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PA Solar Project Breaks Ground
Canadian company Enbridge Energy recently announced that it had broken ground on the 2.5-megawatt Heidlersburg Solar Project in Tyrone Township, Pennsylvania.
The project is another way the company is working to green its natural gas pipeline operations.
Going Green
This month, Enbridge announced a company-wide plan to achieve net-zero greenhouse gas emissions by 2050, with an interim target to reduce emissions intensity 35% by 2030.
Additional goals for the company include:
Through the new initiative, Enbridge plans to expand links to incentive compensation to performance on emissions reduction and diversity, complementing safety metrics already embedded in order to drive results and accountability.
“Sustainability is integral to our ability to safely and reliably deliver the energy people need and want,” wrote the company in a statement. “How well we perform as a steward of our environment, a safe operator of essential energy infrastructure, and a diverse employer is inextricably linked to our business success and our ability to create long-term value for all stakeholders.”
Heidlersburg Solar Project
According to Enbridge, the state-of-the-art solar energy facility is expected to produce 2.5 MW of energy for the company’s Heidlersburg Compressor Station. The solar energy is expected to offset a portion of the station’s electric load and helping power the compressor units that keep gas flowing along our cross-continent Texas Eastern Transmission pipeline.
The project is the second of its kind, as Enbridge began service at its Lambertville Solar Project in New Jersey last month. The project supplies 2.25 MW of green energy along the Texas Eastern right-of-way to deliver natural gas to homes and businesses.
“This second project in the program tangibly demonstrates the natural gas-renewables partnership and will help pave the way for our natural gas pipeline operations to be even more environmentally focused, further solidifying Enbridge’s role as an industry leader in a sustainable lower-carbon reality,” said Caitlin Tessin, Enbridge’s Director of Market Innovation.
Once completed, the Heidlersburg project is slated to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 73,200 metric tons over the 25-year life of the facility. However, both the Heidlersburg and Lambertville facilities will reduce emissions by nearly 131,700 metric tons over their 25-year life.
“As a project that will help to lower emissions and contribute to a more environmentally sustainable future, we applaud the natural gas-renewables partnership in the Heidlersburg solar self-power project,”said Mike Butler, mid-Atlantic Director of the Consumer Energy Alliance.
“Renewable energy projects like this one must be part of the long-term answer to solve our energy and environment equation,” he adds, “and natural gas is critical to ensuring that we are able to arrive at a sustainable energy future while meeting demand without increasing energy costs for families and small businesses.”
The $6.5 million project will support about 55 local jobs during construction and is expected to enter service in the second quarter of 2021.
