Kaiser Permanente announced the adoption of a renewable energy microgrid system at one of its medical centers in southern California.
The microgrid system at the Kaiser Permanente Ontario Medical Center in Southern California adds two megawatts of on-site solar generation and nine megawatt-hours of non-lithium battery storage capacity to the state’s electrical grid. The microgrid also features a one-megawatt fuel cell.
The microgrid provides clean, reliable electrical power for the hospital’s daily use and will serve as the initial emergency power backup system during commercial power outages. It has the capacity to serve all of the hospital’s emergency power needs for 10 continuous hours.
Kaiser Permanente anticipates the microgrid’s on-site solar power will avoid about 650 metric tons of carbon dioxide emissions by producing roughly 3,300 megawatt-hours per year of zero-emission electricity.
“Building on Kaiser Permanente’s legacy of innovation, we are taking a bold step forward in sustainability by embracing clean energy to build a healthier future for generations to come,” said Nor Jemjemian, senior vice president for National Shared Services Operations at Kaiser Permanente, in a statement. “As an organization that has always led the way in driving innovation and change, we remain steadfast in our mission to provide efficient, sustainable solutions while ensuring accessibility and affordability for our members.”
All California hospitals are required to have backup power in the event of an electrical grid outage affecting their area, traditionally in the form of diesel generators.
The Ontario microgrid increases the hospital’s energy independence and lowers its energy costs. An automated control system will manage how electricity is produced, stored and used at the site. When buying energy from the grid is inexpensive, the microgrid system will store the renewable energy it produces, and when the grid’s energy is more expensive, the system will instead discharge its stored energy.
The battery storage component of the project was funded through an $8.3 million grant from the California Energy Commission and allocated to Faraday Microgrids. The solar power canopies were installed by Ameresco under a power purchase agreement with Kaiser Permanente.
Kaiser Permanente achieved carbon neutral status in 2020 and pledged to aim for net zero across all emissions by 2050 with a midterm target to reduce emissions by 50% by 2030.