Sprint will continue deploy hydrogen fuel cells technology as backup power to cell sites with financial assistance from the Department of Energy (DOE).
Sprint has been testing and using hydrogen fuel cells since 2005. In 2009, the DOE provided a $7.3M grant for Sprint to support fuel cell technology advances. Under the new grant, fuel cell deployments will continue this year. Final terms of the award are being worked out.
“We are excited to once again partner with the DOE to bring a new fuel cell technology solution to the market,” said Bob Azzi, chief network officer at Sprint. “To date, we’ve deployed approximately 500 hydrogen fuel cells in our network. This technology will provide backup power for our network and could extend to other industries as well.”
Sprint noted as much as 30 percent of total network cell sites are located on rooftops in some major metropolitan areas. Light weight fuel cells are an alternative to diesel generators and do not require a crane for installation.
