The F&S Energy Management Plan addresses the most important customer need of production-scale energy supply and demand: reliability.

When a researcher turns on high-energy tools; or a staffer flips a light switch on; or a student charges their smartphone, the user needs to be sure their energy needs will be met. Heating, cooling, and electricity all need to be ubiquitous, with no worries for downtime. The utilities service delivery reaches the entire campus community, with annual campus energy usage at approximately 3 trillion BTUs.

Abbott Power Plant’s capabilities shine, in terms of the breadth and depth of energy services offered to campus. First, Abbott is a Combined Heat and Power (CHP) system, offers fuel flexibility thanks to a diverse collection, including coal, fuel oil, and gas. It provides all of the heat and half of the electricity to campus. Off-site solar energy, chilled water plants, and new geothermal systems all contribute, too. With Abbott’s capabilities joining an underground distribution system, the U of I campus is able to weather any tangible or economic change. Clean energy production now supports approximately 12 percent of Illinois’ annual electricity demand.

By operating as a “micro-grid” or in “Island Mode,” the UI campus would be in a good position to provide critical life and safety resources if ever a major outage occurred at the Regional Power Grid.