Solid oxide fuel cell stacks and systems maker Watt Fuel Cell Corp. raised a $67 million funding round in January 2022, the region’s third-largest round over the past year. Founded in 2010 in Long Island, New York, Watt relocated to Mt. Pleasant after it acquired nearby Pittsburgh Electric Engines Inc. in 2014. The company employs over 20 workers and is looking to expand its management team as well as fill positions relating to business development, production and sales. The fuel cells that Watt has created can use natural gas to produce electricity as well as hydrogen, with the goal being a transition to only hydrogen as the fuel source. Its production of electricity through a chemical reaction instead of combustion results in at least a 25% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions, the company says.
What does it feel like to raise the amount of funding your company has raised thus far?
It’s satisfying to know our ideas, innovation and hard work attract support — people voting with their wallets. Right after that we refocus on the path forward to deliver returns on those investments.
How will this funding further grow the company?
Currently we are expanding our talented staff and implementing plans to expand our operations/production as we go to market.
What role, if any, does Pittsburgh play in your company’s efforts to secure funding?
Pittsburgh and the surrounding region sit on the third-largest natural gas field in the world — lots of fuel for making electric power with Watt fuel cells here. In addition, this region is a great source of engineering and tech talent, so our investors can have confidence we’ll have the people we need to grow.
— Caine Finnerty, founder, president and COO
