Picture: Alphastruxure
AlphaStruxure and Montgomery County Officials celebrated the launch of the Brookville Smart Energy Bus Depot microgrid. This is an integrated electric bus charging infrastructure project in Silvert Spring.
This was a joint venture with AlphaStruxure leading the project alongside Schneider Electric and global investment firm the Carlyle Group which will power 70 electric buses. This will provide sustainable transport for Montgomery County residents.
Within the greater Washington region, the Brookville depot is the first microgrid to power electric buses. The 6.5 MW microgrid includes bus-height solar canopies, renewable natural gas-ready on-site generation, energy storage, and over 4.14MW of charging capacity.
The project is delivered at no upfront cost to the county through an EaaS contract, a long-term agreement ensuring predictable operating expenses and guaranteed performance without upfront capital expenditures.
The microgrid will provide uninterrupted power to the County Department of Transportation’s Ride On transit electric buses and in the long-term will run on 100% renewable energy in alignment with the County’s goal to reach net-zero emissions by 2035.
The Brookville Smart Energy Bus Depot is said to be home to 70 electric transit buses by 2026. Changing these 70 buses from diesel to electric, powered by the on-site clean energy microgrid, will reduce emissions by 62% equivalent to more than 160,000 tons of greenhouse gas reduction over the next 25 years.
Maryland is working towards a 50% zero-emission bus fleet by 2030.
