A landmark joint power purchase from Pennsylvania’s largest wind power project has several prominent health care institutions in the Philadelphia area poised to save money and help move along the clean wind power surge.
The purchase, which includes Thomas Jefferson University and Hospitals, along with Main Line Health System, Frankford Hospitals, Magee Rehabilitation and the Albert Einstein Healthcare Network, will meet 35 percent of their aggregate electricity consumption for 10 years.
Thomas Jefferson University and Hospitals have been jointly purchasing electricity since deregulation began in 2000 and have saved millions, according to Ronald E. Bowland, the universitys Associate VPt for Facilities Management. He estimated the university will save $42,000 annually. The importance, though, goes beyond the bottom line. According to Practice Greenhealth’s Health Care Leadership National Action Plan, displacing 1.25 million kWh of fossil fuel generated electric power avoids more than $10 million in direct medical costs.
”I think it’s extremely important that health care institutions as well as a university that trains future health care providers purchase as much of their energy as possible from green resources,” says Bowlan, who noted the university is also exploring adding solar electricity to its portfolio.
Iberdola Renewables, the world’s leading provider of wind power, will sell the electricity to the health care group from the Locust Ridge II wind power project in Schuylkill and Columbia Counties. The purchase has another local interest–the 51 turbines for Locust Ridge are manufactured in Bucks County.
”Production facilities such as the one in Bucks County are truly motivated to expand their capacities, allowing us to depend less on foreign produced components,” Bowlan said.
Source: Ronald E. Bowlan, Associate Vice President for Facilities Management for Thomas Jefferson University
Writer: Joe Petrucci
To receive Keystone Edge free every week, click here.
