CleanSpark Inks Military Microgrid Deal & News from Maryland DOT and Tecogen

July 6, 2017
CleanSpark to provide military microgrid at Pendleton…Maryland DOT seeks renewables, will consider microgrids…Tecogen to provide microgrid tech for California pharma
CleanSpark to provide military microgrid at Pendleton

CleanSpark has won a $900,000 contract to work on a military microgrid at the U.S. Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton near San Diego.

The California-based microgrid developer will install a turn-key advanced microgrid as a sub-contractor to Bethel-Webcor JV, which is designing and constructing a communication information system operations complex at the base.

“Today’s announcement reflects a new level of expansion to our presence within the United States Department of Defense underscoring our commitment to providing innovative and technologically-advanced solutions that address the growing need for clean, reliable energy,” said Matthew Schultz, CEO of CleanSpark.

This is not the first time CleanSpark has worked on a military microgrid at Camp Pendleton. In 2014 the company acted as subcontractor to provide design, development, integration and installation services for the fractal grid at the School of Infantry in the 52 Area of Marine Corps Base Camp Pendleton. The project included integration of the company’s proprietary mPulse software and controls platform with a variety of energy storage technologies to store solar energy. The project included existing fixed-tilt solar photovoltaic panels and 15 dual axis tracking concentrated photovoltaic unit.

Maryland DOT seeks renewables, will consider microgrids

The Maryland Department of Transportation has issued a solicitation seeking contractors to install renewable energy at its facilities and will consider projects that include microgrids and energy storage.

The state agency will choose companies that will sign a master services agreement for projects that use solar, geothermal and microhydropower.

The solicitation does not offer state funds, and project developers are expected to secure their own financing and any potential incentives.

Proposals are due August 10. The solicitation can be downloaded here.

Tecogen to provide microgrid tech for California pharma

Tecogen says it has sold five of its InVerde e+ combined heat and power (CHP) units to a pharmaceutical company in the San Francisco Bay area. The 625-kW system will be installed in conjunction with absorption chillers to create a highly efficient natural gas-powered tri-generation system that will provide power, heating and cooling to the site’s 85,000 square foot corporate headquarters.

In addition to administrative offices, the facility will house a state-of-the-art research center and life sciences labs that all require critical climate control and emergency standby power.

Because of the critical nature of its research, the facility is well-suited for the system’s blackstart emergency capability, according to Benjamin Locke, Tecogen’s Co-CEO.

“With strict requirements for backup redundancy, reserve propane tanks will be kept on site to allow for fuel-switching in case of natural gas supply disruption, lending additional robustness to the CHP system,” Locke said. “Importantly, the InVerde e+ uses Tecogen’s exclusively licensed CERTS microgrid technology that enables the five units to seamlessly balance demand from the facility and rapidly respond to load changes and outages.”

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About the Author

Elisa Wood | Editor-in-Chief

Elisa Wood is an award-winning writer and editor who specializes in the energy industry. She is chief editor and co-founder of Microgrid Knowledge and serves as co-host of the publication’s popular conference series. She also co-founded RealEnergyWriters.com, where she continues to lead a team of energy writers who produce content for energy companies and advocacy organizations.

She has been writing about energy for more than two decades and is published widely. Her work can be found in prominent energy business journals as well as mainstream publications. She has been quoted by NPR, the Wall Street Journal and other notable media outlets.

“For an especially readable voice in the industry, the most consistent interpreter across these years has been the energy journalist Elisa Wood, whose Microgrid Knowledge (and conference) has aggregated more stories better than any other feed of its time,” wrote Malcolm McCullough, in the book, Downtime on the Microgrid, published by MIT Press in 2020.

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