Commission gives Bloom Energy the go-ahead

Delaware Public Service Commission has voted unanimously to allow Bloom Energy to move forward with a plan to set up shop in Delaware.

The Oct. 18 vote allows Bloom Energy to build a manufacturing center, which is expected to create more than 900 jobs, but it also means an increase in utility fees for Delmarva Power customers.

Under the plan, Delmarva Power will become a customer of Bloom Energy, and Delmarva Power customers will be charged a renewable energy tariff to help Bloom pay for two fuel-cell generating stations and a manufacturing facility in Newark.  Reports have predicted Delmarva Power customers will see $1 to $1.40 per month added to their electric bills.

Bloom Energy manufactures solid oxide fuel-cells, which convert any type of fuel into electricity through an electro-chemical reaction.  Traditionally, fossil fuels are used to create power through combustion, a process that emits more pollution than fuel-cells.

Bloom has operated in California for 10 years and plans use Delaware as its base to expand on the East Coast.

According to the state website, the plant would create 900 jobs, with potential to create an additional 600 jobs as suppliers relocate.  About 350 construction jobs could be created this year if construction begins in mid-2012, as scheduled.

“As part of building this new factory, Bloom will also plan to install 30 megawatts of Bloom Energy Servers in the state,” said Bloom’s Chief Commercial Officer and Chief Financial Officer Bill Kurtz in a press release.

Under Delaware’s Renewable Portfolio Standards Act, Delmarva Power is obligated to purchase 25 percent of its power from renewable energy sources, such as wind and solar energy, by 2025.

Natural gas was not considered a renewable energy source until Delaware General Assembly passed Senate Bill 124, signed into law by Gov. Jack Markell July 7.  The bill lists energy output from fuel-cells as renewable energy under the Renewable Portfolio Standard.

“It looks like the Delmarva Power customers in Sussex will see higher electric bills,” said Rep. Gerald Hocker, R-Ocean View, in an email.  Hocker was one of four state representatives to vote against SB 124.  “This is on the same day that Delaware Electric Cooperative announces they will be returning $4.1 million of capital credits back to its customers,” he said.

Rep. Harvey Kenton, R-Milford, is a House Energy Committee member; he also voted against SB 124. “To me, it’s a tax,” he said. “I’m on Delmarva Power, my electric’s going to go up.”  Kenton said the increase could be tough for residents on Social Security.

“The jobs are the good part,” Kenton said.  But with the plant being constructed in northern New Castle County, many of the jobs could go to residents of Maryland, Pennsylvania and New Jersey, he said.  “How much money paid is actually going to be spent in Delaware?” Kenton said.

Rep. John Atkins, D-Millsboro, said job creation played a factor in his vote in support of the project.  “I know a lot of people from Sussex who drove to New Castle to work at the auto plant,” Atkins said.

Atkins said he voted for SB 124 after speaking with Delaware Secretary of Agriculture Ed Kee and officials from Bloom.  “They’re saying they can convert chicken manure into energy,” Atkins said.

The Bloom Box, developed by Bloom Energy, is a wireless box that can be placed outside of a home or business that creates enough clean energy to operate the home or business.  Google, Fed Ex and Walmart are some of the companies that have bought Bloom Boxes to operate their headquarters.

Atkins said Bloom officials told him a Bloom Box could be put on any farm in Sussex County and produce all the energy needed to operate the farm, saving local farmers money on energy bills.

Delmarva Power customers should put the small rate increase into perspective, Atkins said. “We’re talking about a dollar a month.”