Fuel Cells help power Century City skyscraper

Century City skyscraper Constellation Place, formerly known as MGM Tower, is the first Los Angeles high-rise to be served by electricity-generating fuel cells.

Landlord JMB Realty installed two Bloom Energy Servers that will produce 400 kilowatts of power, about one-third of the electricity needed by the 35-story tower.

Bloom servers, made by Bloom Energy of Sunnyvale, Calif., are each big enough to occupy an average parking space and contain thousands of Bloom fuel cells – flat, solid ceramic squares made from a sand-like powder – that convert air and fuel into electricity through an electrochemical process.

The fuel cells reduce the nearly 800,000-square-foot building’s emissions from power generation by 30%, JMB said.

“These servers, combined with the existing photovoltaic system, enable JMB to offer its tenants a greener office environment while generating significant savings," Sarah Shaw of JMB said.

JMB has about 2 acres of solar power arrays in Century City on the roofs of two parking structures it owns. The photovoltaic systems were installed in 2008 and 2010.

Tenants in Constellation Place include talent agency International Creative Management Inc., airliner lessor International Lease Finance Corp. and investment bank Houlihan Lokey.

Source: Roger Vincent, Los Angeles Times