4 Cogeneration Facilities Earn Energy Star Awards
The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recently presented Energy Star Combined Heat and Power (CHP) awards to
- Calpine Corporation's Carville Energy Center in St. Gabriel, La.;
- The Commonwealth of Massachusetts Department of Corrections Bridgewater Correctional Complex in Bridgewater, Mass.;
- Equity Office Properties in New York City; and
- Patterson Farms of Auburn, N.Y.
These companies use highly efficient systems to save energy, lower greenhouse gas emissions and reduce air pollution.
CHP (cogeneration) is up to 60 percent more efficient than producing heat and power separately.
CHP is the simultaneous production of electricity and heat from a single fuel source, such as natural gas, biomass, biogas, coal, waste heat or oil. CHP is not a single technology, but an integrated energy system that can be modified depending upon the needs of the energy user.
Conventional fossil-fueled power plants produce power with a typical efficiency of about 30 percent. The projects being recognized by EPA today are reaching operating efficiencies of at least 50 percent.