Ballard Announces Commercial Availability of Industry Leading Gas Diffusion Layer for PEM Fuel Cells

    VANCOUVER, British Columbia--April 11, 2002-- Ballard Power Systems today announced that its Material Products Division has developed AvCarb(TM) P50T carbon fiber paper with superior gas diffusion properties. AvCarb(TM) P50T is available for sale for various applications, in particular, proton exchange membrane (PEM) fuel cells. The sale of Ballard(TM) carbon fiber products to the fuel cell industry is consistent with Ballard's strategy of setting the standard for fuel cells and fuel cell components and driving cost reduction through increased volume.
    AvCarb(TM) P50T carbon fiber paper for gas diffusion layers is the result of a two-year development program, which focused on designing a carbon fiber product specifically for the fuel cell industry. The carbon fiber paper is manufactured using Ballard's exclusive AccuCarb(TM) continuous carbonization process under ISO 9001 and QS 9000 quality systems.
    "This innovative product has excellent performance characteristics and is designed to be manufactured and utilized in a continuous process," said Bill Foulds, General Manager of Ballard's Material Products Division. "Ballard's unique processing of the carbon fiber paper minimizes the effects of moisture exposure, enhances performance, provides durability and has the potential to become the lowest cost gas diffusion layer material available."
    The gas diffusion layer not only allows for the even diffusion of hydrogen and air against the membrane at the heart of a PEM fuel cell, but also has good electrical conductivity. The gas diffusion layer is a significant component of a fuel cell and can play a key role in overall performance and cost reduction.
    Ballard's Material Products Division, located in Lowell, Massachusetts, is home to Ballard's expertise in carbon fiber materials engineering and automotive carbon component manufacturing. As a Tier 1 supplier of friction material for automotive transmissions, the Material Products Division has demonstrated its ability to provide quality products in volume that meet or exceed its customers' requirements.
    Ballard Power Systems is recognized as the world leader in developing, manufacturing and marketing zero-emission proton exchange membrane ("PEM") fuel cells. Ballard is commercializing fuel cell engines for transportation applications and fuel cell systems for portable and stationary products ranging from 1 kilowatt to 250 kilowatts. Ballard is also commercializing electric drives for fuel cell and battery-powered electric vehicles, power conversion products for fuel cells and other distributed generation products, and is a Tier 1 automotive supplier of friction materials for power train components. Ballard's proprietary technology is enabling automobile, bus, electrical equipment, portable power and stationary product manufacturers to develop environmentally clean products for sale. Ballard is partnering with strong, world-leading companies, including DaimlerChrysler, Ford, ALSTOM and EBARA, to commercialize Ballard(R) fuel cells. Ballard has supplied fuel cells to Honda, Nissan, Volkswagen, Yamaha, Cinergy, Coleman Powermate and Matsushita Electric Works, among others.
    Ballard's Common shares are listed on The Toronto Stock Exchange under the trading symbol "BLD" and on the Nasdaq National Market System under the symbol "BLDP". Ballard, the Ballard logo and Power to Change the World are registered trademarks of Ballard Power Systems Inc. AvCarb and AccuCarb are trademarks of Ballard Material Products Inc.