The University will soon hold all the power. The Facility Services cogeneration project will enable the University to produce some of its own electricity, saving the campus millions of dollars.
The project, which is nicknamed Cogen, will include the development of a utility and distribution system.
It is expected to be completed by the 2004 fall semester Energy Services Director Peter Davidson said.
“The goal is to reduce the cost of operating the campus over the next 20 years,” Davidson said.
He said Cogen will accomplish this because it gives the University access to “free energy” and distributes it throughout the campus.
Cogeneration, or combined heat and power, uses a gas turbine (jet engine) to generate electricity.
The energy lost during this process is recovered and steam- driven chillers will be used to heat or cool the campus, recycling the energy.
Davidson said a distribution system will be created to provide energy for the campus.
According to Facility Services Web site, the distribution system will form a backbone along the campus and eliminate four utility substations near the Rec center, Alex Box stadium, Parker Coliseum, and the West Campus Apartments.
Davidson said the distribution system will allow the campus to run more efficiently using only one substation and that 30 high voltage switches will be eliminated.
He said a utility system, which includes a power plant, will be built inside the current Audubon Sugary building on Powerhouse drive. The Sugary will be moved to another location.
“It costs more to do what we are doing,” Davidson said. Despite the cost of building, the University will see a decrease in electrical cost.
According to the Facility Services Web site, the total cost for the entire project is $29.2 million.
Davidson said University students will not be asked to pay for the project. The University will use the money it would normally pay to Entergy-Gulf States to finance the development of the Cogen project.
“It’s self-supporting,” Davidson said. “We don’t have to go to students to support this.”
The only interruptions students and faculty will face are outages that will occur from redistribution, he said. Most of the outages will occur on weekends and redistribution of residence halls will occur during the fall holiday. Students may use the Facility Services Web site to check for schedule outages, Davidson said
Davidson also said despite the University producing its own energy source, it will continue to pay Entergy for the remaining electricity.
“We cannot generate all the electricity we need,” Davidson said.
The University will rely on Entergy to produce the remaining electricity and to act as a stand-by if the gas turbines fail to operate.
At first, Entergy was less than thrilled about the University producing its own electricity, Davidson said. When the University agreed not to resell the electricity Cogen generates, Entergy agreed to allow the University to go ahead with the project.
Davidson said he does not think the University will ever produce all of the electricity used on campus.
It is expensive to buy and maintain all of the equipment necessary to do this, Davidson said. Also it is cheaper for Entergy to continue to supply the University with electricity and equipment.
According to the Cogeneration cost summary sheet, in 2004 the University is projected to pay about $9.9 million for electricity and gas.
The projected net savings for that year is $1.68 million.
Davidson said he hopes that Cogen will be able to stabilize utility bills for the campus.
According to the August 2003 Entergy consumer bill, the University paid $1.26 million for energy and gas.
Davidson said even if natural gas and electricity increase, the University will not entirely feel the effects because of Cogen.
Cogen will benefit the campus environmentally. The utility system lowers the amount of Nitrous oxides and other pollutants released into the air because it uses new equipment that the local utility company does not use and eventually the University will save money on natural gas and electricity, Davidson said.
Davidson said the University is one of the first in the country to try a project like Cogen.