noe that is what i call a bounce ! n/c, page-10

This is the article that may have sparked attention to Ceres power and then flow on to CFU.

The £3,000 mini power station
By Sylvia Pfeifer (Filed: 12/03/2006)


The traditional household boiler could soon be a thing of the past. Ceres Power, the Aim-listed group, has successfully designed and tested a 1kW fuel cell stack that generates sufficient power for the average home.

Fuel cell technology is typically powered by hydrogen but the fuel cell stack developed by Ceres can also produce electricity and heat from natural gas. The boiler, which fits comfortably into the palm of a hand, uses "combined heat and power" technology. Unlike a conventional boiler that only produces heat, in Ceres's version a chemical reaction generates both heat and electricity. Any excess electricity can be sold to the national grid.

The technology is expected to cost the same as a conventional premium boiler - between £2,500 and £3,000. Executives at Ceres believe their technology could save between 30 and 40 per cent of total electricity costs in the home. It would also significantly cut down the emission of greenhouse gases.

"This is a key milestone for the business," said Peter Bance, Ceres's chief executive. "It's like the shift from mainframe computers to PCs. Electricity is no longer the realm of the big."

The boiler will initially be marketed to customers of British Gas, the subsidiary of Centrica, which last year signed a commercial development agreement with Ceres. According to Bance, Ceres has enough capacity to satisfy any early demand from customers.