Capstone supplying 1 MW CHP microturbine for greenhouse expansion

Capstone Green Energy Corp. said its North American distributor, Vergent Power Solutions, has signed an agreement to provide a 1MW combined heat and power (CHP) microturbine for a greenhouse expansion in Ontario, Canada.

Fueled by high pressure natural gas, the new off-grid system featuring Capstone’s C1000S will provide continuous power to the farm’s 100-acre indoor greenhouse expansion. The design will incorporate inverter-based electronics to synchronize with a solar photovoltaic (PV) array in a standalone microgrid. Capstone said its microturbines should allow the site to have virtually 100% availability, resulting in seamless greenhouse operations. Further, the system will be designed to use the microturbines’ waste heat to both produce hot water and to provide clean carbon dioxide to the greenhouse. The systems is planned for commissioning in spring 2022, and is expected to achieve a total system energy efficiency of close to 90%.

“As Ontario’s greenhouse industry has continued to expand, its power requirements have outpaced the capabilities of the local electric utilities. This has resulted in many greenhouses going off-grid and using CHP as the primary source of energy for their operations,” said Justin Rathke, president of Vergent Power Solutions. “The customer chose Capstone due to the technology’s high uptime, low maintenance requirements, redundant bay design and clean emissions.”

Modern farming practices are evolving in exciting new ways, and their energy strategies need to evolve with them, said Darren Jamison, President and Chief Executive Officer of Capstone Green Energy.

“Capstone solutions deliver essential power reliability and energy efficiency that indoor farming operations require, which, in turn, improves their return on investment. At the same time, our systems lower their carbon footprint, which critically important for an industry dependent on a healthy environment,” Jamison said.