U.S. Sen. Sherrod Brown, D-Ohio, said he was touring the LG Fuel Cell Prototype Center at Stark State College on Monday to look more closely at the product in terms of what it can mean as an Ohio industry.

LG is partnering with Rolls-Royce and the college at the prototype center, which was established in 2006. The tour was conducted, in part or whole, by Rowland Travis, of the fuel cell research and development center operated by Rolls-Royce in the United Kingdom. The Stark State fuel cell center is headed by John O'Donnell, Ph.D., and is governed by a board of seven trustees.

Brown stated he has recently authored legislation that would expand the critical research and development tax credit and support nearly 1 million well-paying American jobs. According to Stark State staff, there are 60 to 70 employees at the prototype center, plus another 20 to 30 employees at the R&D center in the U.K.

"These successful energy programs are critical to Ohio's economic development and in aiding our nation's energy independence," said Brown. Fuel cell and hydrogen technologies are on the cusp of revolutionizing the way we use energy in Ohio, and it's critical that we encourage our state's manufacturers, private-sector investors, suppliers and potential customers to embrace this promising new technology."

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