EII provides continuous, reliable, 24/7 power with zero carbon emissions, and its stored hydrogen capacity allows the system to operate uninterrupted through extended weather events when other renewable sources may be unavailable. The latest version of the Hydrogen Cycle also provides power on demand, black-start capability, islanding, and microgrid support.
Power on demand refers to the maximum amount of electrical power being consumed at a specific moment, rather than the total energy used over time. The key idea is instantaneous load — how much power you’re pulling from the grid right now. EII’s system is generally a base energy producer which means if the plant is advertised as 20 MW, it produces 20 MW continuously. Power on demand allows us to increase that output above 20 MW by using the solar array and the hydrogen generators simultaneously or in the case of nighttime production using the standby generators in conjunction with the primary units to increase the output as needed.
A black start is the ability of a power station or microgrid to self‑start and begin restoring the grid after a widespread outage. Most power plants cannot start on their own because they need electricity for pumps, compressors, cooling systems, control systems, and fuel handling. When the grid is dark, those systems have no power—so a special black‑start resource is required.
Islanding is the condition where a portion of the electric grid continues to operate independently even though it has been disconnected from the larger utility system. In other words, a microgrid or distributed generation resource keeps the lights on locally while the main grid around it is down. This is important in the California market, which suffers from frequent blackouts during extreme weather events. Our 20 to 30 MW plant can be set up as a microgrid and individual communities can operate independently when these grid shutdowns occur.