The Greater Columbia Fuel Cell Challenge: Columbia's Vision for a Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Economy

The Greater Columbia Fuel Cell Challenge:
Columbia’s Vision for a Hydrogen and Fuel Cell Economy

 The purpose of the Greater Columbia Fuel Cell Challenge, an initiative of the USC Columbia Fuel Cell Collaborative, is to collaborate with private sector leaders from all areas of the fuel cell market for the unprecedented deployment of fuel cell and other alternative energy technologies into multiple city, university and commercial applications throughout the region.  The activities supported by the Fuel Cell Challenge are intended to help create and expand an “innovation pipeline” for fuel cell technology, which include efforts to build a critical mass of research knowledge (the discovery phase), commercialize the fruits of that research in specific applications for product creation and company formation (the development phase), and then create incentives to grow and attract industries into enterprise clusters (the deployment phase).  Activities covered a range of applications over the innovation pipeline:

• Discovery: The focus of the discovery phase will be on creating intellectual property by fostering research partnerships and activities, promoting educational awareness and outreach within the K-12 schools, technical and four-year college and business communities, and incentivizing individuals and groups to direct their talents and imagination toward fuel cell related technology.
  
• Development: The focus of the development phase will be on establishing a local business and entrepreneurial environment conducive to company formation and successful start-up centered on the intellectual property developed at or in partnership with the University of South Carolina.
  
• Deployment: The focus of the deployment phase will be on creating a commercial market for fuel cell products that, in turn, will drive fuel cell industry growth and create an economic “cluster” of fuel cell companies that will call the Columbia Fuel Cell District home. 
  

Fuel Cell Challenge, Phase I:  The nationally recognized launch of phase I was met with overwhelming success.  Total funding provided under Phase I was estimated at over $600,000, with an emphasis on matching contributions from participants to provide significant leverage on each investment.  In Phase I of the Fuel Cell Challenge 10 projects were selected from 39 proposals submitted, and funding was awarded across the spectrum of innovation pipeline activities, including:

Discovery:
Edventure Children’s Museum Alternative Energy Exhibit
SC K-12 Educational Programs
SC Citizen’s School for Hydrogen & Fuel Cells
FIRST Robotics “Green Machine” competition

Development:
Hybrid Battery-Fuel Cell Segway project (Hydrogen Hybrid Mobility, LLC)

Deployment:
LiftOne/Hydrogenics Forklift demonstration project
SCETV fuel cell camera project
Fort Jackson and Columbia DHS First Responder projects
Benedict College Backup Power Project 

Fuel Cell Challenge, Phase II:  The USC Columbia Fuel Cell Collaborative announced the launch of Phase II of the Greater Columbia Fuel Cell Challenge on October 2, 2007 at the National Hydrogen Association “Hydrogen Uses in the Military” Conference.  Four proposals were selected for funding from the qualified public and private proposals submitted in response to the Phase II solicitation for a total Phase II project investment in excess of $1 million.  Phase II project awardees include Trulite, Inc., Boroscience International, Inc., Midlands Technical College, and Millennium Cell/Gecko Energy Technologies.  The awards were announced on April 1, 2008 at the National Hydrogen Association Conference in Sacramento, California.