Cogeneration / CHP
Combined Heat and Power
At Unison Energy, we strive to find new and innovative ways to improve our customers’ facilities. We do so through various means, including cogeneration. We have helped clients increase their efficiency upwards of 80 percent throughout the Northeast, compared to half that figure for a standard power grid. Cogeneration is different from traditional power generation in one crucial way: It utilizes waste heat to provide heating and cooling. It is the perfect application for various facilities, including food processing plants, warehouses, hotels, and grocery stores.
CHP is an excellent choice for a range of facilities, including food processing plants, warehouses, hotels, and grocery stores. Sites with high thermal loads are particularly good candidates for CHP. Cogeneration offers a host of benefits for facilities, including:
- Enhancing operational efficiency and lowering costs
- Reducing energy waste and increasing energy efficiency
- Providing better energy independence by moving a portion of the energy load off the grid
- Ensuring resiliency during outages by utilizing natural gas supplied through underground pipelines
A Highly Efficient, Proven, and Adaptable Technology
Cogeneration is 60-80% efficient, more than twice the efficiency of a utility power plant. Installing a CHP-based microgrid also gives facilities companies a chance to replace aging and inefficient equipment, and potentially phase out existing boiler usage. A cogeneration system can lower a facility’s emissions by 30-40%.
CHP technology is also well-established. In fact, Thomas Edison designed the first cogen plant in the late 1800s, which powered the world’s first light bulbs and captured waste heat to produce steam. Since then, cogeneration technology has matured, and today’s systems offer even greater efficiency, along with state-of-the-art data systems to optimize performance.
CHP is also adaptable. Systems installed today will remain viable for decades and can incorporate new technologies. For instance, a cogeneration microgrid that uses natural gas today can start integrating biogas or hydrogen with minimal adjustments.
Cogeneration for Your Facility
At Unison Energy, our microgrids are based on cogeneration because it works for our clients. Our solutions deliver results to our clients across the U.S., in the form of reliable power, 20-40% carbon reductions, and some 10-20% utility bill savings starting in year one. For clients interested in a Unison Energy microgrid, we perform an initial site assessment that estimates the benefits you could expect to see with a cogeneration system at your facility.
