# Fuel cells

Part ID: 8.03 · Layer 8 (Power generation & energy supply)

Fuel cells, chiefly solid-oxide units, that generate electricity electrochemically from natural gas or hydrogen without combustion, deployed as onsite or behind-the-meter power.

Fuel cells generate electricity through an electrochemical reaction rather than combustion, offering steady baseload output with lower emissions and noise than a turbine or engine, at the cost of higher capital expense per megawatt. Solid-oxide fuel cells are the technology most relevant to data centers, deployed as onsite generation alongside or instead of gas turbines and reciprocating engines (Layers 8.01–8.02), feeding the same facility switchgear covered in Layer 7. Interconnection delays and sustainability commitments have both pushed hyperscalers to sign onsite fuel-cell power deals as a way to energize sites faster than waiting for grid upgrades while avoiding the emissions profile of diesel gensets. An investor should watch order backlogs at the small number of scaled fuel-cell manufacturers, since this remains a concentrated field relative to turbines or engines, and watch whether large multi-hundred- megawatt deployments prove out reliability at a scale the technology hasn't run at before.

**AI delta:** Hyperscalers facing interconnection queues and emissions targets have signed onsite fuel-cell deals to energize AI campuses faster than grid upgrades would allow.

## Companies

| Company | Role | Confidence | Ownership | Ticker | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Ballard | manufacturer | inferred | public | BLDP |  |
| Bloom Energy | manufacturer | inferred | public | BE | SOFC (the data-center-relevant one) |
| Ceres | manufacturer | inferred | public | CWR.L | IP |
| Doosan Fuel Cell | manufacturer | inferred | public | 336260.KS |  |
| FuelCell Energy | manufacturer | inferred | public | FCEL |  |
| Plug Power | manufacturer | inferred | public | PLUG |  |

Confidence tags: disclosed = company/filing statement; reported = trade press or partner list; inferred = taxonomy lead.