Blog Archives | Page 4 of 6

Our history and future: Vicinity Energy in Grand Rapids

Posted on April 11, 2023May 13, 2024 by Jesse Douglas

On May 1, 1888…

The City of Grand Rapids, in partnership with Thomas Edison, created the Grand Rapids Edison Light and Fuel Co., which kickstarted operations at the southwest corner of West Fulton Street and Ottawa Avenue. Having been designed by the Edison Light Co., the plant was handsomely styled with floors of polished hardwood and 16-foot walls of white pine with a natural finish. The four coal-fed boilers were tubular and rated at 150 H.P., each at 80 pounds of pressure to generate electricity and heating to support the growing city.

The engine and dynamo room housed three Taylor Beck high speed, non-condensing engines, each belted to a pair of Edison 125-volt direct current generators. The Fulton Street Plant not only powered the 19th century city’s trolley cars and incandescent street lightning, but also supported the rapidly growing furniture industry.

In 1897, the first heating mains were installed in a new building next door, at the southeast corner of West Fulton and Market. The steam was turned on on October 15, 1897 and to this day, the Grand Rapids Heating Plant occupies that site.

By 1911, a report in the Common Council minutes revealed that 39 facilities were using steam heat from the central station. Contrary to popular belief at the time, there were no steam tunnels beneath the city of Grand Rapids, with the exception of a very early tunnel beneath Union Station which no longer exists.

An exciting system revamp

Consumers Energy Co. acquired operations of the facility in 1915, and eight years later, the plant was rebuilt in two different sections. From 1922 to 1927, the steam distribution system was further expanded into the downtown Grand Rapids area. These new steam mains replaced all existing mains installed prior to 1916. While low pressure pipes could originally be found under streets, newer installations were placed under sidewalks as they were cheaper and easier to access.

When urban renewal efforts took the city by storm in 1965, the old boilers were retired and replaced with three 100,000 pound-per-hour gas or oil-fired boilers. In addition, 125-pound steam mains were constructed to serve new buildings in the lower Monroe Street. In 1970, the fourth 150,000 pound-per-hour boiler was installed alongside a 125-pound steam main to serve St. Mary’s Free Bed Hospital Complex.

Kent County purchased the District Heating and Cooling Operations (DHCO) from Consumers Energy Co. in May of 1986.

Vicinity takes over operations

In 2008, Vicinity Energy acquired the Grand Rapids district energy facility and steam system from Kent County. The system is now primarily fed by natural gas, with a view toward the integration of higher environmentally sustainable fuel sources. Through investments in high efficiency technology and green energy sourcing, Vicinity delivers steam with a 38% lower carbon footprint vs. traditional boiler plants.

Today, the steam distribution system consists of approximately seven miles of underground pipes: five miles of underground high-pressure distribution and two miles of low-pressure. Customers use steam for critical processes such as space heating sterilization, laundry, culinary use, humidification, domestic hot water, and melting snow.

The high-pressure system is nominally operated at 120 psig, and monitored at the Fulton Steam Plant through local gauges and at remote locations in the distribution system to ensure high reliability to all customers.

Saint Mary’s Hospital is the largest single customer of Vicinity’s Grand Rapids operations, while the City of Grand Rapids is the system’s largest customer in aggregate, with a total of 15 buildings on the system. Other major buildings included the Public Museum, City Hall, Federal Building, State Building, County Courthouse, Amway Grand Plaza, Plaza Towers, the Van Andel Institute, DeVos Convention Center, Downtown Parking Ramps, the Van Andel Arena, and the Monroe Mall, along with various snow melt systems.

The advantages of district energy

Today, the Vicinity-owned and operated district energy system serves 112 individual properties throughout Grand Rapids including hospitals, universities, hotels, and other residential and commercial buildings. Vicinity Energy has invested over $10 million in plant and distribution system improvements to increase the facility’s energy reliability, resiliency, and cost-effectiveness, in addition to reducing greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions by more than 11,000 tons annually.

There are various advantages to opting for a district energy system like Vicinity’s, especially for older buildings undergoing restoration.

District energy service replaces the need for in-house boilers and domestic water heating systems in many of the city’s most prominent buildings, saving installation and maintenance costs, as well as valuable building space, and reduces overall risk of operations.

In Grand Rapids, where cold weather is frequent, district energy is the optimal choice for reliability needs: the system has built-in redundancy within their central plants and networks, meaning it can leverage multiple generating assets and fuel, power, and water sources.

The city and community of Grand Rapids is committed to addressing climate change and district energy is also meeting the demands for more sustainable energy service.

With its history of fuel switching, from coal to oil to natural gas, district energy is uniquely poised to switch to more sustainable fuel sources like renewables as they become available. As part of Vicinity’s clean energy future roadmap, all our operations around the country will be decarbonized by 2050 or sooner, and in turn reducing the carbon footprint of Grand Rapids.

Exciting new territory

In February of 2023, Vicinity proudly welcomed new Grand Rapids-based employees and celebrated taking over operations of the Kent County Waste-to-Energy facility. The takeover of this 18MW plant is expected to save Kent County in operating costs annually while reinforcing Vicinity’s commitment to quality service, the environment, and the local workforce.

Vicinity has welcomed the existing plant employees to its team and will hire more team members to ensure safe, efficient, and reliable services are delivered to the residents and businesses served by the facility. This partnership marks a critical milestone in Vicinity’s commitment to sustainability and bringing new jobs and services to West Michigan.

Market update: natural gas outlook 2023

Posted on March 14, 2023June 14, 2024 by Rohan Sinha

Last year saw drastic changes in the natural gas market, from the ongoing war in Ukraine to record high energy prices to fluctuating natural gas inventories.

As we reported in our last natural gas outlook, the team at Vicinity is constantly monitoring the state of the fuel markets. United States natural gas spot prices saw lower prices throughout the country during the first two months of 2023, as mild weather patterns brought overall gas use to a five-year low of 110.65 Bcf/d for the two-month period.

U.S. temperatures averaged 42.8°F between January and February this winter, the third-highest average in the last 17 years. At the start of the winter season, the mild weather caused gas prices to reduce significantly, reaching pre-COVID-19 levels with the winter November 2023 through March 2024 time period now trading at an almost 38% decrease compared to highs seen for the corresponding months in 2022.

In this market update, we want to update you on what drove this price reduction, the state of global and domestic gas storage today, and predictions for the rest of the year.

By the numbers: what we know and what we can expect

The start of this winter was very mild: this year saw the seventh warmest January on record in North America, leading to lower-than-expected natural gas consumption. In January 2023, the Henry Hub spot price of natural gas averaged $3.27 per MMBtu, down $2/MMBtu from December 2022.

This shift led the U.S. Energy Information Administration (EIA) to forecast a Henry Hub spot price of $3.00/MMBtu for 2023. As the EIA noted, the largest decline in consumption was related to residential and commercial demand. Natural gas prices remain volatile; extreme weather events and cold temperatures could still pressure prices through March 2023.

An additional factor that could influence natural gas demand in the U.S. is the Freeport LNG export facility coming back online. The 3-train LNG export plant resumed partial operations in February 2023 and received confirmation from regulators on March 8, 2023 that the site has been cleared to resume its full capacity of 2.2 billion cubic feet per day. This incremental LNG Export capacity will create additional demand for natural gas.

In June 2022, a fire at Freeport LNG’s natural gas plant in South Texas caused a full 8-month shutdown of the facility, leading to a decrease in U.S. liquefied natural gas (LNG) export capacity. During the shutdown, the U.S. reduced its LNG exports by 2.2 BCF/day.

After the partial restart of the plant, LNG demand grew as gas flows to all seven of the big U.S. LNG export plants rose to 13.5 bcf/d in March, up 5.5% from 12.8 bcf/d in February. The top destination for U.S. LNG cargoes are countries in Europe who have decreased delivered pipeline gas supply from Russia.

As a result of the milder weather patterns, steady production (97.5 BCF/d for the two-month period), and the Freeport LNG outage, gas storage inventories now stand at 2.1 TCF, which is a 22% surplus to the 5-year average for the same period. Even more notable is the surplus to year-ago storage levels which is now 32%.

Natural gas and climate change

This winter’s record-low and high temperatures and subsequent natural gas demand fluctuations have sparked conversations on the many impacts of climate change.

As the Natural Resources Defense Council (NRDC) explains, global warming occurs when greenhouse gases like CO2 collect in the atmosphere and absorb sunlight and solar radiation that have bounced off the earth’s surface. These pollutants, which remain in the atmosphere for many years, trap the heat and cause the planet to get hotter in the long term.

In this way, global warming may contribute to more extreme winter weather. As water vapor is trapped in our atmosphere later and later in the year, the resulting precipitation leads to heavier snowfall when temperatures eventually drop.

We are already seeing the impact of global warming with warmer-than-normal winters and extreme heat in the summer months. In fact, since 1896, average winter temperatures across the continental U.S. have increased by nearly 3°F. Spring temperatures have increased by about 2°F, while summer and fall temperatures have increased by about 1.5°F.

How can Vicinity help?

The transition away from fossil fuels to renewable energy sources is leading the charge for the most energy-intensive industries around the world.

Heating, electricity, and energy transportation are consistently the single highest contributor to global carbon emissions. In 2020, it was reported that 76% of global carbon emissions came from the energy sector.

To reduce this staggering amount of carbon emissions, it is essential to transition to renewable energy sources and move away from fossil fuel use.

Here at Vicinity Energy, we are working with our customers, communities, and local government to decarbonize our operations across the country and do our part to reduce the impact of the energy sector on the earth’s warming atmosphere.

Vicinity is currently in the process of electrifying its operations to offer an affordable, carbon-free path for the commercial buildings we serve. Our first electric boiler will enter service in 2024, immediately allowing our customers to harness carbon-free energy and decarbonize their buildings.

Looking ahead

With the many fluctuations in the natural gas market that we’ve seen this year, it’s clear that the benefits of investing in renewables far outweigh those of continuing to utilize natural gas to power our communities.

Now is the time to fuel the transition to an entirely clean energy future and seize every opportunity to encourage the building of green infrastructure and invest in carbon-free energy sources.

Vicinity Energy’s 2022 year in review

Posted on February 16, 2023July 23, 2024 by Bella Pace

2022 has been a momentous year for climate progress, both in the U.S. and around the world. Here at Vicinity, we’re reflecting on some of the most critical moments this year for both the global climate community and our company’s role as a clean energy leader.

Global climate progress

2022 was a year for groundbreaking climate legislation and productive talks around the world in efforts to curb the negative effects of climate change.

In August, the U.S. Senate reached a groundbreaking $369 billion climate agreement, The Inflation Reduction Act. The Act is a milestone victory for the green sector, with a record-shattering investment in emissions-free energy production. It promises to cut carbon emissions by 40% nationwide and massively overhaul how Americans get their electricity, heating, and cooling.

The Inflation Reduction Act incentivizes developers to build new emissions-free electricity sources, such as geothermal heating, wind turbines, and solar panels, by offering billions of dollars in tax credits over ten years. Overall, the legislation is exciting as it stands to rapidly speed up the U.S.’s transition away from fossil fuels and bring us closer to the emissions targets set in the Paris Climate Accord.

In December, the Biden Administration also announced the first-ever Federal Building Performance Standard (BPS), which aims to cut energy use and electrify equipment and appliances in 30% of Federally owned building space by 2030.

This announcement paves the way for Federal buildings to adopt cleaner, more energy-efficient technologies. This transition to green energy is critical to achieving President Biden’s net-zero emissions goal across all Federal buildings by 2045.

In November, COP27 was held in Sharm el-Sheikh, Egypt, and a slew of promising conversations came out of the discussions between global leaders.

‘Greenwashing’ was a key topic of conversation at this year’s COP27 talks. The UN released a report taking aim at “greenwashing” and calling for private companies and city governments that have made net-zero pledges to publicly report on their progress with verified information. As more and more organizations pledge their carbon reductions goals, global leaders are calling for accountability and transparency in the steps they are taking to meet these goals.

Our Clean Energy Future progress

This year, Vicinity has taken some critical steps to reach net zero carbon emissions across all our operations by 2050 or sooner.

In April, we launched eSteam™, an innovative carbon-free product designed to rapidly decarbonize the highest source of emissions in major cities: commercial buildings.

We are offering renewable thermal energy to our customers by installing electric boilers, industrial-scale heat pumps, and thermal storage at our central facilities starting in Boston and Cambridge, with our other districts to follow.

Our first electric asset will enter service in late 2024, when we will procure electricity from renewable, carbon-free energy sources such as wind, solar, and hydro to generate eSteam™.

IQHQ will be Vicinity’s first customer to power the rapid decarbonization of its buildings in Boston with carbon-free eSteam™.

In November, we officially kicked off our electrification plans with the deconstruction of a steam turbine at the Kendall Green Energy Cogeneration Facility. We will install an electric boiler in its place that will enter service in 2024 and help our customers in Boston and Cambridge decarbonize their buildings.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu helped commemorate the day at our Kendall facility. “It is clear that the work of ensuring our planet remains livable is going to require all of us: every level of government, business, and community,” Mayor Wu noted at the event. “We’re very grateful that Vicinity’s carbon-free eSteam™ product will power the leading industries we’re already known for here in Greater Boston such as life sciences, healthcare, commercial real estate, and many more.”

While our electrification plans have taken shape this year, we’ve also continued to serve our customers with the most sustainable energy possible and repurpose existing equipment at our facilities.

We’ve continued to utilize biogenic fuels to power our operations in Boston, Cambridge, and Philadelphia. LR100 is a unique biogenic fuel derived from waste cooking oil and fats discarded by the local food service industry.

This fuel has helped us reduce our reliance on fossil fuels and allows us to generate lower-carbon steam in the very same communities from which it came. The use of biogenic fuels in our Philadelphia facility has helped reduce Vicinity cut carbon emissions by 12,200 tons, or the equivalent of removing 2,650 cars from Philadelphia’s roads each year.

To store this biogenic fuel and provide our Boston and Cambridge customers with low-carbon steam, our Kendall Cogeneration Facility has repurposed an old natural gas boiler to store the biogenic fuel.

Our Environmental Health & Safety teams around the country were also hard at work this year to better communities and lead green projects at our facilities.

Some of this work includes:

Lighting & water audits
PV array planning
Planting trees
Electric vehicles
Groundwater injection
Fire safety and review
Refillable water stations
Recycling initiatives, including recycling around 200 lbs. of Keurig cups with TerraCycle
Supporting environmental legislation at the local, state, and federal levels

Women at Vicinity Energy (W@VE)

This year, Vicinity proudly rolled out “W@VE”, our new women’s network dedicated to fostering career development and leadership opportunities for women at Vicinity.

Some of the objectives established for the program include constructing a supportive community of women, attracting talent for career advancement and leadership opportunities, building a network of advocates and mentors to improve diversity and inclusion within the organization, and providing mentoring and access to senior leadership.

Our co-directors Jaklyn Cross and Medina Jones kickstarted this program back in October and have since led some empowering discussions regarding the two books we have read this year, “Own the Room” by Amy Jen Su and Muriel Maigan and “You are a Badass” by Jen Sincero. We look forward to more opportunities to cultivate the talent of women in our community as they continue to embrace their individuality and strive towards achieving their full potential.

Awards we received

In 2022, we were honored to receive several awards by industry organizations, local communities, and administrations. We are grateful for the teams, partners, and communities that made this year so monumental.

For the second year in a row, Vicinity has been voted the “Best Alternative Energy Company in Philadelphia” by the local community in Metro Philadelphia’s 2022 Philly’s Best awards.

In June, our Kansas City team was awarded with an Outstanding Mechanical Installation (OMI) Award in the large mechanical project class by the Mechanical Contractors Association (MCA) of Kansas City, Missouri, for our chilled water lateral expansion project.

The project expanded Vicinity’s district energy system piping 12,000 ft. to serve chilled water to the west side of Kansas City’s Central Business District. In conjunction with contractors Enerfab and engineers at Davidson Architecture + Engineering, the project included the interconnection of three customer buildings to be served by the lateral expansion: Flashcube apartments, KC Downtown Convention Center Hotel, and the MC Realty-owned 114 W. 11th Street.

In June, Vicinity was also recognized by the International District Energy Association (IDEA) for the growth of our services in Baltimore, Boston, and Cambridge.

The annual award highlights industry growth, recognizing the district energy systems with the largest total number of buildings and building area in square feet committed or recommitted to district energy service by IDEA member systems.

In April, Vicinity’s Philadelphia team was honored for our 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. Our team was recognized for the incorporation of LR100™ into our fuel mix, a biogenic fuel composed of waste vegetable oil collected from Philadelphia’s restaurants and food services businesses.

Community initiatives

Throughout 2022, our teams across regions have prioritized giving back to their local communities. Vicinity values these hands-on community engagement opportunities to increase our understanding of the communities we serve and to build long-lasting relationships with local organizations who share our passion for public service and supporting those in need.

Early this summer, team Vicinity competed in the Boston Kendall Square Challenge to raise money for five local nonprofits.

Life science and tech companies throughout the region spent an afternoon competing in physical, intellectual, and community-based missions across Kendall Square. This event underscored the interconnectedness of these forward-thinking companies and gave way for some healthy community-based competition.

Back in August, our South Region Green Solutions team donated over 100 backpacks to a local Baltimore public school to gear up students for the upcoming school year. Each backpack came equipped with a coloring page to kick start the year on a positive note.

Vicinity proudly serves as a partner in education with the Baltimore City Public Schools, and we look forward to more Baltimore-based community service in the new year!

In September, our Philly team partnered up with Friends of Schuylkill River Park, a non-profit in Southwest Center City. The group’s mission is to preserve, beautify, improve, and maintain the family-favorite park in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Together, the volunteers built and stained five new picnic tables for public use at the park. Going into 2023, Vicinity looks forward to more projects on the horizon with this group.

This past November, we honored Veterans Day and the Military Community by joining forces with our Grays Ferry neighbors at the Penn Vet Working Dog Center.

The Penn Vet Working Dog Center has its roots in the search and rescue dogs that saved countless lives searching the rubble of 9/11 in New York City. The center trains search and detection dogs to work alongside the military and first responder communities, serving myriad roles. Dogs in the program are named in remembrance of individuals who lost their lives during 9/11 and the canine heroes who served following the attacks. Today, detection dogs are still recognized as the most effective tool for detecting and mitigating potential security threats.

Vicinity team members assisted the center by cleaning their indoor training mats and relocating a scent training wall. They also arranged pallets for a dog training exercise which involves tracking a scent through a rubble yard.

To kick off the start of autumn in Philadelphia, members of our green team in addition to the entire distribution department got together for some hands-on work cleaning the area.

Over the course of the day, the team successfully cleared out this massive pile of illegal dumping and gave Ellsworth Street a makeover!

Events and tours

This year, our teams welcomed professional groups, legislators, and community members for tours at our facilities across the country, where they got an inside look into how our green steam is created. Our team members also spoke at various events to discuss our clean energy future plan, renewable energy sources, and the steps we’re taking to green the communities we serve.

Jackie Bliss, Chief Customer Officer at Vicinity spoke about Philadelphia’s energy sector and sourcing renewable power at the 2022 Invest: Philadelphia Leadership Summit with Capital Analytics.

Prominent industry leaders across Philadelphia convened at the Downtown Marriot for an in-depth review of the region’s economic potential as well as accompanying challenges. Bliss specified the importance of investing in renewable infrastructure, highlighting how “The challenges are still on education and letting people know that this equipment is an option to go green both fast and cost-effectively”.

Back in May, Vicinity CEO Bill DiCroce joined a panel Massachusetts’s leaders, legislators, and Office of Massachusetts Governor Charlie Baker at State House News Service’s Net Zero Massachusetts event to discuss the outlook for critical renewable and clean energy sources.

Bill DiCroce outlined the path forward to electrify district energy systems and decarbonize building in city centers. This event was a valuable opportunity for Vicinity to hear from climate action leaders and contribute to the conversation regarding the outlook for renewable clean energy sources in Massachusetts.

In December, several members of the Maryland House of Delegates visited our Chilled Water Plant in Baltimore for a tour and presentation detailing our decarbonization plan for the city.

The decarbonization of our Baltimore system will help our customers and the state of Baltimore meet the greenhouse gas reduction goals set forth by the Climate Solutions Now Act of 2022.

In October, Brian Mueller, Chief Development Officer at Vicinity, spoke on the “Embracing the Life Science Surge” panel at Bisnow’s Philadelphia Healthcare and Life Sciences Conference.

This event covered emerging trends in addition to the future of biotechnology in Philadelphia.

In August, we welcomed guests from the City of Boston for a tour of our Kendall Facility.

Visitors explored the ins and outs of the facility and gained insight into Vicinity’s electrification plans for Boston and Cambridge from CEO Bill DiCroce, Matt O’Malley, Kevin Hagerty, and Don Silva, who led a captivating conversation surrounding Vicinity’s decarbonization objectives along with other innovative approaches to reaching Net Zero 2050.

Vicinity in the media

In 2022, Vicinity was featured in several media publications. Check out some of the great news stories and interviews that were published this year:

Over the course of the year, our team members worked tirelessly towards supplying new and innovative energy technologies, with the overarching goal of driving carbon reductions within the communities we serve.

We could not be more grateful for this dedicated team that puts in the work to create a cleaner and greener environment for generations to come. 2023 is already off to a great start for the energy community and we cannot wait to see what the future holds.

What Vicinity Energy’s eSteam™ means for Philadelphia

Posted on January 26, 2023July 23, 2024 by Pamela Clark

Today, transitioning to clean and renewable energy benefits our environment and helps businesses in the United States meet cost-saving goals and comply with legislative requirements.

A large share of daily carbon emissions are generated by lighting, heating, and cooling buildings, alongside the other essential elements of commercial operations. Integrating renewable energy resources into existing and future developments is rapidly becoming the standard for adopting a clean energy infrastructure.

As it stands now, the City of Philadelphia has much work to do to meet the standards set forth by the Climate Action Playbook. The playbook’s ambitious goal of carbon neutrality by 2050 will not be possible without the help of innovative energy alternatives that other U.S. cities are implementing today.

With the consequences of climate change already taking effect, the clean energy transition couldn’t be more urgent. In 2019, the City of Philadelphia reported that buildings and industry are the largest contributors to the city’s greenhouse gas emissions, accounting for almost 70% of citywide emissions. The majority of emissions come from the energy-intensive commercial, industrial, and residential sectors.

However, the effect of these carbon dioxide emissions on residents’ health has been a concern long before the City’s Playbook was put into action. A Drexel University assessment report predicts that by 2100, energy demand for buildings in Philadelphia will rise due to rising temperatures across the country. Models estimate that by 2100 new buildings will increase cooling requirements by 68.2% for small offices, 50.4% for medium offices, and 53.4% for large offices.

As carbon emissions and temperatures continue to rise, air pollution becomes a growing concern for many residents. At the time of the report, Philadelphia’s asthma prevalence rates were twice the national average among children, and the city has consistently ranked as one of the worst in the country to live in with asthma.

By embracing and investing in renewable energy, Philadelphia will reduce its reliance on fossil fuels, decrease its carbon footprint, and protect city residents and their families for future generations.

Public-private partnership is essential to Philadelphia’s future

In 2021, Philadelphia Mayor Jim Kenney signed a revised and revamped energy pledge for the city alongside the Climate Action Playbook’s commitment to achieving carbon neutrality by 2050 and transitioning the city to 100% clean energy.

Pennsylvania made progress by becoming the first major fossil fuel state to enter the Regional Greenhouse Gas Initiative (RGGI). RGGI is an initiative of 12 New England and Mid-Atlantic states to cap and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from the power sector while generating economic growth.

Stricter emissions regulations are beginning to take effect in other cities across the U.S., such as Boston’s Building Emissions Reduction and Disclosure Ordinance (BERDO 2.0). The ordinance sets requirements for large buildings to lower their energy usage to reduce the City’s carbon emissions to net zero by 2050. In the coming years, Philadelphia will likely enact a similar policy, requiring businesses to swiftly transition to adopt renewable energy technologies.

It’s clear that despite progressing towards its 2050 goal, the City of Philadelphia needs help to achieve this milestone. Commercial and residential buildings throughout the city need to take steps to become more energy efficient. The push towards a clean energy future for Philadelphians requires public-private partnership and the widespread adoption of renewable energy.

Addressing Philadelphia’s clean energy goals

As Philadelphia heads into a development boom, solidifying its leadership in education, life sciences, and medicine, businesses must take every opportunity to prioritize the environment by implementing clean energy technologies. Along with new properties, existing buildings can further green their energy supply with district energy.

The district energy system has already proven to be one of the most valuable tools at Philadelphia’s disposal when it comes to saving money, optimizing building space, and reducing the city’s carbon footprint. For years, Philadelphia businesses like The Wanamaker building, Drexel University, Wills Eye Hospital, and Jefferson Health have benefitted from green steam and reliable energy service to meet their mission-critical needs.

At Vicinity, we have made multimillion-dollar investments to improve Philly’s critical energy infrastructure, enabling our district energy system to reduce carbon emissions by nearly 300,000 tons annually. Vicinity is taking further steps to decarbonize our operations in Philadelphia by 2030 or sooner.

With the recent launch of eSteam™, the nation’s first commercial renewable thermal energy product, and through partnership opportunities with innovative landlords like IQHQ, Vicinity is well on its way to begin decarbonizing new and existing buildings across our locations.

Rather than using conventional natural gas boilers to power our systems, Vicinity is installing electric boilers, molten salt thermal battery storage, and industrial-scale heat pumps to generate eSteam™. These innovative technologies allow us to harness renewable power from alternative and clean energy sources such as wind, solar, and hydro.

Vicinity’s Philadelphia team has already begun scoping and designing our plant in Grays Ferry to make eSteam™ available for our customers as early as 2025. We are beyond excited by the overwhelmingly positive response to our plan among advocates, policymakers, and customers.

As Vicinity transitions to a fully carbon-free product, Philadelphia buildings can decrease their carbon emissions today by connecting to the district energy system and taking advantage of our green steam. In doing so, building owners will have a unique opportunity to get ahead of potential carbon regulations as we build on existing infrastructure to deliver eSteam™ to our customers, making it considerably more affordable than other onsite alternatives.

The electrification of district energy systems is a game changer for the environment, our communities, and our collective future. Imagine what a cleaner, more environmentally focused future could mean for Philadelphia and what it will do to broaden Philadelphia’s developmental future for decades to come.

Four green colleges putting sustainability principles into practice

Posted on December 8, 2022June 26, 2024 by Bella Pace

Colleges and universities have been preaching sustainability for some time now, but in recent years, green initiatives have become more than just a box to check on a performative action checklist. Talking about sustainability is no longer enough, as students begin to consider the quantifiable efforts of colleges and universities when making their four-year decision.

The United States alone is responsible for 15% of global CO2 emissions. Furthermore, U.S. higher education institutions collectively emit 52,434 metric tons of carbon each year. Carbon dioxide has reportedly reached record-high levels and is the most dangerous and prevalent greenhouse gas in our atmosphere. Excessive carbon dioxide traps heat, resulting in global warming and climate change. Many risks are associated with climate change, including intense rainfall and flooding, rising sea levels, severe heat waves, and air pollution.

Making a positive impact

The current generation of college students is exceptionally carbon conscious and understands that significant changes must be made to combat the climate emergency. Nine in ten Generation Zs prioritize taking small actions daily to protect the environment, such as buying used clothing and sourcing locally grown food. These efforts can be attributed partly to how climate change has impacted their lives. 68% of this generation has been personally affected by extreme weather events, which underlines the urgency of addressing this crisis.

Young adults have begun to realize their voice and are using it to advance causes of particular importance to them. 75% of Gen Zs agree that the world has reached its tipping point regarding climate change. They have taken a broader approach to addressing climate change by considering the sustainable impacts of their more significant purchases and career paths. Students hold colleges to a higher standard by evaluating prospective schools’ sustainable business practices, carbon footprint, and community-based efforts while deciding which universities to attend.

Luckily, as environmental awareness grows among incoming college freshmen, so does sustainability action at their respective universities. Here is a rundown of four American colleges committed to shaping a greener environment:

1. Emerson College

Emerson College, located in Boston, Massachusetts, has prioritized sustainability across all aspects of its organization. In 2007, the College joined 700 other higher education institutions in signing the Carbon Agreement, through which they pledged to work towards carbon neutrality by 2030. Since then, the campus’s buildings have reduced their carbon footprint by 80%.

This reduction was made possible in part by the organization’s dedication to meeting the internationally recognized Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design standards (LEED). Four of Emerson’s five residential halls and numerous academic buildings have earned LEED certification.

Emerson’s partnership with Vicinity Energy has contributed significantly to the school’s push toward carbon neutrality. The majority of campus buildings are heated using Vicinity’s district energy system, which has tremendously increased the College’s energy efficiency.

Since 2018, Emerson has purchased 100% wind electricity, leading the school to be named the largest green power user in the New England Women’s and Men’s Athletic Conference for 2018-2019. This title sits alongside many sustainability awards and recognition the campus has received.

2. University of Pennsylvania

University of Pennsylvania is an Ivy League research institution in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. UPenn has demonstrated its commitment to cutting carbon emissions across its organization steadily to reach its goal of 100% carbon neutrality by 2042.

UPenn’s Climate and Sustainability Action Plan outlines its mission to mitigate the impacts of climate change and explore innovative ways of expanding its use of renewable energy to reduce carbon emissions. The University uses district energy to optimize energy efficiency at its advanced MOD 7 chilled water plant.

Additionally, their new power purchase agreement has allowed them to construct solar facilities which will fuel 75% of their academic campus and health system’s electricity demand. These solar farms will support a cleaner and more efficient energy grid. They’ve also expanded recommissioning energy efforts in their labs, classrooms, and offices to stay on par with these sustainability objectives.

3. Arizona State University

Arizona State University, located in downtown Tempe, Arizona, aims to lead the world by example through its sustainability vision. With 65 LEED-certified buildings and 90 solar systems on campus, ASU has gone above and beyond in honoring this vision.

ASU has implemented a circular resource system to minimize waste and accomplish a sky-high reuse value. ASU tracks waste across its organization through a Zero Waste Annual Review and strives to improve its system’s aversion rates and re-circulation characteristics each year.

The University has additionally stayed on track with its positive climate initiatives by enhancing energy efficiency. ASU guides its conservation efforts with building-level energy monitors to identify energy waste. In 2019, 51% of the energy consumed by the University came from low-carbon sources. The organization has twice been recognized by the Association for the Advancement of Sustainability in Higher Education for its sustainable purchasing practices, demonstrating its commitment to carbon neutrality.

4. Colorado State University

Colorado State University, located in Fort Collins, Colorado, has dedicated its Student Sustainability Center to provide resources for student-led sustainability work. This center has supported many green innovation projects, such as the Patchwork Initiative, a student-run project to minimize clothing consumption and build a culture around slow fashion and upcycling. This program periodically collects lightly used seasonal clothes from students, faculty, staff, and other community members to create anonymous opportunities for students needing professional clothing or seasonal necessities.

Moreover, the University’s Coalition for Sustainable Student Organizations (CSSO) partners with registered student organizations campus-wide to encourage collective efforts that can better accomplish impactful climate action.

CSU was among the world’s first institutions to calculate its nitrogen footprint. The school’s Nitrogen Footprint Project was created entirely by students at the Sustainability Center. They gathered data from across campus to calculate the nitrogen footprint, checked and double-checked the numbers, and wrote their results in an award-winning research paper.

Progressive environmental change does not strictly happen at the industry or governmental level. These green colleges demonstrate the reach of community-based sustainability with the support of intelligent, forward-thinking administration and eco-conscious students who light a fire under them.

Green leasing: a collaborative tool for a sustainable built environment

Posted on November 30, 2022April 2, 2024 by Bella Pace

Today, employees choose their next employer based on sustainability: 32% of employees agreed they would only work for a company that prioritizes sustainability. Of that total, 42% of millennials and 30% of Gen-X agreed.

To attract these climate-minded employees, more and more companies are setting sustainability goals for their operations, both internally and externally. Deloitte’s 2022 CxO Sustainability Report found that 82% of executives plan to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2030.

The location and daily operations of office buildings emit a large amount of harmful greenhouse gas emissions. Organizations choose their office spaces with sustainability in mind to combat these negative environmental effects. One way to do so is to enact a green lease.

Green leases include clauses specifically related to sustainability, such as requirements for smart, energy-efficient lighting, heating and cooling, or using renewable energy sources to reduce emissions.

The need to drive energy efficiencies is direr: the latest United Nations climate conference, COP27, called for sustained investments in energy efficiency worldwide to reduce energy demand, avoid CO2 emissions and dampen energy cost volatility.

How green leasing works

The explosion of green leasing around the world is driven by the large amount of emissions that the built environment releases into the atmosphere.

Green leasing is a collaborative way to meet both the demands of sustainably minded tenants and the financial needs of building owners. Although commercial green leases have taken many forms, they are all agreements between building owners and tenants that commit to reducing energy waste, improving system efficiency, and boosting transparency between the two parties.

Given that operational building emissions (i.e., daily energy use) account for more than a quarter — yes, a quarter! — of total global emissions, green leasing is a viable tool for tenants of all industries to impact the climate positively.

While owners control the energy infrastructure of a building, tenants determine the overall energy usage. Thus, a poorly designed building with inefficient heating and cooling can dish out inordinate amounts of carbon emissions.

When evaluating a building space, it’s recommended that tenant/broker teams look for a few items from the building owner:

Energy use details, carbon reduction goals, social impact programs, and other efficiency ratings like WELL or LEED.
Whole-building performance metrics, energy use intensity, and whole-building capital improvement plans during the evaluation process.

WELL and LEED certifications have become critical markers for building occupants’ well-being and healthy, efficient, carbon, and cost-saving green buildings.

Additionally, many commercial real estate, laboratory, and healthcare spaces are turning to district energy to provide greener and more efficient energy to power their critical operations. District energy systems typically reduce primary energy demand in heating and cooling by 50% and can achieve operational efficiency of up to 90%.

How does district energy accomplish this? By centralizing and aggregating the production of heat, hot and chilled water to multiple buildings, district energy cuts down on the amount of fuel that would otherwise be required by individual buildings using onsite generation and the resulting carbon emissions.

The potential impact of green leases

Because green leases require building owners to take actionable steps to improve their operations, these agreements can lower both utility costs and energy use.

Through an analysis of current energy efficiency measures facilitated by the signing of green leases, it is estimated that green leases have the potential to reduce energy consumption in office buildings by 11 to 22 percent.

This reduction in energy consumption has the potential to provide the U.S. commercial office market with $1.7 billion to $3.3 billion in annual cost savings.

With the built environment currently generating nearly 50% of annual global CO2 emissions, these efficiency measures can make a big difference in the fight against climate change in cities worldwide.

Green lease growth in the U.S. and beyond

Although relatively new to the United States, green leases are taking off globally. A whopping 34% of all building occupiers have signed qualifying green lease clauses, according to JLL Global Research’s 2021 report, Decarbonizing the Built Environment.

In Europe, France is leading the charge: green leases have become commonplace as part of a mandatory reduction in national emissions. French landlords are now required to include specific benchmarks around the conservation of energy consumption in commercial office leases.

It’s no surprise that market demand for green leasing is growing in the United States. Roughly five billion square feet of building space is now covered by green leases in the U.S., a number that’s expected to grow at a fast clip, according to the Institute for Market Transformation.

Aside from financial and efficiency needs in the U.S., cities like Philadelphia, Boston, and Los Angeles are enforcing ambitious decarbonization goals aimed at reducing building emissions.

In Boston, for example, the Building Emissions Reduction and Disclosure Ordinance (BERDO 2.0) has set requirements for large buildings to reduce their energy and water use, stretch codes mandated, so buildings will achieve higher energy savings, and increase investments in green and renewable energy technologies.

Commercial building owners need an energy partner they can trust to meet the requirements of carbon reduction acts like BERDO 2.0. As the owner and operator of the district energy systems in twelve states in the U.S., Vicinity is uniquely poised to help our customers decarbonize their building operations quickly and affordably.

Vicinity is the first in the U.S. to electrify its operations and offer renewable thermal energy by installing electric boilers, industrial-scale heat pumps, and thermal storage at our central facilities starting in Boston and Cambridge, with other locations to follow.

A way forward with green leasing

Green leasing allows all tenants to advocate for more efficient energy systems and sustainable buildings that mutually benefit them, their landlords, and the global community.

At Vicinity, we support these green lease leaders and believe that cutting-edge solutions like carbon-free eSteam™ are powerful tools to drive rapid decarbonization efforts in cities across the country.

What’s in store for the price of natural gas? Market update: winter 2022-2023

Posted on October 24, 2022April 2, 2024 by Rohan Sinha

Since June 2020, when COVID-19 shut down much of the U.S. economy, natural gas prices have been up a staggering 525%. Put differently, today’s gas prices have skyrocketed to levels unseen since 2008—and several factors could continue to drive prices even higher.

With the ongoing war in the Ukraine and uncertainty in Europe, an increase in liquefied natural gas (LNG) exports, and warmer-than-average summer temperatures in much of the U.S., natural gas inventories are below historical averages. This leaves the market with less of a buffer going into peak winter heating season demand, providing potential upside price risk. While we have recently seen some modest dips in gas prices, Vicinity is still seeing record highs in many of the cities we serve.

By the numbers: what we know and what we could expect

According to the U.S. Energy Information Administration, the Henry Hub natural gas spot price averaged $8.80 per million British thermal units (MMBtu) in August, up from $7.28/MMBtu in July. September’s Henry Hub spot price settlement was $7.99/MMBtu versus $5.024/MMBtu seen during the same period last year.

The October NYMEX Henry Hub contract settled at $6.868/MMBtu, and the expectation is that the Henry Hub price will average about $5.76/MMBtu in November through December of 2022 and then fall to an average of about $5.18/MMBtu in 2023 as U.S. natural gas production rises. So even though there seem to be some price increases in our future, the hope is that the new year could start to bring some stabilization. After record-setting demand for power generation this past summer, seasonal demand is set to reduce in the next few months.

How is Vicinity helping?

Because of the uncertain environment, Vicinity is taking action to cost-effectively procure fuel and reduce price volatility to limit our customers’ exposure to price spikes during the prime heating season this winter.

In addition to continuously monitoring the markets and leveraging our considerable backup distillate fuel supplies, we’ll be pre-purchasing fuel to help ensure efficiency and reliability. Our market experts believe this approach will serve our customers’ best interests and achieve more bill stability and budget visibility.

The global movement away from fossil fuels

Without a doubt, there are challenges ahead for all building owners that rely on natural gas – and not just in terms of cost. As reliance on fossil fuels continues to exacerbate climate-related impacts and global leaders implement legislation to aggressively reduce carbon emissions, it’s clear that natural gas is not a progressive or healthy solution for our collective future.

Of course, some critics raise concerns about renewable energy’s cost and affordability. Still, the fact remains that our current energy crisis has affected everyone financially and reinforces the obvious—that fossil fuels are the elephant in the room.

However, despite the global energy shortage, Vicinity is well equipped to navigate these challenging times—unlike buildings with boilers that rely solely on natural gas. With multiple power supplies, backup generation, and several water and fuel sources, district energy systems are reliable, robust, and sustainable and provide safeguards to ensure 24/7 energy delivery.

Like Vicinity, many leading district energy systems (including those in Vancouver and Copenhagen) are implementing innovative strategies, like renewable fuels, heat pumps, and electric boilers, to further reduce their use and reliance on fossil fuels.

Vicinity’s Chief Customer Officer Jackie Bliss said it best in her recent article with Commonwealth Magazine:

“There will always be reasons not to act swiftly in our transition to a greener, cleaner economy, but now is not the time to lose resolve. Rather, the recent fears about energy security mean we should immediately triple down on our investment in renewables. That means more offshore wind and solar if it accomplishes our shared goals of improved energy security while also combatting climate change, an existential threat to our planet and future generations.”

A closer look: the advantages of district energy

While the global energy shortage will impact everyone, there are substantial benefits to being part of a district energy system. Here are a few ways Vicinity’s status as a district energy provider will help serve our customers through this global challenge:

We can negotiate fixed prices and better rates due to our superior bargaining power as a participant in energy markets, compared to a single building purchasing gas for its boilers.
Vicinity monitors customer usage carefully to ensure enough supply to keep all our customers functioning at their normal levels, even during an extreme weather event or a shortage. This is a huge advantage over individual boilers, where building owners must try to anticipate their load and make sure to order enough on an individual basis.
Most Vicinity district systems are fuel-agnostic, meaning our generators (chillers, boilers, etc.) can utilize various fuels, including renewable and alternative fuels, instead of being at the mercy of gas companies.
Vicinity uses a diverse fuel mix, including renewable biogenic fuel, so we’re not reliant on natural gas.
Furthermore, with the electric grid’s growing adoption of more renewable sources, we’re working on electrifying our district systems – a move that will drastically reduce our use of natural gas and conventional fossil fuel.

Looking ahead

There’s no question that we have a substantial problem on our hands. But the truth is, the solution isn’t only obvious—it’s already here. With so much uncertainty in tomorrow’s landscape, we need to recognize that what once seemed to be the answer is simply failing to keep up with today’s realities.

Isn’t it time we pivot away from fossil fuels and create a greener, more sustainable future?

The benefits of renewable energy will far outweigh the consequences of fueling the current solution. And district energy is just one example of how we can benefit from existing infrastructure (which reduces cost and saves space) to create a lower carbon footprint and a more reliable and affordable way to power us into the future.

The responsibility is now on us, and we have the forward-thinking means to start achieving energy security and a cleaner tomorrow right now—before we pay the price.

A pivotal chance for Philadelphia’s climate future

Posted on September 22, 2022March 28, 2024 by Jeannie Morris

One year ago, the Schuylkill River had just normalized after rising to catastrophic levels following Hurricane Ida. The ensuing floods that swallowed up the Vine Street Expressway, ruined homes, and businesses, and took multiple lives, provided a potent reminder that Philadelphia, nestled between two rivers, is uniquely susceptible to the impacts of extreme weather resulting from climate change.

If nothing else, a look back at the historic flooding should serve as a reminder of the need to advance prescriptive policies at the local level that curtail the negative effects of climate change, reduce greenhouse gas emissions, and protect Philadelphia’s health and infrastructure. The recent Supreme Court decision undermining the EPA’s ability to regulate emissions on a national level amplifies the need for cities like Philadelphia to take charge of their climate futures.

Thankfully, Philadelphia has a policy road map in place. In 2021, Mayor Jim Kenney and City Council made a “net zero” pledge to achieve carbon neutrality by 2050. It’s an ambitious goal that’s drawn support in other cities such as Boston, New York, and San Francisco. Coinciding with the pledge, the city also released a draft of its Climate Action Playbook — a blueprint of data-driven recommendations and expertise to suggest ways to reduce climate change’s impacts through an equitable and inclusive lens.

During Climate Week NYC 2022 and Global Clean Energy Action Forum in Pittsburgh, we want to spotlight Philadelphia and cities around the world that are at an inflection point for environmental progress. While municipalities need to look forward to innovations and policies, there are also existing programs and technologies that could be better harnessed by individuals and embraced by local governments to make a significant difference in achieving our climate goals.

For example, on a small scale, look at how electric cargo bikes are increasingly diminishing the environmental impact of urban deliveries. The British advocacy group Possible put out a study last year that found electric cargo bikes reduced emissions by 90 percent compared to diesel vans and by one-third compared to electric vans. Plus, the bikes were more efficient from a delivery standpoint, making more than 50 percent more deliveries than vans.

Although car emissions get a lot of publicity, building emissions are a bigger culprit. According to Climate Action Playbook, the buildings of Philadelphia emit a whopping 75 percent of the city’s total carbon footprint—triple the total emissions from all modes of transportation.

What cargo bikes are doing for deliveries, Vicinity is doing for building emissions. In April, we announced the launch of eSteam™. It’s a technology specifically designed to rapidly decarbonize this critical area of climate change. We will offer renewable thermal energy by installing electric boilers instead of the traditional gas-burning variety and industrial-scale heat pumps and thermal storage at our central facilities to provide sustainable and reliable service. Although eSteam™ will first be available in Boston and Cambridge, Philly will soon follow.

Investing in renewable energy sources will serve to increase energy stability and reliability in the face of recent climate and fossil fuel-related emergencies. At this week’s climate event in NYC, leaders noted that renewables would ensure resilience and security beyond driving economic growth.

We are committed to using innovative technology to upgrade how we create steam to serve downtown Philadelphia. We’ve already begun scoping and designing our systems for decarbonization. We are beyond excited with the overwhelmingly positive response to our plan among advocates, policymakers, and customers.

Simply put, Philadelphia is on track to become the largest decarbonized district energy system in the U.S.

At Vicinity Energy, we constantly look at what leaders are doing worldwide for inspiration and guidance on combatting climate change. Similar thermal energy systems surpass their climate goals in places like Copenhagen, and we need to do more in Philadelphia. Vicinity is innovating, implementing, and solving decarbonization challenges, “Getting It Done” with district energy.

As Climate Week NYC hails “Getting it Done,” Vicinity Energy is solving renewable energy challenges

Posted on September 21, 2022April 4, 2024 by Bella Pace

With the most prominent global climate event kicking off, Climate Week NYC 2022, the environmental community has genuine excitement and optimism. The optimism is spurred by the passage of the Inflation Reduction Act (IRA), recently signed into law by President Biden. Its climate change and energy innovation elements represent Congress’s most significant climate investment ever made. In Massachusetts, this is coupled with Governor Charlie Baker signing the “Act Driving Clean Energy and Offshore Wind” bill into law – which outlines the roadmap for how Massachusetts will meet its ambitious climate targets and clean energy goals for 2050 – potentially further solidifying New England’s status as a national leader.

While the IRA is projected to reduce the country’s carbon emissions by roughly 40% by 2030, Massachusetts businesses, government, and the climate communities continue to grapple with how to reach net zero emissions. It will be heartening to see Climate Week’s organizers bring together the world’s most influential leaders in climate action to explore the impact of buildings and infrastructure on climate. Still, event stakeholders need to capitalize on recent momentum while staying focused on what will have a tangible, real-world impact.

Today, buildings represent nearly 40% of greenhouse gas emissions and a third of global energy demand, so it’s critical that net zero buildings be powered by renewable energy. Given the outsized role that commercial buildings play in emitting carbon in major cities, carbon-free renewable energy technology can provide a one-stop- shop for institutions considering the right approach with enforceable emissions performance standards. As the first company of its kind in the U.S. to electrify its operations, we are committed to offering renewable thermal energy by installing electric boilers, industrial-scale heat pumps, and thermal storage at our central facilities starting in Boston and Cambridge, with additional locations to follow. Not only will this technology reduce a building’s carbon emissions, but customers will also be able to achieve their ESG goals while complying with regulations.

With district energy, thermal energy is produced at a central facility and distributed to individual buildings via underground piping, eliminating the safety risks associated with onsite generation. District energy systems are agnostic to fuel type. This fuel flexibility enables the use of lower-carbon, local sources of energy, increasing the resiliency and security of the network and the health of our communities. Decarbonization upgrades to Vicinity’s centralized facilities immediately benefit the entire network. As more new renewable technologies and sources come online, district energy systems will easily integrate into existing distribution systems.

In 2024, Vicinity’s first electric asset will enter service. At that time, the company will procure electricity from renewable, carbon-free energy sources such as wind, solar, and hydro to generate our steam product. Unlike onsite generation – which intrinsically involves onsite combustion as part of the energy generation process – district energy is a much safer alternative.

President Biden’s pledge to reduce U.S. emissions from 2005 levels – by at least in half within the next several years – and achieve net-zero emissions by 2050 is ambitious. One key to understanding how Greater Boston institutions will reach these goals can be found in the upgraded and innovative use of district energy. As Climate Week NYC 2022 celebrates recent progress and debates the opportunity to transform traditionally hard-to-abate sectors, it will be necessary for thought leaders to recognize the radical shift that has recently occurred within our industry. Commercial building owners in Boston already see the difference.

We look forward to demonstrating this technology’s role in more significant decarbonization debates as we expand into additional markets in the near future.

District energy is charging Philly’s ever-growing life science market

Posted on August 25, 2022June 13, 2024 by Bella Pace

Life sciences are currently booming in the United States. An outpouring of new products and technology coupled with capital inflows from public and private investors are transforming the industry, allowing new implementations to take shape. As talent within the field continues to rise, new treatments for diseases such as cancer, HIV, and cystic fibrosis are finally within reach. There has also been a growing emphasis on the standard of care patients receive, demonstrated through the quality and performance management requirements gaining particular attention in life science professions. With this surge in technology, funding, talent, and performance, the demand for lab space across significant markets is stronger than ever.

A real estate shift is occurring

The COVID-19 pandemic ignited a shift in how traditional office spaces are used. Lockdowns proved that employees did not have to be in the office to complete projects and tasks, and productivity increased with remote tools such as Zoom and Microsoft Teams for collaboration. This new paradigm has diminished the need for office space in numerous industries.

The opposite is true for careers in medicine and biotechnology: the pandemic verified the crucial need for health care workers and researchers to have hands-on lab space for their life-saving findings and operations. The outcome of these two factors was a real estate scramble.

Because of this transition, city landlords are desperately converting their vacant office spaces into laboratories, making way for the world of life sciences to thrive.

How is this affecting Philadelphia?

In 2017, researchers at the University of Pennsylvania and Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia boosted Philly’s status in the medical industry by developing an FDA-approved treatment for a rare form of retinal blindness. That same year, the University of Pennsylvania’s CAR T cell therapy was approved by the FDA to treat a specific type of cancer found in children and young adults. This treatment has now won its third FDA approval in 2022.

Philadelphia has since maintained its glowing reputation as a hub for the life science market, as seen by the industry’s employment rate, which has grown by a staggering 116% since 2001. Medical and biotech organizations flock to Philadelphia not only for their growing pool of talent but also for their valuable real estate. Compared with other top life science markets such as Baltimore, San Francisco, and New York City, Philadelphia’s market displays significant cost advantages in building operations and maintenance.

These cost advantages can be attributed to Philly’s thriving district energy network, a crucial motivator for labs, hospitals, and other research and development establishments to expand into this region.

Meeting rigid requirements for laboratories

Laboratory operations require a lot more energy than those of a typical office building. In the U.S., labs can use anywhere from 30 to 100 kilowatt-hours of electricity and 75,000 to 800,000 Btu of natural gas per square foot every year. In a standard laboratory, most power is sourced for cooling, lighting, and space heating, with lighting and space heating accounting for approximately 74% of total energy use.

The ceilings of laboratories must also be appropriate for ductwork and equipment. There must be sufficient airflow for the safety of technicians as well as viable interior wall and ceiling space to meet upgraded mechanical and utility conditions. More importantly, laboratories require a large volume of high-quality, reliable thermal energy to support their fundamental operations. Specific ventilation, space temperature, and humidity measures are necessary to sterilize laboratory tools and equipment.

An error in any of these requirements can result in millions of dollars lost in research and development. This could cause a significant financial burden for biotech and pharmaceutical organizations as well as catastrophic setbacks in the advancement of medical discoveries.

Establishing lab space in Philly

As progressive climate action goals continue to develop throughout the U.S., low-carbon sustainable energy will soon become a non-negotiable requirement in cities like Philadelphia. Additionally, individual biotech companies typically have sustainability initiatives, making green energy increasingly vital to operations.

With the speed at which life science firms are growing and expanding, ground-up construction is not an option. Existing buildings must adapt to these requirements, which are becoming increasingly rigid, to meet rapidly approaching sustainability goals. District energy builds upon existing infrastructure, so buildings do not need to make expensive renovations to decarbonize their operations. This energy alternative has been proven to be both environmentally green and cost-effective.

Vicinity’s Philly district energy system

Vicinity Energy offers affordable green steam to Philadelphia’s renowned universities, medical research facilities, hospitals, and other commercial institutions. This steam system is one of the largest district energy systems in the U.S., covering over 100 million square feet of the city’s grounds.

Vicinity has already made multimillion-dollar investments to improve Philly’s critical energy infrastructure, enabling this district energy network to reduce carbon emissions by nearly 300,000 tons annually.

District energy is considerably more affordable than other onsite alternatives, such as building in hefty electric boilers, which are expensive to install and maintain, take up excess space, and detract from valuable real estate. Vicinity’s interconnected steam facilities provide built-in redundancy, backup generation, and multiple water and fuel sources to ensure these crucial life science organizations can stay up and running 24/7.

The result

As Philly’s district energy system expands, hospitals and laboratories can devote more time, money, and physical space to their life-saving operations. District energy users also enjoy peace of mind knowing that their building supports renewable energy distribution as Vicinity strives towards a cleaner and greener future for Philadelphia.

An exciting system revamp

Vicinity takes over operations

The advantages of district energy

Exciting new territory

By the numbers: what we know and what we can expect

Natural gas and climate change

How can Vicinity help?

Looking ahead

Global climate progress

Our Clean Energy Future progress

Women at Vicinity Energy (W@VE)

Awards we received

Community initiatives

Events and tours

Vicinity in the media

Public-private partnership is essential to Philadelphia’s future

Addressing Philadelphia’s clean energy goals

Making a positive impact

1. Emerson College

2. University of Pennsylvania

3. Arizona State University

4. Colorado State University

How green leasing works

The potential impact of green leases

Green lease growth in the U.S. and beyond

A way forward with green leasing

By the numbers: what we know and what we could expect

How is Vicinity helping?

The global movement away from fossil fuels

A closer look: the advantages of district energy

Looking ahead

A real estate shift is occurring

How is this affecting Philadelphia?

Meeting rigid requirements for laboratories

Establishing lab space in Philly

Vicinity’s Philly district energy system

The result

Stay informed

Technologies

Products

Services