The county’s Department of Transportation is set to launch the nation’s largest — and the region’s first — integrated electric bus charging depot, officials announced.
A launch ceremony will be held at 11 a.m. on Monday, Oct. 31 at the Brookville Bus Depot, located at 8710 Brookville Rd. in Silver Spring. County Executive Marc Elrich, U.S. Senator Chris Van Hollen, Congressman Jamie Raskin, County Council President Gabe Albornoz, Council Vice President Evan Glass, federal, state, and local officials, as well as corporate partners including AlphaStruxure, will be in attendance, according to a press release.
Through this first-of-its-kind project, the county can move closer to its goal of reducing greenhouse gas emissions to zero by 2035. The county broke ground on the project last year.
The 6.5-megawatt microgrid features distributed solar energy generation, renewable natural gas generation on site, battery storage, and more than 4.14 megawatts of charging capacity. This will ensure a stable power supply during extreme weather events or when the main power grid fails.
Using solar energy, the facility is capable of charging 70 electric buses at once.
Through a long-term public-private partnership agreement with AlphaStruxure, the energy-as-a-service project will be delivered at no upfront cost to the county. Under the agreement, operating expenses will be predictable and performance will be guaranteed.
AlphaStruxure is a joint partnership between Schneider Electric and the Carlyle Group, according to Microgrid Knowledge.
MCDOT Photo