SACRAMENTO -- Dr. Robert F. Sawyer, Chairman of the California Air Resources Board (ARB), has agreed to serve as co-chair of the California Stationary Fuel Cell Collaborative. The ARB serves as the administrative host for the Collaborative, a public-private membership organization created to advance the deployment and commercialization of stationary fuel cells in California.

Dr. Sawyer replaces Dr. Alan C. Lloyd, who served as ARB chairman from 1999 to 2005, when Govenor Arnold Schwarzenegger asked him to serve as Secretary of the California Environmental Protection Agency. Dr. Lloyd retired from state service in February. Lloyd and Professor Scott Samuelsen, director of the National Fuel Cell Research Center at the University of California, Irvine, served together as the Collaborative's founding co-chairs. Dr. Samuelsen will continue to serve as co-chair with Dr. Sawyer.

"The Collaborative's vision of helping to bring clean, efficient, reliable and sustainable power to all Californians complements the mission of ARB," said Dr. Sawyer. "The ARB has a tradition of encouraging advanced technology. We see a great future for fuel cells in California, and the California Stationary Fuel Cell Collaborative is well-positioned to help with the commercialization of this technology."

"We are extremely pleased with Dr. Sawyer's decision to provide leadership and support to the Collaborative. I look forward to our collaboration to make fuel cell technology more widely available within the state," said Dr. Samuelsen.

For more information about the California Stationary Fuel Cell Collaborative (http://stationaryfuelcells.org/).