Achieving Sustainability Goals
We can help you attain net zero carbon emissions and reduce energy use today.
Sustainability Challenges
Energy sustainability must be addressed with practical, available solutions now. Green technologies and renewable resources can help achieve the promise of net-zero carbon emissions, but feasibility and implementation are challenging.
How can existing building energy systems move toward renewable resources? Achieving energy sustainability requires consultation from an experienced energy provider that thinks globally and acts locally.
Versatile Green Solutions to Meet Your Goals
Vicinity is committed to reaching net zero carbon emissions across all our operations by 2050.
Vicinity Energy has implemented innovative energy technologies and strategies for decades, providing clean energy solutions and driving carbon reductions in the communities we serve.
By sourcing renewable energy resources and investing in new solutions and infrastructure, we’re reducing carbon emissions in our operations and for our customers.
Advantages to Partnering With Vicinity to Achieve Sustainability Goals
Meet Emissions Standards
District energy can help your commercial buildings meet federal building performance standards and local ordinances that regulate carbon emissions. Our energy experts are equipped to help you understand these regulations and how district energy can help you comply.
Reap the Green Advantages of CHP
Vicinity supplies many of its district systems with low-carbon, clean steam generated in our combined heat and power (CHP) plants. Our CHP systems capture waste heat generated from electricity production and convert this into low-carbon usable thermal energy that would otherwise be lost under conventional means. This green steam is then supplied to our customers directly through our underground distribution network.
Achieve LEED Credits and EnergyStar Support
We can offer our customers 100% of the LEED points related to energy through connection to one of our CHP-based district systems. This allows a building owner to utilize their dollars for investment in other areas of LEED to achieve a better building envelope and/or a higher LEED rating. We can also assist with EnergyStar reporting, and help you conserve energy and improve sustainability.
Benefit From Agile Energy Solutions
Vicinity’s centrally-located district energy systems are agile and fuel-agnostic, easily integrating green technologies and fuel sources as market opportunities evolve and arise, resulting in wide scale sustainability benefits for our customers.
Energy Efficiency and O&M
Through energy efficiency and optimization programs, our recommended improvements typically pay for themselves within a short period of time and lower energy consumption, which can generate carbon savings. Our operations and maintenance (O&M) team is adept at keeping building energy systems working at peak performance, which can result in extension of the equipment’s lifetime and significant energy and carbon savings.
Develop Your Own Green Distributed Energy Source
Vicinity’s energy, finance, operations, and technology specialists will assess your energy needs and recommend the right energy infrastructure solution to meet your energy and sustainability goals, derived from a range of technologies and applications. We can provide full turnkey services from initial concept development through to finance and long-term operation.
Featured Resources
Articles, case studies, datasheets, videos, white papers, and more.
Frequently Asked Questions
In 2020, Vicinity announced its pledge to achieve net zero carbon emissions across our operations by 2050. Vicinity will eliminate fossil fuels over the next 30 years and rely solely on renewable, carbon-free fuel sources to generate the steam and chilled water we deliver to our customers. We are moving quickly and have made significant progress in meeting our goal.
Vicinity’s Clean Energy Future articulates our vision and roadmap to achieve net zero carbon emissions by 2050. Learn more on our website: Clean Energy Future.
Yes. While district energy systems have been around for decades, they have an essential role in our effort to decarbonize quickly. District energy systems are agile; they can swiftly and aggressively integrate renewables into their energy mix as more renewable electrons are available on the grid. By replacing fossil fuel infrastructure with electric boilers, heat pumps, thermal batteries, and other clean technology, district energy systems can effectively decarbonize communities without retrofitting or installing new electrical infrastructure in individual buildings.
eSteam™ is Vicinity’s unique and innovative carbon-free renewable energy product. eSteam™ offers maximum flexibility and superior economic benefits compared to alternative onsite solutions. Vicinity uses carbon-free, renewable electricity to generate eSteam™, providing rapid decarbonization for commercial and institutional buildings in city centers.
To generate and deliver eSteam™, Vicinity is electrifying its operations by installing electric boilers, industrial-scale heat pumps, and thermal battery storage. Vicinity will procure electricity from renewable, carbon-neutral energy sources like wind, solar, and hydro. Leveraging our existing network of underground pipes, we will deliver eSteam™ to our customers without any effort.
Electrification will enable Vicinity to generate steam with a zero-carbon emissions factor. This means that the eSteam™ energy you purchase from Vicinity is clean and sustainable. By using eSteam™, our customers will be able to enjoy many benefits, including
- Carbon-free: eSteam™ is a carbon-free renewable energy product for rapid decarbonization
- Maximum flexibility: Customers choose how much eSteam™ they want to use and the carbon-free electricity source
- Superior economics: eSteam™ is the most affordable option to decarbonize your building compared to onsite alternatives
- Maximum resiliency: Vicinity’s operational flexibility means that we can switch fuel and generating sources to avoid interruptions
Yes. 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 our centralized facilities immediately benefit our entire network. As more new renewable technologies and sources come online, district energy systems can easily integrate these into their existing, robust distribution systems.