"Superior MicroPowders LLC of Albuquerque has earned a $600,000 portion of a $5 million Department of Energy contract.

The small business was contracted to help develop high performance, low platinum cathodes, Sen. Pete Domenici, an Albuquerque Republican, said.

Superior MicroPowders will work with the Albuquerque office of the DOE's National Nuclear Security Administration.

"The small business's revolutionary technologies are supporting the NNSA Albuquerque operation with some very important back up," Domenici said.

Superior MicroPowders was also recently awarded a $709,086 National Institute of Standards Technology grant to continue research on fuel cell technologies, he said."

(Honolulu, HI) A state-of-the-art facility to test hydrogen fuel cells officially opens today in Honolulu. The Hawaii Fuel Cell Test Facility is a joint project coordinated by the University of Hawai`i at Manoa’s Hawai`i Natural Energy Institute (HNEI), with partners UTC Fuel Cells, the Office of Naval Research and Hawaiian Electric Company (HECO).

Plug Power Inc. (NASDAQ: PLUG) and partner Vaillant GmbH have installed 13 proton exchange membrane fuel cell heating appliances during the past three months in multi-family homes and small businesses in Germany, the Netherlands, Austria and Luxemburg.

Siemens Westinghouse Power Corp. cast doubt Tuesday over both its short-term and long-term plans for a new fuel cell plant in Munhall. 

Plans to employ 500 people at the new plant by 2007 are uncertain and the company has not decided whether workers will begin occupying the new building by fall. 

Avista Labs, a wholly owned subsidiary of Avista Corp. (NYSE: AVA), today announced it has signed a distribution agreement with havePOWER, LLC, of Maryland.  Under the agreement, havePOWER will purchase Avista Labs Independence(TM) fuel cells for applications at state, county and municipal government facilities powering stationary communications equipment for wireless traffic.  The power capacity requirements for these installations are expected to be within the range of 75 watts to five kilowatts.

MUNHALL -- Siemens Westinghouse Power Corp. plans to begin moving personnel into its $122 million fuel cell plant in Munhall by fall.

Officials from the Orlando-based power giant said in November it was delaying the opening of the 180,000-square-foot facility because of a sluggish energy market, plus the technology was not ready for commercial use.

Melanie Forbrick, a Siemens spokeswoman in Orlando, said conditions have improved to the point that its administrative and engineering staff now at its Churchill facility will move into the new building in the fall. Siemens' Churchill fuel cell research and development center employs 175. It's not clear how many Siemens employees will remain in Churchill.

"We are in the middle of our annual planning process," Ms. Forbrick said. "Hiring is part of the planning process."

Legislation that passed the Senate Commerce Committee Thursday urges the Federal Aviation Administration to replace airport backup power systems with more efficient, cost-effective and environmentally friendly technologies, such as fuel cells.

"Reliable power at our airports and military air bases is critical to the economy and national security. Even the smallest delay can cost airlines millions of dollars and threaten the readiness of the nation's military," said Sen. Maria Cantwell, D-Wash., who authored the amendment to the FAA authorization bill, which guides aviation policy.

Cantwell's amendment creates a program in which the Department of Transportation would work with the departments of Defense and Energy to develop cleaner, more cost-efficient technologies.

The FAA authorization bill will be heard next by the full Senate.