Bca2 surges forward with £500,000 investment for its fuel cell component business

Fuel cell component company Bac2 has secured £500,000 of seed corn investment funding, enabling it to further develop ElectroPhen, the, unique bulk-available, polymer material that conducts electricity.

Already in use in London buses and Japanese homes, fuel cells provide efficient energy without damaging emissions. By combining hydrogen with oxygen (air) the fuel cells generate electricity and heat, with the only waste product being clean water. Heavily backed by major governments, the fuel cell dominated hydrogen economy looks set to provide the key answer to the concerns over the future supply of oil and gas, and the environmental problems of fossil fuels.

Asked about the long term future for the business, CEO Mike Stannard commented ìThe application of fuel cells within every day products, from MP3 players to lawn mowers as well as cars and computers, is increasing all the time. Our aim is to get ElectroPhen components into as many of those products as we can, in turn rewarding our visionary investors.î

Jason Ball of London Seed Capital commented ìíClean technologyí is one of the areas where venture investors can make a real impact. Weíre delighted to be involved with the development and roll out of Bac2ís fuel cell technology. We believe the companyís technology will be key enabler to the mass commercialisation of fuel cells.î

The mass adoption of fuel cells is currently limited by the cost of key components, such as the electrically conductive bipolar plates which make up a large proportion of a fuel cell stack. Bac2ís patent pending ElectroPhen material is ideally suited to easier and lower cost production of conductive composite bipolar plates than existing composite plates made from non-electrically conducting polymers.

The investment round was lead by London Seed Capital in conjunction with the London Business Angel Network and the newly raised LBA EIS Tracker Fund III. Further angel investors were introduced to Bac2 by South East Capital Alliance (SECA), managed by Finance South East, Wessex Ventures, James Cowper Chartered Accountants and the University of Southampton Alumni Fund.

This investment money is in addition to DTI grant funding of £240,000 awarded to a six member consortium, lead by Bac2, to optimise its ElectroPhen material for use in fuel cell components.

Bac2 is a member of the SETsquared Business Acceleration Centre at the University of Southampton. SETsquared supports companies with business mentoring from experienced entrepreneurs, professional services and low-cost office space.