GM to Sell Fuel Cells for Backup Power

General Motors Corp. said it will enter the multibillion-dollar market for backup power systems by 2004 by selling stationary fuel cells to businesses that depend on a reliable supply of energy.

Targeting companies that pay hundreds of dollars per kilowatt-hour for an uninterrupted flow of energy, such as hospitals, cellular phone networks and credit card processing centers, will allow GM to refine its fuel cells as it works toward fuel cell-powered vehicles by the end of the decade.

The world’s largest auto maker, which has spent billions of dollars on fuel cell research, expects to have a prototype stationary fuel cell ready by late next year, and its first customers in 2004.

Its stock closed at $46.09, up $3.04, on the NYSE.