PowerCell and ECL Target 300MW Hydrogen Expansion for AI Data Centres
PowerCell Group and AI infrastructure specialist ECL have announced a strategic partnership to accelerate the deployment of hydrogen fuel cell technology across AI data centres, including plans for more than 300MW of future hydrogen-powered capacity.
The agreement combines a firm order for PowerCell’s PS190 fuel cell systems with a separate non-binding memorandum of understanding covering approximately 300MW of additional hydrogen fuel cell capacity as ECL expands its FlexGrid data centre platform. While the memorandum outlines the companies’ long-term ambitions, any future deployments will require separate binding agreements and do not represent committed revenue.
The partnership is supported by Bosch, PowerCell’s manufacturing partner and largest shareholder, which will provide industrial-scale production capabilities and local service support across North America.
The first phase of the collaboration will be deployed at ECL’s 35MW CSC-1 campus in Santa Clara, California, where containerised PowerCell fuel cell systems will be integrated into the company’s FlexGrid microgrid alongside grid electricity, natural gas and battery storage. The project builds on an existing hydrogen-powered installation at ECL’s MV-1 facility in Mountain View, California, where hydrogen has served as the primary energy source for more than two years.
The announcement comes as the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence continues to place unprecedented pressure on electricity infrastructure, with developers increasingly seeking alternative energy sources to overcome grid constraints and reduce emissions.
PowerCell Chief Executive Richard Berkling said the agreement demonstrates that hydrogen-powered AI data centres are moving beyond early demonstration projects towards commercial-scale deployment. He said ECL had shown how hydrogen could be intelligently integrated with battery storage and other energy sources as part of a resilient energy system capable of supporting high-performance computing.
ECL founder and Chief Executive Yuval Bachar said power availability, rather than demand or funding, had become the biggest challenge facing AI infrastructure development. He said the company had spent more than two years operating and optimising liquid hydrogen-powered AI infrastructure before selecting PowerCell’s technology for wider deployment.
PowerCell, which originated as a spin-out from the Volvo Group, brings more than 25 years of hydrogen fuel cell experience and over one million hours of operational data across automotive, marine and stationary power applications.
Bosch will play a central role in scaling production, providing manufacturing expertise and long-term service support to ensure hydrogen systems can be deployed reliably across ECL’s growing network of AI facilities. Thilo Müller, Senior Vice President of Bosch’s Fuel Cell Business, said industrial-scale hydrogen deployment required not only advanced technology but also consistent manufacturing quality and dependable lifecycle support.
The companies will also integrate PowerCell‘s Distributed Master Controller platform with ECL’s Lightning real-time energy management system, enabling dynamic optimisation of power supplied by hydrogen fuel cells, batteries, the electricity grid and natural gas across FlexGrid sites.
As demand for AI computing continues to surge worldwide, hydrogen fuel cells are emerging as a potential solution for data centre operators facing limited grid capacity, offering low-emission, resilient power generation that can support energy-intensive workloads while reducing dependence on conventional electricity networks.
