SME Nashville Chapter 43 Constellation Energy Projects Tuesday, November 17, 2009 @ 6:30 PM 90 Peabody St., Nashville, TN

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Constellation Energy's Projects and Services Group is the energy services arm of Constellation Energy, a leading supplier of energy products and services to wholesale and retail electric and natural gas customers. Serving business and institutional customers nationwide, we specialize in financial and environmental solutions that can significantly reduce energy consumption and costs. We also design and implement full energy system retrofits that save energy and reduce harmful emissions.

The Metro Nashville District Energy System (DES) provided heating and cooling to buildings in downtown Nashville for nearly 30 years, relying on an aging trash burning plant with limited reliability and capacity. Despite numerous efforts to improve operations and safety and increase capacity, the facility struggled to remain economically and environmentally viable. Nashville Metro Council retained Constellation Energy's Projects & Services Group to design, develop and operate a new state-of-the-art $46 million district energy system. Constellation worked to increase the interim efficiency of the old plant while constructing the new, resulting in a seamless transition for all downtown customers. The facility- completed seven months ahead of schedule-began operation in December 2003. The first new building completed within Nashville's Gateway Project corridor, Nashville's mayor called it "a true catalyst for downtown economic development."

The new DES facility has the capacity to provide 23,400 tons of cooling and 260,000 lbs/hour of steam heat. It is projected to save Nashville about $66.9 million from new plant and reduced trash-disposal costs by 2014 in addition to lowering heating and cooling costs significantly for downtown customers. The facility currently provides heating and cooling for approximately 40 downtown buildings, including the State Capitol and other government buildings; the NFL's Tennessee Titans stadium; the Somet Center, home of the NHL Nashville Predators; and a number of privately owned office buildings and hotels.