Includes Status Categories:

Completed

Advancement

Pending Payment

Payment Completed

ICF Inspection

ICF Pending Payment

ICF Review

ICF Technical Review

Payment PBI in Process

PPM Confirmed

PPM Technical Review

RRF Reserved

RRF Technical Review

Total Sites: 71 Total Capacity: 8 MW

Installations by Fuel Type

(CHP Fuel Cell Systems)

Definitions: RRF = Reservation Request Form, is the first step in the SGIP incentive claim process.

PPM = Proof of Project Milestone; the applicant must prove progress and committment to the project.

ICF = Incentive Claim Form is the step where the appliant, after meeting all SGIP requirements requests payment of the incentive.

PBI = Performance Based Incentive is the way in which the incentive is paid out over time based on performance of the system. *Data from the California SGIP.

Nearly all CHP systems use natural 

gas.
8

Fuel Type Capacity (All Systems)

Biomass Digester Gas Landfill Gas Natural Gas 0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

900

1000

Installed Capacity (kW)

Installation Capacity Statistics by Fuel Type*

NREL cdp_stat_05

Created: Sep-27-13 10:17 AM | Data Range: 2001Q2-2013Q2

75% Percentile

Median

25% Percentile

Mean

*Data from the California SGIP.

Natural gas systems 

have a wide range of 

sizes. Digester systems 

tend to be the largest.
9

Installation Capacity by Fuel Type (CHP Fuel Cells)

Digester Gas Natural Gas 0

100

200

Installed Capacity (kW)

Installation Capacity Statistics by Fuel Type (CHP)*

NREL cdp_stat_21

Created: Sep-27-13 1:33 PM | Data Range: 2001Q2-2013Q2

75% Percentile

Median

25% Percentile

Mean

Insufficient

data to

protect

anonymity

*Data from the California SGIP.

Natural gas CHP has a few large deployments 

(large mean, small 25–75 percentiles)
10

Fuel Cell Stationary Capacity and Average Eligible Costs (All 

Systems)—Incentive Range $3K–$4K/kW

0 200 400 600 800 1000 >1000 0

5

10

15

20

25

30

Distribution of Capacity and Average Eligible Cost $2010/kW*

Capacity (kW)

% of systems

0 200 400 600 800 1000 >1000 0

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

10,000

12,000

Avg. $/kW

$/kW w/o Incentive

$/kW w/ Incentive

2020 DOE Target†

0 200 400 600 800 1000 0

10

20

30

Capacity (kW)

% of systems

Detailed Capacity Distribution

NREL cdp_stat_06

Created: Sep-27-13 11:23 AM | Data Range: 2001Q2-2013Q2

†for the year 2020, operating on natural gas.

*Data from the California SGIP.

Eligible Costs May Include: Planning & Feasibility Study, Engineering & Design, Permitting, Self-Generation Equipment

Waste Heat Recovery Costs, Construction & Installation Costs, Gas & Electric Interconnection, Warranty, Maintenance Contract

Metering, Monitoring & Data Acquisition System, Emission Control Equipment Capital

Gasline Installation, Fuel Gas Clean-up Equipment, Electricity Storage Devices, Bond to Certify Renewable Fuel

Sales Tax, Fuel Supply (digesters, gas gathering, etc.), Thermal Load, & Other Eligible Costs

Eligible costs slightly decrease in 

larger sizes, yet are far from DOE 

long-term 2020 targets
11

Distribution of Capacity and Eligible Cost (CHP FC Only)

0 200 400 600 800 1000 >1000 0

20

40

60

80

Distribution of Capacity and Average Eligible Cost $2010/kW (CHP Fuel Cell)*

Capacity (kW)

% of systems

0 200 400 600 800 1000 >1000 0

2,000

4,000

6,000

8,000

10,000

12,000

Avg. $/kW

$/kW w/o Incentive

$/kW w/ Incentive

2020 DOE Target†

0 200 400 600 800 1000 0

20

40

60

Capacity (kW)

% of systems

Detailed Capacity Distribution

NREL cdp_stat_22

Created: Sep-27-13 11:23 AM | Data Range: 2001Q2-2013Q2

†for the year 2020, operating on natural gas.

*Data from the California SGIP.

Eligible Costs May Include: Planning & Feasibility Study, Engineering & Design, Permitting, Self-Generation Equipment

Waste Heat Recovery Costs, Construction & Installation Costs, Gas & Electric Interconnection, Warranty, Maintenance Contract

Metering, Monitoring & Data Acquisition System, Emission Control Equipment Capital

Gasline Installation, Fuel Gas Clean-up Equipment, Electricity Storage Devices, Bond to Certify Renewable Fuel

Sales Tax, Fuel Supply (digesters, gas gathering, etc.), Thermal Load, & Other Eligible Costs

Economies of scale are better for 

CHP systems
12

Distribution of Stationary Fuel Cell Install Cost With and 

Without Incentives

0

20

40

60

80

0 

1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 7000 8000 9000 

100001100012000130001400015000160001700018000190002000021000

project count

Price without incentives [$2010/kW]

Installed Eligible Cost Per kW*

Adjusted To 2010 Dollars

Avg = $10,412 $/kW

Current

DOE 2020 Target

0

20

40

60

0 

1000 2000 3000 4000 

5000 6000 

7000 8000 9000 

10000110001200013000140001500016000170001800019000

2000021000

project count

Price with incentives [$2010/kW]

Avg = $6,896 $/kW

Current

DOE 2020 Target

NREL cdp_stat_07

Created: Sep-27-13 12:16 PM | Data Range: 2001Q2-2013Q2 *Data from the California SGIP.

Eligible Costs May Include: Planning & Feasibility Study, Engineering & Design, Permitting, Self-Generation Equipment

Waste Heat Recovery Costs, Construction & Installation Costs, Gas & Electric Interconnection, Warranty, Maintenance Contract

Metering, Monitoring & Data Acquisition System, Emission Control Equipment Capital

Gasline Installation, Fuel Gas Clean-up Equipment, Electricity Storage Devices, Bond to Certify Renewable Fuel

Sales Tax, Fuel Supply (digesters, gas gathering, etc.), Thermal Load, & Other Eligible Costs

Average incentives are $3,500/kW 

historically; fuel cell incentives are 

now set to decrease 10% per year.
13

Stationary Fuel Cell Install Cost Over Time With and Without 

Incentives

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 0

5

10

15

20

25

Average $2010/W

of Installed Capacity

Average Eligible Cost $2010/W Trend for Overall Deployments*

Without Incentive

With Incentive

DOE 2020 Target

0

5

10

15

20

25

2001200220032004 20052006 200720082009 2010 20112012 2013

Capacity < 500 kW

Average $2010/W

of Installed Capacity

0

5

10

15

20

25

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 20082009 2010 2011 2012 2013

500 kW <= Capacity < 1000 kW

0

5

10

15

20

25

20012002 20032004 200520062007 2008

2009 2010201120122013

Capacity >= 1000 kW

NREL cdp_stat_08

Created: Sep-25-13 9:08 AM | Data Range: 2001Q2-2013Q2 *Data from the California SGIP.

Eligible Costs May Include: Planning & Feasibility Study, Engineering & Design, Permitting, Self-Generation Equipment

Waste Heat Recovery Costs, Construction & Installation Costs, Gas & Electric Interconnection, Warranty, Maintenance Contract

Metering, Monitoring & Data Acquisition System, Emission Control Equipment Capital

Gasline Installation, Fuel Gas Clean-up Equipment, Electricity Storage Devices, Bond to Certify Renewable Fuel

Sales Tax, Fuel Supply (digesters, gas gathering, etc.), Thermal Load, & Other Eligible Costs

Eligible costs are generally increasing over time 

(inflation adjusted), driven by the sub-MW size range
14

Stationary Fuel Cell Install Cost by Fuel Type With and 

Without Incentives

Biomass Digester Gas Landfill Gas Natural Gas 2000

4000

6000

8000

10000

12000

$2010/kW

of Installed Capacity

Eligible Cost $2010/kW of Installed Capacity by Fuel Type*

Avg. Without Incentive

Avg. With Incentive

NREL cdp_stat_09

Created: Sep-25-13 9:09 AM | Data Range: 2001Q2-2013Q2

75% Percentile

Median

25% Percentile

Mean

*Data from the California SGIP.

Eligible Costs May Include: Planning & Feasibility Study, Engineering & Design, Permitting, Self-Generation Equipment

Waste Heat Recovery Costs, Construction & Installation Costs, Gas & Electric Interconnection, Warranty, Maintenance Contract

Metering, Monitoring & Data Acquisition System, Emission Control Equipment Capital

Gasline Installation, Fuel Gas Clean-up Equipment, Electricity Storage Devices, Bond to Certify Renewable Fuel

Sales Tax, Fuel Supply (digesters, gas gathering, etc.), Thermal Load, & Other Eligible Costs

Digester systems have 

the lowest costs in both 

mean and 25 percentile
15

Total Incentive Spending ($2010) per kW by Year

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 0

20

40

60

80

100

120

140

Capacity [MW]

Year

2000

2500

3000

3500

4000

4500

5000

5500

Incentive Spending ($2010) Per kW Installed

Total Incentive ($2010) per kW by Year*

NREL cdp_stat_11

Created: Sep-25-13 9:09 AM | Data Range: 2001Q2-2013Q2 *Data from the California SGIP.

Deployments are continuing to 

increase in an era of decreasing 

incentives
16

Average System Size Installed Per Year (kW)

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 0

100

200

300

400

500

600

700

800

Average System Size Installed Per Year (kW)

Year

Average System Size Installed Per Year (kW)*

Overall Average Capacity = 471 kW

NREL cdp_stat_12

Created: Sep-25-13 9:09 AM | Data Range: 2001Q2-2013Q2 *Data from the California SGIP.

2013 has seen the third 

largest average system 

size 1 2

3
17

Installed Annual Capacity by Fuel Type

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 0

10

20

30

40

50

60

Year

Total Annual Installed Capacity (MW)

Installed Fuel Type By Year*

Biomass

Digester Gas

Landfill Gas

Natural Gas

NREL cdp_stat_13

Created: Sep-25-13 9:09 AM | Data Range: 2001Q2-2013Q2 *Data from the California SGIP.

Rule change in 2011 requiring 

directed biogas to be in state, and 

a lack of its availability (it’s all being 

used already) has led to dominance 

of natural gas
18

Comparing FC to Other Distributed Generation (DG):

Distribution of Capacity by Equipment Type

0 200 400 600 800 1000 1200 1400 1600 1800 2000 >2000 0

50

100

150

200

250

300

Distribution of Capacity by Equipment Type*

Capacity (kW)

Total # of Systems

Fuel Cell CHP

Fuel Cell Electric

Gas Turbine

Internal Combustion

Microturbine

Pressure Reduction Turbine

NREL cdp_stat_14

Created: Sep-30-13 1:57 PM | Data Range: 2010Q10-2013Q2 *Data from the California SGIP.

Fuel cells represent about 

one-third of installed 

generation capacity in 

most size bins in SGIP
19

Comparing FC to Other DG: 

Average Eligible Cost by Equipment Type

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 0

5

10

15

20

25

Average $2010/W

of Installed Capacity

Average Eligible Cost $2010/W Trend for Overall Deployments*

Without Incentives

2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 0

5

10

15

20

25

Average Eligible Cost $2010/W Trend for Overall Deployments*

With Incentives

Average $2010/W

of Installed Capacity

Fuel Cell CHP

Fuel Cell Electric

Gas Turbine

Internal Combustion

Microturbine

Pressure Reduction Turbine

NREL cdp_stat_15

Created: Sep-30-13 1:57 PM | Data Range: 2010Q10-2013Q2 *Data from the California SGIP.

Eligible Costs May Include: Planning & Feasibility Study, Engineering & Design, Permitting, Self-Generation Equipment

Waste Heat Recovery Costs, Construction & Installation Costs, Gas & Electric Interconnection, Warranty, Maintenance Contract

Metering, Monitoring & Data Acquisition System, Emission Control Equipment Capital

Gasline Installation, Fuel Gas Clean-up Equipment, Electricity Storage Devices, Bond to Certify Renewable Fuel

Sales Tax, Fuel Supply (digesters, gas gathering, etc.), Thermal Load, & Other Eligible Costs

Without incentives, fuel cells have a 

cost disadvantage compared to other 

technologies
20

Average Eligible Cost for Biogas Sources

0 200 400 600 800 1000 >1000 0

2000

4000

6000

8000

10000

12000

Average Eligible Cost $2010/kW Biogas Source*

Without Incentives

System Size (kW)

$2010/kW

of Installed Capacity

Directed

Onsite

0 200 400 600 800 1000 >1000 0

2000

4000

6000

8000

Average Eligible Cost $2010/kW Biogas Source*

With Incentives

System Size (kW)

$2010/kW

of Installed Capacity

Directed

Onsite

NREL cdp_stat_16

Created: Sep-30-13 1:57 PM | Data Range: 2010Q10-2013Q2 *Data from the California SGIP.

Eligible Costs May Include: Planning & Feasibility Study, Engineering & Design, Permitting, Self-Generation Equipment

Waste Heat Recovery Costs, Construction & Installation Costs, Gas & Electric Interconnection, Warranty, Maintenance Contract

Metering, Monitoring & Data Acquisition System, Emission Control Equipment Capital

Gasline Installation, Fuel Gas Clean-up Equipment, Electricity Storage Devices, Bond to Certify Renewable Fuel

Sales Tax, Fuel Supply (digesters, gas gathering, etc.), Thermal Load, & Other Eligible Costs

Directed biogas systems tend to cost more 

than onsite sources
21

Mean Time Between Stoppage (For Any Reason)

0 1000 2000 3000 4000 5000 6000 7000 8000 9000 10000 11000 12000 13000 14000 0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

% of Units

Mean Time (hr) between Stoppages

Mean Time Between Stoppage (hours)*

NREL cdp_stat_17

Created: Sep-30-13 1:57 PM | Data Range: 2010Q10-2013Q2

Overall Mean = 2742 hours

*Data from outside the SGIP.
22

Mean Unit Lifetime Electrical Efficiency (%HHV)

10 15 20 25 30 35 40 45 0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

% of Units

Mean Unit Electrical Efficiency (% HHV)

Unit Lifetime Mean Electrical Efficiency (HHV)*†

NREL cdp_stat_18

Created: Sep-30-13 2:04 PM | Data Range: 2010Q10-2013Q2

Overall Mean = 27 %

†Includes startup, shutdown, transient and partial power operation *Data from outside the SGIP.

Efficiency includes 

startup, shutdown, 

transients, and part 

load
23

Mean Unit Lifetime Availability

40 45 50 55 60 65 70 75 80 85 90 95 100 0

5

10

15

20

25

30

35

40

% of Units

Mean Unit Availability (%)

Unit Mean Availability*

NREL cdp_stat_19

Created: Sep-30-13 1:57 PM | Data Range: 2010Q10-2013Q2

Overall Mean = 93 %

*Data from outside the SGIP.

Availability includes 

stoppages for all 

reasons, including 

customer request
24

Conclusions

• Stationary fuel cell deployments are accelerating 

despite decreasing incentives

• Current SGIP incentives make FC systems more 

competitive with other distributed generation 

systems

• Lack of available directed biogas in CA has caused 

new SGIP installations to be natural gas

• Cost curves need to begin going down (not up) to 

accommodate decreasing incentives

• NREL will continue to update results as new data 

are available
25

Acknowledgements

This project was supported by the Technology 

Validation subprogram of the U.S. Department of 

Energy’s Fuel Cell Technologies Office.