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Bosch SOFC

For which sectors is the SOFC system suitable?

Working for the energy transition: our decentralized fuel cell system

Whether it’s deployed in an urban quarter, building, industrial plant, or data center, our Bosch SOFC system is always the right choice. It’s ideal for applications that require the generation of electricity and heat to be not only highly efficient, but also grid-independent, for maximum reliability and future-readiness. It’s all part of the energy transition, which we’re already associating with hydrogen.

The Bosch fuel cell system is suitable for many applications, including for supplying power to urban districts, buildings, industrial plants, and data centers – wherever decentralized power generation and independence from the power grid play a major role.

The energy supply of the future is decentralized and flexible – characteristics that exactly describe Bosch’s fuel cell system. Our small power plant based on a solid oxide fuel cell (SOFC) can achieve even more, including more efficiency. In terms of numbers, its electrical efficiency is more than 60 percent at beginning of life. When waste heat is utilized, its overall efficiency reaches 85 percent. Plus, it can be individually scaled as needed. The fuel-flexible SOFC system can already run on natural gas or biomethane today, and is ready to run on hydrogen in the future. Our pilot plants are already proving that the fuel cell system is an important enabler of the energy transition, particularly in urban quarters, buildings, industrial plants, and data centers. This is an important step for future series production.

Applications for the SOFC at a glance

The Bosch fuel cell supplies buildings in urban quarters with sustainable electricity.

Sustainable power supply for buildings and urban quarters

Private households are responsible for about a quarter of power consumption in Germany. Twenty percent of this energy is utilized in the form of electricity.

In the future, it will be possible to supply residential buildings and office buildings within a district with decentralized, future-proof, and sustainable electricity and heat on site, thanks to our Bosch SOFC technology.

The SOFC for buildings and urban quarters at a glance:

  • Efficient and decentralized power generation
  • Performance class from 50 to several hundred kilowatts
  • Quick and easy installation
  • Individually scalable and can be flexibly integrated into different systems
  • Long-term carbon neutrality (system is hydrogen-ready)
  • Future-proof investment
  • Low noise with minimal vibration
The SOFC provides industrial and business enterprises with a decentralized and reliable power supply. Thanks to its ability to run on hydrogen, it will also reduce carbon emissions to zero, which in turn will eliminate the carbon tax.

Reliable energy source for industry and trade

Nearly half of all electricity consumed in Germany can be attributed to the industrial sector. Industry and trade depend on a reliable, economical, and highly efficient power supply for their very existence. Our SOFC is an excellent solution because it reduces a site’s carbon footprint, making it an important piece of the energy transition puzzle.

The SOFC for industry and trade at a glance:

  • Performance class from 50 kilowatts to several megawatts
  • Decentralized and reliable energy source
  • Optimized operating costs
  • Long-term carbon neutrality (system is hydrogen-ready)
The fuel cell system is a decentralized and grid-independent energy source. Thanks to its modular design, it can be scaled flexibly and can satisfy the power demands of a growing contingent of data centers.

Modular, grid-independent power supply for data centers

The volume of data is growing exponentially and with it, the demand for computing capacity and data center performance. Whether centralized cloud data centers in larger cities or distributed networks in edge data centers located close to where the data is being generated – they all have the same goals when it comes to power supply: security of supply, sustainability, and scalability.

The SOFC for data centers at a glance:

  • Flexibly scaled by means of modules in performance classes from 20 kilowatts to several megawatts
  • Decentralized, reliable, and self-sufficient energy source
  • Increased flexibility in the choice of location
  • Fast setup and simplified integration thanks to an extensive partner ecosystem
  • Optimized investment and operating costs
  • Long-term carbon neutrality (system is hydrogen-ready)

Decentralized power generation to meet individual requirements

Demands for energy are growing, as is the demand for reliable, decentralized power generation. The SOFC has many potential applications. Multiple units can be flexibly scaled to form a system all the way up to the megawatt range. As part of a decentralized energy grid, the SOFC system can also be connected to other power generating systems in order to supply electricity and heat for various applications in an energy grid.

The Bosch SOFC system is currently in the pilot phase. All technical specifications given are development objectives and refer to the beginning of life.

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