Fuel cell company UTC Power has highlighted the fact that fuel cell systems are able to withstand electrical grid failures to provide an independent source of power.

At a blackout last week in Russia, the country's leading oil and gas pipeline engineering company, Orgenergogaz, was able to keep its power supply running thanks to the installation of a fuel cell system at its facilities.

The PureCell system, provided by UTC Power, is a clean and efficient fuel cell power plant that produces 200kW of electricity and up to 925,000 Btu/hr of heat for combined heat and power (CHP) applications.

"While the power outage disrupted traffic, interrupted water supplies, and forced offices to close all around us, we continued operating as usual," said Alexey Kolpakov, acting general director of Orgenergogaz.

"This alone justified our investment in the PureCell 200. We were the first Russian company to use this power system, but after this, I'm sure many more will join us."

UTC Power is based in Connecticut and is a full-service provider of environmentally advanced power solutions, as well as the leading developer and producer of fuel cells for transportation and space applications.