Tokyo Gas Co. is getting inquiries from potential customers who seem to be interested in getting a fuel cell system at any price and want to know when the company is going to market it.

"We've certainly decided to market it but haven't made anything definite, such as its price or product name," said Hiroaki Kobayashi, head of the planning group at the research and development headquarters of Tokyo Gas.

"Furthermore, the number of units to be marketed will be limited at first," he said.

The initial unit, being jointly developed with Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. and Ebara Ballard Corp., will have 1 kilowatt in generating power and a tank capable of storing 20 liters of hot water.

It will have a power generation efficiency of 31 percent and heat efficiency of 40 percent.

There are a variety of fuel cells being developed, including the solid high polymer type that is at present the most advanced in development for home use.

It works by extracting hydrogen from town gas and its big advantage is that it can utilize existing facilities, such as piping. The developers hope this type of fuel cell will be mass produced in units that are small and light.

Industry sources said the price will be the clincher for the fuel cell system's wide use. It should be possible to market a set of units for less than 500,000 yen provided the government comes up with subsidies, they said.

All those concerned with the system agreed that users should be able to recoup their layout in around five years by saving money on such things as electricity bills.

Besides price and efficiency, the system also needs to clear technical problems, including durability and reliability.

Ken Tabata, manager of Osaka Gas Co.'s department on cogeneration projects for home use, said: "For the time being, home builders and government and municipal offices will get the system." Tokyo Gas officials aired similar views.

To introduce fuel cells, the two gas companies appear to have set their sights on the establishment of marketability, raising awareness and educating the market about fuel cells, and setting up a framework for their prevalence.

Citing some worries, Kobayashi said that marketing the fuel cell system will be difficult, its cost must be lowered, and it should be energy-efficient. People also need to be made more aware of its contribution to environmental protection, he said.

Cogeneration is the system's strong point, Kobayashi said, but the problem is "how to make suggestions to consumers on the effective use of the hot water."

Hideaki Akamatsu, chief of the First Planning Division of the Fuel Commercialization Conference of Japan, said the question is "how efficiently the entire system can be utilized."

He said demand for the system is growing but research on the efficient use of the system is still under way. The level of technology on the utilization of hot water must be raised, he said.

Tokyo Gas officials said they hope to upgrade the efficiency rate of power generation of the next product they will market to 37 percent, the same level as that of thermal power plants. Such an achievement would be beneficial for the system's hot water production, they said.

The developers are also hoping to diversify the use of fuel cells, in addition to their being used in homes and business premises, such as employing them in automobiles, personal computers and portable devices.

The latter two uses could turn out to be more widespread than the fuel cell power system, industry sources said.

The commercialization of fuel cells would make a significant contribution to energy-saving and environmental protection, and the companies involved are getting ready for intensified competition, industry sources said.