ORANGE COUNTY, Calif.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Broadrock Renewables LLC, in partnership with the County of Orange, held a groundbreaking ceremony for a new landfill gas-to-energy generating plant at Olinda Alpha Landfill in Orange County, California.
The new expanded facility will supplement the existing 5 MW facility and will have a renewable energy generating capacity of 32.5 MW. Broadrock Renewables management and staff have been involved in the ownership and management of the facility since the early 1990’s. The facility, formerly under ownership of a Ridgewood Renewable Power affiliates, was branded under Broadrock Renewables following the facility’s November 2010 acquisition by Macquarie Infrastructure Partners II.
“Landfill gas-to-energy technology is at the forefront of efforts to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. We are excited to be here today, standing alongside our various partners and under new ownership and backing by Macquarie Infrastructure Partners, to announce commencement of construction,” said Randy Holmes, Chief Executive Officer, Broadrock Renewables LLC. “The clean, renewable energy that will be produced by this facility is a huge win for everyone – for citizens, communities and the environment. The facilities at this landfill will provide a clean electricity equivalent that is capable of powering more than 22,000 homes. We thank all our partners for their support in this significant renewable energy initiative.”
Chairman of the Orange County Board of Supervisors, Bill Campbell, is equally enthusiastic about the power plant expansion in Orange County. “Olinda Alpha Landfill is one of the largest landfills in the western United States. We are very pleased that our award-winning operations offer opportunities like this—for leading edge technology to parlay our operational expertise in this way. It’s efficient and environmentally friendly,” said Campbell.
The output of the new facility will be purchased by the City of Anaheim Public Utilities, which is also purchasing the output of the existing electricity generating facility at the site.
“We are proud to participate in this project – a full circle benefit to our Anaheim customers – with the creation of energy from our landfill materials. The power from this Olinda Alpha landfill project is an environmental benefit to the community at large, and will be a valuable asset to our City’s energy supply,” said Assistant General Manager-Joint Services, Steve Sciortino.
The Project is a recipient of a $10 million stimulus grant from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). DOE awarded these funds under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act to promote increased use of industrial energy efficiency technologies as part of a broader effort to help cut overall energy use, save American businesses money, grow jobs, and reduce carbon pollution across the country
"With the unemployment rate in California well over the national average, this project will create 155 union construction jobs as well support local suppliers of material and equipment," said Frank DiCola, President and CEO of DCO Energy. "DCO Energy is proud to be part of the team that is making this ground-breaking clean energy, economic engine a reality."
Honoured guests at the January 18th groundbreaking ceremony included: Randy Holmes, Broadrock Renewables; Bill Campbell, Chairman of the Orange County Board of Supervisors; Steve Sciortino, Assistant General Manager-Joint Services; Mike Giancola, Director, OC Waste & Recycling; Frank DiCola, President and CEO of DCO Energy; Lon Cahill, Anaheim Public Utilities Chair; Paul Mitchener, Managing Director, Macquarie Group; Alisa Drakodaidis, Deputy CEO, Orange County Board of Supervisors; Cynthia Conners, Commissioner, Orange County Waste Management; Dave Morgan, Anaheim Public Utilities Board Member; Charles Peltzer, Anaheim Public Utilities Board Member; Jordan Brandman, Anaheim Public Utilities Board Member; Pat Carroll, Anaheim Public Utilities Board Member; Tim O'Donnell, City Manager, City of Brea; Marty Simonoff, Councilman, City of Brea; and, Charlie View, Public Works Director, City of Brea. The facility is expected to be completed and in operation by the end of 2012.
About Broadrock Renewables LLC
Broadrock Renewables was founded in 2010 and is a portfolio company of the Macquarie Infrastructure Partners II. The members of Broadrock’s senior management team have decades of experience in diverse aspects of the energy industry across a wide range of renewable energy and other technologies. Broadrock Renewables LLC‘s portfolio of projects currently consists of landfill gas fueled electricity generating facilities in California and Rhode Island, each of which is currently being redeveloped.
About Macquarie Infrastructure Partners
Macquarie Infrastructure Partners Inc. is a member of the Macquarie Group of companies and manages the unlisted Macquarie Infrastructure Partners (MIP) and Macquarie Infrastructure Partners II (MIP II) funds. MIP and MIP II have combined equity under management of over $5.5 billion committed to infrastructure investments in North America. MIP and MIP II have ownership interests in a diversified portfolio of businesses, including toll roads, bridges, utilities, ports, telecommunications infrastructure and waste management.
About Orange County’s OC Waste & Recycling
OC Waste & Recycling manages one of the nation’s premiere solid waste disposal systems serving 34 cities and over three million residents. On behalf of local residents and businesses, OC Waste & Recycling has developed a solid waste management system composed of a network of three active landfills and four household hazardous waste collection centers. Landfill gas-to-energy projects at the County’s facilities currently produce 18 megawatts of electrical power.
About Anaheim Public Utilities
For more than 100 years, Anaheim Public Utilities has served Anaheim water and electric customers with low rates and reliable service. Anaheim Public Utilities is Orange County's only publicly owned water and electric utility.
About Anaheim
The City of Anaheim, founded in 1857, is one of the nation’s premier municipalities and is California’s 10th most populous city. Anaheim covers 50 square miles with more than 349,000 residents and more than 3,200 City employees. The municipal corporation’s annual budget is $1.3 billion. Anaheim supports a thriving business community with companies such as Carl Karcher Enterprises, Inc., L-3 Communications, Pacific Sunwear, and Disneyland Resort. Successful sports franchises call Anaheim home, including Angels Baseball, Anaheim Ducks, the 2008 Olympic Gold Medal winning U.S. Men's National Volleyball Team, and the 2008 Olympic Silver Medal winning U.S. Women's National Volleyball Team. Anaheim also boasts world-class meeting and entertainment venues with the Anaheim Convention Center, the largest on the west coast, Honda Center, The Grove of Anaheim, The Shops at Anaheim GardenWalk, and Angel Stadium of Anaheim. Annually, Anaheim welcomes millions of visitors to the city, truly making it where the world comes to live, work and play. For more information, please visit www.anaheim.net.
About DCO Energy
DCO Energy is a leader in the clean energy movement. DCO Energy's mission is laser-focused - to develop Central Utility Facilities, Cogeneration, and Distributed Generation Plants for the purpose of allowing our customers to receive the lowest possible energy cost with the highest energy efficiency possible. DCO offers the flexibility of structuring the transaction as a design, develop, build, own and operate [off-balance sheet] or develop, design, build and transfer. DCO has been working on clean energy cogeneration/combined heat and power projects for two decades. Please visit www.dcoenergy.com for more information