FuelCell posts wider-than-expected 3Q loss

FuelCell Energy Inc. in Danbury, which makes fuel-cell power plants for electricity generation, posted a wider-than-expected quarterly loss, hurt by declined research and development contract revenue, Reuters reports.

For the third quarter, the company's net loss was $13.8 million, or 15 cents a share, compared with a loss of $15 million, or 21 cents a share, a year earlier.

Revenue fell 17 percent to $18.9 million.

Analysts on average were expecting FuelCell to post a loss of 13 cents a share, on revenue of $18.8 million, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.

Research and development contract revenue fell 59 percent to $2.7 million, due to decreased activity under the solid oxide fuel cell development contract with the U.S. Department of Energy.

FuelCell Energy, which has its major clients in South Korea and Japan, said it received three orders totaling 2.6 megawatt in August which will add $13.1 million to its backlog in the fourth quarter.

The company expects its California power plant to be operational on natural gas during the quarter.

At 11 a.m., FuelCell was down 4 cents, or 3.5 percent, to $1.12 in Nasdaq trading. Its shares have lost 69 percent of their value in the past one year because of slow acceptance of the fuel cell technology.