MTI, Samsung work on new fuel cell

May 18, 2006

MTI MicroFuel Cells Inc. announced Thursday an alliance with Samsung to develop the next generation of fuel-cell prototypes for Samsung's mobile phones.

The company, with its patented direct methanol fuel cell (DMFC) technology "Mobion" for handheld electronic devices, will work with Samsung in a joint effort to develop, test and evaluate Mobion on a series of prototypes designed for Samsung's mobile phones and accessories, it said.

The agreement MTI Micro has is part of an initiative in which the company aims to gain a stronghold in the industry providing a DMFC power source to a wide range of portable consumer electronic devices from digital cameras to mobile phones to handheld entertainment devices, the company said.

According to Frost & Sullivan, the industry research firm forecasts the market for micro fuel cells for consumer electronic devices to reach approximately 80 million units by 2012.

"Samsung is one of the largest and most innovative mobile phone suppliers in the world and I am pleased that MTI Micro has this exclusive opportunity to team with them and explore advanced power solutions for their future mobile phone products," said MTI Micro Chief Executive Officer Peng Lim. "Our goal is to make Mobion a standard power source used for powering all types of mobile products, and under this agreement, our work with Samsung on mobile phones and accessory applications will be a major step in achieving that goal."

Copyright 2006 by United Press International