Tag: Philadelphia
District energy and its importance to a greener future
In this interview with Capital Analytics, Chief Customer Officer of Vicinity Energy Jackie Bliss discusses why district energy will be crucial to decarbonization efforts, as well as the current status of women leadership in the energy and utilities sector.
How century-old ‘district energy’ networks can help decarbonize cities
Vicinity Energy Honored with The Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence in Pennsylvania
PHILADELPHIA, April 26, 2022 – Vicinity Energy has been recognized for its commitment to sustainability with “The Governor’s Award for Environmental Excellence” by Governor Tom Wolf and the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection (DEP).
The annual award acknowledges schools, businesses, community organizations, and civic leaders working on projects that promote environmental stewardship in Pennsylvania. Honorees are selected for their efforts in environmental protection, innovation, partnership, economic impact, consideration of climate change, sustainability, and support for Environmental Justice areas.
In a crucial step towards Vicinity’s commitment to reaching net zero carbon emissions, Vicinity has incorporated LR100™ into its fuel mix—a biogenic fuel composed of waste vegetable oil collected from Philadelphia’s restaurants and food services businesses. LR100™ is a clean fuel source that will reduce air emissions of nitrogen oxides and particulate matter by 50% and sulfur dioxide emissions by nearly 99%.
“We are thrilled to support Philadelphia in its efforts to decarbonize and offer locally- sourced energy to our customers,” said Matt O’Malley, chief sustainability officer of Vicinity Energy. “With the help of our local partners, we have been able to reduce the amount of dangerous greenhouse gases in our atmosphere and keep waste and pollution from harming our community. It’s a truly circular solution we’re proud to be a part of.”
“These awards represent a commitment to creating a better Pennsylvania for today and tomorrow,” said DEP Secretary Patrick McDonnell. “I’d like to commend Vicinity Energy for their dedication and much deserved recognition.”
Earlier this month, Vicinity Energy announced its plan to electrify its district systems in Boston and Cambridge and utilize eSteam™, the first-ever carbon-free energy product powered by renewable energy. Vicinity will begin to implement the same plan at its Philadelphia facility in the near future.
To read more about Vicinity and its commitment to innovation and the environment, visit the Pennsylvania Department of Environmental Protection’s announcement here.
About Vicinity Energy
Vicinity Energy is a clean energy company that owns and operates an extensive portfolio of district energy systems across the United States. Vicinity produces and distributes reliable, clean steam, hot water, and chilled water to over 250 million square feet of building space nationwide. Vicinity continuously invests in its infrastructure and the latest technologies to accelerate the decarbonization of commercial and institutional buildings in city centers. Vicinity is committed to achieving net zero carbon across its portfolio by 2050. To learn more, visit https://www.vicinityenergy.us or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook.
Media Contact
Vicinity Energy
Sara DeMille
Marketing and Communications
857-955-5073
sara.demille@vicinityenergy.us
Announcing Vicinity Energy as Circular Philadelphia’s New Sponsor
How District Energy Can Support the Transition from Empty Offices to Thriving Laboratories
Vicinity Energy Voted Best Alternative Energy Company in Metro Philadelphia Awards
PHILADELPHIA, December 9, 2021 – Vicinity Energy, owner of the nation’s largest portfolio of district energy systems, announces that it has been voted “Best Alternative Energy Company in Philadelphia” by the local community in Metro Philadelphia’s 2021 Philly’s Best awards.
The annual “Philly’s Best” list from Metro Philadelphia recognizes the best businesses in the city, awarding one winner per category. Recipients are nominated by the Philadelphia community and are selected by vote.
“We are honored to be recognized by the people of Philadelphia,” said Bill DiCroce, president and CEO of Vicinity Energy. “As a local company, Vicinity is deeply committed to the Philadelphia community and is proud to support the city’s ambitious sustainability goals by offering reliable and resilient green steam to local businesses and critical care facilities. Our pledge to sustainability and a clean energy future is one we don’t take lightly. We couldn’t be more eager to continue serving this vibrant city as we work together to reach net zero carbon emissions alongside the City of Philadelphia.”
The Vicinity district energy network in Philadelphia currently eliminates 300,000 tons of greenhouse gas emission annually in the region; the carbon reduction equivalent of removing 65,000 cars from the road. Earlier this year, the company announced its integration of renewable biogenic fuel derived from used vegetable oil obtained from Philadelphia restaurants into its energy mix, which reduces greenhouse gas emissions by over 80% versus distillate fuel, cutting carbon by an additional12,200 tons.
To read more about Vicinity and our commitment to innovation and the environment, check out Metro Philadelphia’s profile of the company and their award here.
About Vicinity Energy
Vicinity Energy is a clean energy company that owns and operates an extensive portfolio of district energy systems across the United States. Vicinity produces and distributes reliable, clean steam, hot water, and chilled water to over 250 million square feet of building space nationwide. Vicinity continuously invests in its infrastructure and the latest technologies to accelerate the decarbonization of commercial and institutional buildings in city centers. Vicinity is committed to achieving net zero carbon across its portfolio by 2050. To learn more, visit https://www.vicinityenergy.us or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook.
Media Contact
Vicinity Energy
Sara DeMille
Marketing and Communications
857-955-5073
sara.demille@vicinityenergy.us
Vicinity Energy Files Complaint to Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission Regarding Anti-Competitive Gas Pricing from Philadelphia Gas Works
PHILADELPHIA, October 25, 2021 – Vicinity Energy, owner of the nation’s largest portfolio of district energy systems, announces today that it has filed a formal complaint with the Pennsylvania Public Utility Commission (PUC) regarding the renewal of its gas transportation contract with Philadelphia Gas Works (PGW). The existing contract between Vicinity and PGW, which was originally executed in 1996 and expires at the end of 2022, has helped to ensure that Vicinity’s customers, representing approximately 100 million square feet of building space (75 million square feet of heating and 25 million square feet of summer cooling) in city center Philadelphia, continue to receive clean, reliable, and affordable steam service. In February 2021, PGW provided Vicinity with a new offer to continue gas supply to its Grays Ferry plant starting in 2023, which increases the price for gas supply to Vicinity by over 1000%.
Per the longstanding contract, PGW supplies gas transportation services to Vicinity’s Grays Ferry combined heat and power (CHP) plant in South Philadelphia; Vicinity purchases the natural gas itself from third party natural gas suppliers. Vicinity Energy is PGW’s largest customer and consumes this gas to generate both electricity, which is supplied to the PJM electric grid, and a by-product thermal heat in the form of steam. This steam is distributed to customers throughout the city through a vast network of underground pipes and is used to heat and cool buildings, as well as for critical processes and sterilization of lab and surgical equipment in hospitals, bio-medical and life science laboratories, and other facilities. Because the steam is a by-product of the CHP process, it is a clean, low carbon, and efficient alternative to directly consuming gas on site in individual buildings.
In its formal complaint to the PUC, Vicinity contests the drastic increase in the cost to transport gas through PGW’s pipeline and claims it is anti-competitive, unreasonable and an attempt to impose significant anti-competitive pressure on Vicinity’s mission critical energy services business. In addition to the dramatic price increase, PGW’s new offer also migrates Vicinity from firm gas delivery to interruptible supply. If permitted, this provides PGW with the ability to suspend the supply of gas to Vicinity at any time, which would interrupt the co-generation of electricity and steam in its plant. PGW has provided Vicinity with firm supply since the current contract was first signed in 1996. The new offer represents a fundamental shift in the longstanding terms of the agreement between Vicinity and PGW. While Vicinity Energy has backup options (including dual-fuel steam generators, portable steam generators and fuel oil reserves) and system redundancies, interruptible supply is unacceptable to Vicinity and the needs of its customers, including major hospitals, research labs, universities, and government buildings.
In the 1996 agreement, PGW was obligated to refurbish and construct a dedicated pipe to connect Vicinity’s Grays Ferry Plant to the interstate gas transmission line. Vicinity was required to repay PGW for the capital investment over the life of the contract. While PGW continues to own the pipe, it only transports gas to Vicinity’s facility and PGW has more than recouped its capital investment over the life of the current agreement. In addition, Vicinity has paid an annual fee to maintain the pipe throughout contract. Therefore, Vicinity contends that the ongoing cost to serve Grays Ferry is negligible and there is no basis for the significant price increase or the interruptible terms proposed by PGW. Vicinity is appealing to the PUC to review all terms presented in PGW’s new gas transportation offer as monopolistic and ultimately a risk to end-users.
PGW is already responsible for contributing 4.6 million tons of carbon equivalent emissions to the region’s carbon budget according to an October 2019 study by the University of Pennsylvania’s Kleinman Center for Energy Policy. In addition, PGW has admitted that its antiquated distribution system leaks the equivalent of 1 million tons of carbon dioxide per year. In light of this, PGW is the subject of a diversification study recently launched by Philadelphia’s Office of Sustainability. The purpose of this study is to determine if there are viable new business ventures for the city-owned gas utility, given the City’s commitment to upholding the goals of the Paris Climate Agreement and to reaching 100% clean energy by 2050. The City has publicly stated that it can only reach its decarbonization targets by reducing the carbon emissions from thermal energy. As a fossil fuel supplying entity, PGW’s future is uncertain. Vicinity has repeatedly reached out to PGW in attempts to cooperatively forge a path forward towards a more sustainable energy future for Philadelphia. While Vicinity continues this outreach, PGW’s responses have failed to address the huge divide between the parties, refusing to provide any justification or substantiation of their proposed increases and accordingly these efforts have thus far been unsuccessful.
By contrast, Vicinity estimates that its CHP operations avoid over 300,000 tons of CO2 emissions annually, as compared to on-site gas boilers and electric consumption from the grid. Further, CHP technology is 20% more efficient as compared to even the most advanced combined-cycle gas turbine power plants. Vicinity’s offering is a low carbon, green option today, and Vicinity plans to continue to reduce its carbon footprint. The company has made a public commitment to further invest in Philadelphia’s green energy infrastructure and to reach net zero carbon emissions by 2050, in line with the City’s published plan. Vicinity announced earlier this year it will begin using net-zero carbon vegetable oil recovered from Philadelphia’s food service industry to eliminate its use of petroleum-based heating oil.
In 2019, Pennsylvania Governor Tom Wolf directed Pennsylvania to join the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI) through an executive order. Eleven states currently participate in the program, which sets a cap on emissions from power generators and provides a market through which these generators can trade credits. Pennsylvania regulators recognized the importance of incentivizing combined heat and power plants like Vicinity’s Grays Ferry Facility and became the first state to change its treatment of CHP in the RGGI program to reflect its unique attributes, including increased efficiency and reduced carbon emissions. Vicinity’s complaint highlights the commitment of the Commonwealth to its CHP technology and requests that the PUC consider the implications of PGW’s price increase on the broad use of the technology for decarbonization. PGW’s tactics are clearly motivated to limit the output of this important resource and push Vicinity to use higher carbon intensity alternatives. Vicinity will take all necessary steps to protect its customers from this greedy, anti-competitive and environmentally unsustainable attack by PGW including pursuing alternative natural gas transportation means and electrification of its steam generation assets.
According to the PUC’s website, the complaint process will involve a legal proceeding through which Vicinity will be required to present facts and evidence to a PUC administrative law judge. PGW will have an opportunity to file an answer to the complaint. Vicinity expects a formal review of the complaint by the PUC to take six months or more.
About Vicinity Energy
Vicinity Energy is a clean energy company that owns and operates an extensive portfolio of district energy systems across the United States. Vicinity produces and distributes reliable, clean steam, hot water, and chilled water to over 250 million square feet of building space nationwide. Vicinity continuously invests in its infrastructure and the latest technologies to accelerate the decarbonization of commercial and institutional buildings in city centers. Vicinity is committed to achieving net zero carbon across its portfolio by 2050. To learn more, visit https://www.vicinityenergy.us or follow us on LinkedIn, Twitter, Instagram, or Facebook.
Media Contact
Vicinity Energy
Sara DeMille
Marketing and Communications
857-955-5073
sara.demille@vicinityenergy.us
A clean energy future is in our grasp
By taking action and implementing a host of innovative energy strategies and technologies, Vicinity is leading the way to building decarbonization.
Reliable Green Steam from Vicinity Energy is Supporting Philadelphia’s Booming Life Sciences Scene
Green cogenerated steam will be supplied to support the 24/7 thermal energy needs of The Curtis building and its conversion of office space into laboratory research space
PHILADELPHIA, September 22, 2021 – Vicinity Energy, owner and operator of the nation’s largest portfolio of district energy systems, announces that it has signed a long-term agreement with Keystone Property Group to supply green steam to The Curtis, a historic 12-floor, 912,245-square-foot mixed-use building located at 601 Walnut Street in Philadelphia. The agreement will enable the transition of The Curtis’ office spaces into lab facilities to support the city’s booming life sciences industry and attract world-class talent.
In the midst of a thriving life sciences boom, Keystone sought to transition traditional office spaces on multiple floors of The Curtis building to support lab research. Currently being serviced by an onsite boiler, Keystone desired a more reliable and scalable thermal energy solution that could support the high volume, high quality and precise requirements needed for laboratory research and growing life science tenant demand.
As a current steam customer of Vicinity’s, Keystone recognized the value of district energy in its scalability and ability to deliver the uninterrupted, low-carbon thermal energy required for tenant lab spaces. With district energy, Keystone can increase its steam demand to support additional floors if needed, without any additional upfront capital investment. Initially, the building will receive 9,000 Mlbs of steam annually used for heating, reheating, sterilization and humidification to support lab research. The transition will be seamless, requiring no street alterations, with steam service expected to begin in October 2021.
Due to the sustainability of the district energy system’s cogenerated steam, The Curtis will also receive carbon reduction benefits. Touching over 100 million square feet of building space in Philadelphia, Vicinity’s district energy system is reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by nearly 300,000 tons annually — the equivalent of removing almost 65,000 cars from Philadelphia’s roads every year. With the integration of biogenic fuel into its energy mix, district energy customers like the tenants at The Curtis will benefit from continuous greening solutions that will further cut carbon emissions.
“Vicinity has been an active partner in furthering Philadelphia’s greening initiatives for many years, and we’re proud to support both the city’s sustainability goals and the expansion of vital life sciences research at The Curtis,” said Bill DiCroce, president and CEO of Vicinity Energy. “We’re committed to providing reliable and sustainable energy solutions that empower local businesses, support the city’s growing economy, and enable a greener, healthier climate future.”
“This is an exciting time for the life sciences industry in Philadelphia, and The Curtis’ conversion from office to lab space is at the forefront of the city’s life science sector,” said Keystone Property Group’s Senior Property Manager Sam Mattei. “Thanks to the reliability and flexibility of district energy, tenants can be confident that our labs will maintain consistent 24/7 heating, reheating, sterilization and humidification to meet the specific requirements needed to support their critical research.”
About Vicinity Energy
With 19 district energy systems in 12 major cities, Vicinity Energy is the leading provider of district energy solutions in the U.S. Vicinity produces and distributes steam, hot water, and chilled water directly through its vast underground network to individual buildings and campuses. District energy eliminates the need for boiler and chiller plants in individual buildings, improving overall efficiency, lowering carbon footprints, and increasing reliability. Vicinity’s over 450 skilled engineers, operators, and energy experts have a singular dedication to customer success and a relentless focus on delivering reliable and efficient energy products and services. With the recent launch of the company’s Clean Energy Future roadmap, Vicinity has committed to reaching net zero carbon emissions across all operations by 2050. For more information, check out www.vicinityenergy.us.
About Keystone Property Group
Keystone is a vertically integrated commercial real estate development and investment company. Headquartered in Conshohocken, Pa., its portfolio of iconic projects attracting world-class companies includes 10 million square feet of office and mixed-use properties with 2 million square feet under development, and spans thriving locations along the East Coast.
For more information, please visit www.keystonepropertygroup.com.
Media Contact
Sara DeMille
Senior Director of Marketing and Communications
media@vicinityenergy.us
