City of Hartford, Constellation and Bloom Energy Start Construction on Fuel Cell-Powered Microgrid
Neighborhood microgrid supports city's budget and energy resiliency
goals
The City of Hartford, Constellation,
a subsidiary of Exelon Corporation, and Bloom
Energy announced the start of construction for a microgrid system
powered by fuel cells that will help manage electricity costs and supply
emergency power to a portion of the city’s Parkville neighborhood.
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During non-emergency operation, the 800-kilowatt microgrid is designed to provide 100 percent of the electricity for Hartford's Parkville Elementary School, Dwight Branch Library, Parkville Senior Center and Charter Oak Health Center. In the event of a power grid outage, the microgrid will provide emergency power to these locations in addition to a local fuel station and grocery store. Excess electricity generated by the system will reduce electricity costs at four local schools. (Graphic: Constellation)
During non-emergency operation, the 800-kilowatt microgrid system is
designed to provide 100 percent of the electricity for Parkville
Elementary School, Dwight Branch Library, Parkville Senior Center and
Charter Oak Health Center. In the event of an electrical grid outage,
the system will provide emergency power to these locations in addition
to a local fuel station and grocery store. Excess electricity generated
by the system will reduce electricity costs at four local schools:
Bulkeley High School, Hartford High School, Weaver High School and the
Sport and Medical Sciences Academy.
“When the power goes out elsewhere, our state-of-the-art microgrid will
keep the power running at a senior center, library branch, school,
health center, supermarket and gas station,” said Hartford Mayor Luke
Bronin. “In addition, the clean energy produced by the fuel cells will
result in cost savings for the City of Hartford. That’s a win-win for
our city — and we hope to build on this model elsewhere in Hartford.”
Constellation is providing engineering, procurement, construction and
operation services for the microgrid system. Powered by Bloom Energy
fuel cells, the electricity generated will be purchased by the city at
or below current market rates through a 15-year power
purchase agreement.
“As a competitive energy supplier and a strong advocate of customer
choice and innovation, Constellation aims to provide flexibility and
support for our customers who require distributed generation and other
dedicated energy technologies as part of their overall energy strategy,”
said Gary Fromer, senior vice president of distributed energy at
Constellation. “We applaud the City of Hartford for its commitment to
microgrid development and the state of Connecticut for creating the
public-private initiatives that help make projects like this possible.”
"Bloom Energy is proud to be a part of this innovative public-private
partnership with Constellation and the City of Hartford,” said Josh
Richman, vice president global business development & policy at Bloom
Energy. "This microgrid project and others like it would not be possible
without the state of Connecticut’s support."
The project is Connecticut’s first to be developed thorough a
public-private effort and one of the first implemented through
Connecticut’s Department of Energy & Environmental Protection (DEEP) Microgrid
Grant Program. Additionally, the project is part of the state’s Low-Emission
Renewable Energy Credits Program, which enables participants to sell
qualified Connecticut Class I renewable energy credits (RECs) created
from renewable projects to the local utility under a long-term contract.
“The Parkville microgrid is a perfect example of the positive impact we
can have on our communities and residents through innovative and
creative approaches to the energy challenges we face,” said Commissioner
Robert Klee, Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental
Protection. “This microgrid will help reduce energy costs for the City
of Hartford and its school system, in addition to providing power to
maintain important services for people when the electric grid goes
down. We are pleased that DEEP’s microgrid grant program and other
energy initiatives helped make this impressive project possible.”
GI
Energy initially worked with the City of Hartford to develop the
project and submit the project for consideration to the state’s
microgrid program.
The microgrid system is scheduled for completion during the third
quarter of 2016.
About Constellation
Constellation is a leading competitive retail supplier of power, natural
gas and energy products and services for homes and businesses across the
continental United States. Constellation's family of retail businesses
serves approximately 2 million residential, public sector and business
customers, including more than two-thirds of the Fortune 100.
Baltimore-based Constellation is a subsidiary of Exelon Corporation
(NYSE: EXC), the nation's leading competitive energy provider, with 2015
revenues of approximately $34.5 billion, and more than 32,700 megawatts
of owned capacity comprising one of the nation's cleanest and
lowest-cost power generation fleets. Learn more at www.constellation.com
or on Twitter at @ConstellationEG.
About Bloom Energy
Bloom Energy is a provider of a revolutionary on-site power generation
system called the Bloom Energy Server® based on proprietary fuel cell
technology that provides 24x7 firm power that is reliable, clean and
cost effective. With nearly 200 MW deployed, Bloom Energy Servers
produce power for companies including Apple, Wal-Mart,
AT&T, eBay
and FedEx, as well as notable non-profit organizations such as Caltech
and Kaiser Permanente. Also, with its Mission Critical Systems practice,
Bloom Energy provides grid-independent power for critical loads in data
centers and manufacturing. The company is headquartered in Sunnyvale,
California. For more information, visit www.bloomenergy.com.
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