California Campus Seeks to Reduce Electricity Costs by $3.3 Million

In matters of energy issues and innovation, a general rule of thumb is “what happens in California extends to the rest of the country.” A project touted as the largest of its kind at an education institution in the U.S. also might catch the attention of maintenance and engineering managers across the country.

Cal State University — a system that features 23 campuses, almost 50,000 faculty and nearly 475,000 students — announced an energy project at Cal State Long Beach that projects to reduce electricity costs by $3.3 million and store enough energy to power 2,000 homes.

The project includes the design, installation and operation of a 1 megawatt energy storage system on the Long Beach campus and includes the construction of additional storage systems at the CSU Office of the Chancellor and the Dominguez Hills campus for a total of 2 megawatts of power. According to the Long Beach Press Telegram, the chancellor’s office Dominguez Hills structures are behind-the-meter storage systems that are not part of a utility company grid.

“By helping integrate more renewable energy onto the grid, this transformational system will support California’s environment and direct resources to support the academic mission of the CSU,” says Steve Reylea, executive vice chancellor and chief financial officer.

Additional system campuses can enroll in the advanced energy storage project through a standardized contract and offering.

The Long Beach article said that the Dominguez site is negotiating a contract for its project and is hoping to start the project this year.

This quick read was submitted by Dave Lubach, associate editor for Facility Maintenance Decisions. Reach him at dave.lubach@tradepress.com. For more information on energy efficiency projects, click on www.facilitiesnet.com/energyefficiency.

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