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Vancouver cluster pioneers next-generation fuel solutions
With the global market for clean energy projected to reach US$325 billion by 2018, the Vancouver cluster is becoming increasingly important to Canada’s economy.
The Vancouver cluster, having made early strategic investments in fuel cell and hydrogen technologies, is now ideally positioned to contribute significantly to world demand for clean energy. British Columbia companies such as Ballard and Plug Power Canada have achieved commercialization breakthroughs in niche markets. Mass-market opportunities are within striking distance as fuel cell technology improves and becomes more viable financially. New export markets are also opening as fuel cell technology is recognized as an enabling technology for integrated clean energy solutions.
By helping small young companies in pursuit of bold new ideas connect with partners along the innovation continuum, the NRC Institute for Fuel Cell Innovation (NRC-IFCI) has been a catalyst for the sector. The institute offers BC SMEs substantial technological resources and expertise in many areas—from advice on winning business strategies to access to state-of-the-art laboratories and unique deployment opportunities.
Commercialization and technology transfer
The Vancouver cluster is highly interdependent. As a result, companies of all sizes have a relatively easy time gaining access to the expertise and technology they need to pursue innovative, next-generation fuel solutions.
NRC provides vital laboratory and demonstration infrastructure to the sector and helps de-risk new technology by supporting demonstration projects like the Pacific Spirit Fuelling Station and the Vancouver Fuel Cell Vehicle Program. Eighteen fledgling cluster companies have also used NRC’s Industry Partnership Facility (IPF) to incubate over the past eight years. Cellex Power (now operating as Plug Power), grew from two to 20 employees while at the IPF, and is now one of the world’s leading suppliers of fuel cell powered forklift trucks.
Partnerships and collaborations
NRC-IFCI has established memorandums of understanding and partnership agreements with the University of British Columbia (UBC), Simon Fraser University (SFU), the University of Waterloo, the Province of British Columbia and many more. Its partnership with UBC is widely recognized as one of the most important scientific fuel cell collaborations in the world.
This culture of collaboration helps attract highly qualified personnel and new foreign investment to the area while enabling cluster members to leverage their resources by acting in partnership. It has also established fertile ground for the expansion of ground-breaking consortia such as the Contamination Consortia with Ballard Power Systems, Hydrogenics and Angstrom Power, which is aligning government resources behind industry technology development and commercialization priorities.
International networks and linkages
NRC is also linking Canadian companies to the world. A Canada-China science and technology collaboration including SFU, UBC, the BC Innovation Council and NRC is working to strengthen the global supply chain the fuel cell industry needs to ensure its commercial success.
Vancouver cluster companies, Ballard, and the Automotive Fuel Cell Corporation (AFCC) are researching ways of bringing down the cost of some key fuel cell components and improve the overall performance of fuel cells. Backed by Canadian materials research, membrane suppliers now believe they will be able to significantly reduce the cost of this key fuel cell material.
Learn more about Vancouver's fuel cell and hydrogen technologies cluster
Fact sheet available in HTML or PDF version.
Related Information
NRC Institute for Fuel Cell Innovation (NRC-IFCI)
