PowerModule(TM) Electronic Converters to Be Utilized in Fuel Cell System for Hybrid Electric Bus

Power converters to efficiently manage power for bus's electric drive system.

WESTBOROUGH, Mass., Sept. 28 -- American Superconductor Corporation , a leading electricity solutions company, today announced that it has received an order from Hydrogenics Corporation, a global fuel cell developer and manufacturer. The order for three PowerModule(TM) PM1000 power electronic converters follows Hydrogenics' initial trials with AMSC's PowerModule PM1000 Developer Kit (PDK). The PM1000 power converters will be utilized in the propulsion system for a full size, forty foot, transit bus to be initially demonstrated in Winnipeg, Manitoba. The bus will be the first in Canada to be powered by a hybrid configuration of fuel cells and ultra capacitors. AMSC's PM1000 power converters will manage and regulate electricity produced by the fuel cells and will regulate power for the bus's electric drive system. The project is expected to be completed in the spring of 2006 and is being funded in part by the Government of Canada (Natural Resources Canada).

Each of the bus's three 65 kilowatt (kW) HyPM(TM) fuel cells from Hydrogenics will utilize a PM1000 converter, which provides regulated output power for the bus's electric drive system. This critical ability enables the bus's electric drive system to operate over the fluctuating output voltage range of the fuel cell generators and will be a key element in optimizing the energy management for the propulsion system, a special challenge for this project. The operation of the PM1000 power converters will be coordinated with Hydrogenics' proprietary system controller through high speed Controlled Area Network (CAN) communications.

"By first utilizing the PowerModule Developer Kit, or PDK, Hydrogenics was able to rapidly assess the most effective way to meet their needs for power conversion and management for their hybrid bus project," said Chuck Stankiewicz, vice president and general manager of AMSC's Power Electronic Systems business. "Their experience with the PDK allowed them to quickly finalize the design of the power conversion portion of their system and to order additional PM1000 power converters to meet the requirements for the bus project -- a perfect example of how the PDK reduces development time for power conversion systems."

AMSC's PowerModule PM1000 power converters provide the tools and platform for electric system designers to quickly develop both hardware and software elements for power conversion systems ranging from 60 kilowatts (kW) to multi- megawatts (MW) for a wide array of applications. PowerModule PM1000 power converters have proven their reliability and versatility in a variety of applications ranging from renewable energy -- such as wind turbines and fuel cells -- to military applications such as pulsed power. Nearly one thousand PowerModule converters have been used successfully over the last five years to power AMSC's dynamic reactive compensation systems (D-VAR(R)) on the power grid and at industrial sites in North America and Europe.

To learn more about PowerModule PM1000 Developer Kits or to order PM1000 power converters, please see http://www.amsuper.com/products/powerConversion/index.cfm.

About Hydrogenics

Hydrogenics Corporation is a leading global developer of clean energy solutions, advancing the Hydrogen Economy by commercializing hydrogen and fuel cell products. The company has a portfolio of products and capabilities serving the hydrogen and energy markets of today and tomorrow. Hydrogenics, based in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada, has operations in North America, Europe and Asia. http://www.hydrogenics.com/

About American Superconductor Corporation

AMSC is the world's principal vendor of high temperature superconductor (HTS) wire and large rotating superconductor machinery, and it is a world- leading supplier of dynamic reactive power grid stabilization products. AMSC's HTS wire and power electronic converters are at the core of a broad range of new electricity transmission and distribution, transportation, medical and industrial processing applications, including dynamic reactive power grid stabilization solutions, large ship propulsion motors and generators, smart, controllable, superconductor power cables and advanced defense systems.

The company's products are supported by hundreds of patents and licenses covering technologies fundamental to Revolutionizing the Way the World Uses Electricity(TM). More information is available at http://www.amsuper.com.

American Superconductor and design, AMSC, POWERED BY AMSC, Revolutionizing the Way the World Uses Electricity, and PowerModule are trademarks and D-VAR is a registered trademark of American Superconductor Corporation. All other trademarks are the property of their respective owners.