Florida Prison to Add 2-Megawatt Solar Array

COLEMAN, Fla. — Power, natural gas and energy products retailer Constellation was awarded a Federal Bureau of Prisons contract on Feb. 19 to implement $45 million in water and energy conservation measures at the Federal Correctional Complex (FCC Coleman) in Coleman, Fla. The Baltimore-based firm will also install a 2-megawatt solar generation project on the site. Together, these measures are anticipated to save the facility $79 million in energy costs over the next 19 years, helping to fund the project.

The FCC Coleman campus includes five buildings totaling more than 2.4 million square feet and houses roughly 7,400 inmates. Constellation will upgrade these facilities to include new high-efficiency LED lighting, a building automation control system, chiller plant optimization, cooling tower and hot water heating system improvements, high-efficiency transformers, low-flow toilets and faucets, and refrigeration upgrades.

These various efficiency measures are estimated to result in a total energy intensity reduction of 35 percent, and water intensity will be reduced by 50 percent over current figures, according to Constellation. These upgrades are designed to enable the complex to conserve an estimated 18 kilowatt-hours of electricity and 194 million gallons of water per year, avoiding the emission of an estimated 323,000 tons of carbon dioxide over contract term.

“Constellation is delighted to serve the FCC Coleman and support its effort in achieving its federal energy and environmental performance mandates,” said John Dukes, executive director of federal and public sector sales for Constellation in a statement. “Working as a team with the Federal Bureau of Prisons and FCC Coleman personnel, we developed an energy project that is expected to deliver an exceptional volume of renewable energy generation and replace antiquated, inefficient infrastructure and equipment with new energy-efficient infrastructure and equipment. The upgrades are designed to improve energy security while providing significant cost savings through energy and water intensity reductions and increasing the use of renewable energy for the site.”

Work on the project is scheduled for completion sometime in 2017.