Many of our clients are looking for ways to decarbonize their facilities and fleets in sustainable and environmentally friendly ways. We were able to help the Baltimore Gas and Electric Company (BGE) with this goal at their Spring Gardens facility in Baltimore, Maryland. The project was a design-build opportunity for electric vehicle (EV) charging stations, microgrid, solar canopy, ground-based array, battery energy storage system (BESS), and a parking lot expansion.
The result was an effective utilization of clean renewable energy, including:
- 49 EV chargers for a total of 82 stalls
- 460-kW direct current solar carport
- Upgrading the existing ground based solar array to a 180 kW DC system
- 500-kilowatt hours (kWh) BESS expandable to 1000 kWh
- Microgrid interconnected solar and battery storage with the grid to offset loads for fleet EV and facility buildings on campus
Project Progression
We undertook many action items to achieve BGE’s goals for the facility. Each step played a role in maximizing the efficiency of the system. These action items included coordinating with the EV fleet, building automation systems, and installing:
- ChargePoint EV charging stations
- An elevated steel structure to house solar panels while maintaining the facility’s parking capabilities underneath
- Solar panels to allow for the lowest cost and most efficient way to charge the fleet
- New inverters which provide more efficiency and redundancy than the previous ground-based solar array
- BESS which allows for charging during no power and higher demand hours at a lower cost and can be expanded for future growth
- Multifunctional automated switchgear and microgrid
As our society requires more and more resources, implementing renewable options can help alleviate the strain while promoting environmental benefits.”
Dave Revette, David Taylor, and Dan Southwick
Economic Analysis
We retained an environmental consultant to prepare an economic analysis of this facility. The analysis compared the cost of electricity from a microgrid versus utility, which was then compared against the utility levelized cost of electricity. This analysis showed that the microgrid provides a moderate return on investment which has the potential to improve by increasing the client’s fleet and opening the charging to other commercial fleets.