Protonex Awards Millennium Cell Subcontract to Develop Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Fuel Systems

Eatontown, NJ - Millennium Cell Inc., a developer of hydrogen battery technology, recently announced that it has been awarded a subcontract by Protonex Technology Corporation, a licensee of MCEL's Hydrogen on Demand technology, to jointly develop a fuel system for long-endurance unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) missions.

As the prime contractor for the Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL), Protonex is developing a UAV power system that will integrate Hydrogen on Demand technology with a high power fuel cell system designed to increase current UAV flight times from under two hours to over six hours. This high-performance fuel cell power system will address the rapidly growing segment of military UAVs designed for surveillance, search and rescue, chemical-biological monitoring and other critical missions requiring extended flight times. Protonex is working with UAV manufacturers to integrate its high-performance power solution to meet the demand for significantly longer flight durations with greater payload than what is currently available with existing battery-powered systems.

"We have a very successful ongoing collaboration with Protonex and are delighted to have been selected as their preferred technology provider for the UAV market," said Adam Briggs, President, Millennium Cell. "This is a mission critical power application that is not well-served by existing battery technology and provides us both with an excellent early market opportunity to integrate and incorporate our solution."

"After reviewing potential hydrogen storage options and solutions, we have determined that Millennium Cell's Hydrogen on Demand technology is the best choice to meet the high performance requirements of UAV applications," said Scott Pearson, CEO, Protonex. "We are developing products which will solve critical power needs for our military customers and are pleased to be working with a proven partner."

SOURCE: Millennium Cell Inc.