Northern Power Systems, a subsidiary of Distributed Energy Systems Corp, has been awarded a $3.1 million contract by Honeywell to provide a turnkey on-site combined heat and power system for the US Postal Service's Margaret L. Sellers Processing and Distribution Center, in San Diego, California.
Installation of the combined heat and power (CHP) system at the Margaret L. Sellers center is part of an ongoing effort by the US Postal Service (USPS) and partners Honeywell to improve energy efficiency and reduce energy costs at over 250 USPS facilities in Southern California.
The CHP system will be the first co-generation system installed under the energy savings performance contract between Honeywell and the USPS that covers the Southern California USPS sites. The system will also be the first of its kind at a USPS distribution center.
The turnkey CHP system will provide 1.5-megawatts of electricity in normal operation; an amount equal to 85% of the Sellers facility’s forecasted power requirements. Recovered heat from the engine’s exhaust system will be used as input thermal energy for a 300-ton absorption chiller, which will, in turn, provide cooled water to the facility’s heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) system.
Designed, engineered and built by Northern, the CHP system will allow the Sellers facility to reduce its annual energy consumption by an estimated 1.7 million kWh per year. In addition to the higher efficiency, the CHP system is also expected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by up to 40%.
The CHP system marks a significant step in fulfilling our shared energy savings agreement with the USPS, said Laura Schultz, vice president of global marketing for Honeywell Building Solutions. This project is a great example of the multiple benefits that a combined heat and power system can provide. It will reduce the facility’s annual energy costs and environmental footprint, and it will improve the reliability of its power supply.