Ballard Power Systems, the US listed manufacturer of clean energy fuel cell products, today announced that it has entered into a high volume development and supply agreement, with an affiliate of the ACME Group and IdaTech LLC, to supply net 5kW natural gas fuel cell products. The systems will be deployed by ACME, primarily for telecom backup power applications in India.

Ballard will supply these fuel cell products to IdaTech for integration into natural gas-fuelled systems. ACME and IdaTech will enter into an agreement to form a joint venture in India for the manufacture and assembly of this system. Ballard will be the exclusive supplier of fuel cells to this joint venture.

This agreement provides a binding commitment for the purchase of approximately 1,000 units in 2009 and 9,000 units in 2010, subject to meeting product design and acceptance specifications.

ACME, a proven infrastructure provider to telecom network operators, intends to deploy these systems for extended backup power for wireless base stations throughout India. These systems will deliver important benefits to ACME’s customers, including reliability, extended service life, cost savings and environmentally friendly operation.

John Sheridan, Ballard’s President and Chief Executive Officer said, “This high volume, binding agreement represents a big step forward for Ballard and the broader fuel cell sector. The ten-thousand unit volume will enable significant cost reductions and this new low cost, natural gas fuel cell product will be an important enabler for the acceleration of product adoption in other stationary power markets.”

In consideration of ACME’s minimum 10,000 unit purchase commitment and its agreement to develop the market for fuel cell systems in applicable territories, Ballard has granted ACME exclusive rights for the sale and use of Ballard’s fuel cells for stationary power applications in the Indian subcontinent and for telecom backup power applications in the Middle East and Africa (excluding South Africa) through to mid-2011. The agreement provides options for extending these exclusivity provisions into 2011 and 2012, subject to additional binding orders by ACME for at least 10,000 units per year.

Atul Sabharwal, Chief Operating Officer of the ACME Group stated, “Fuel cell backup power systems offer an excellent and reliable proposition to telecom service providers because they help operators reduce downtime and also substantially reduce greenhouse gas emissions, which contribute to global warming.” Mr. Sabharwal welcomed the opportunity to offer a reliable and flexible backup power solution based on fuel cell technology, in collaboration with “high-quality partners”. He concluded, “Globally, at any telecom site, batteries and generators are the cause of a lot of pollution. In addition, they have high operational costs. We expect fuel cells to help with both of these issues.”

“These agreements are a testament to the value of sound partnerships,” added Hal Koyama, IdaTech’s Chief Executive Officer. “We have been able to leverage the relationship that our partner, Ballard, has had with ACME, in order to establish an important new agreement that will enable execution of our market strategy in India and other countries.”