Visalia Fruit Processor

Independence from Erratic, Distressing Utility Price Increases

CHALLENGE

The customer, an industrial fruit processing facility in Visalia CA, was forced to enter into demand response programs to keep electricity cost at bay. However, they felt these programs, which resulted in system and production stoppages, were both hurting business and damaging equipment. Further, they had tried natural gas cogeneration solutions with mixed results and disappointing reliability.

They were looking for a solution where they could operate at full capacity while saving significantly on one of their biggest costs—electricity.

SOLUTION

Pacifico immediately recognized an opportunity to utilize the Net Energy Metering (NEM) 2.0 program with their local utility to offset energy charges without having to size a cogeneration plant to the full peak load of the juicing plant.

Net metering provides significant value to the customer, because their operations observe seasonal and highly erratic energy demand. With net metering, the customer could generate electricity with solar at any time, and then utilize the credits in the first three months of the year when they process oranges.

Further, Pacifico quickly secured the available Self-Generation Incentive Program (SGIP) to enhance savings by partially funding the addition of a solar-paired battery system. The battery alleviates the expensive charge for demand spikes that are common for the customer's business.

RESULTS

After completing all of the preconstruction work including: site permitting, title corrections, interconnection applications, interconnection construction management, and incentive applications, Pacifico constructed the project using local labor.

The project was financed through a combination of institutional equity and lending firms. The customer is now enjoying energy costs that are as much as 30% less than what they had been paying previously, all while being able to certify that their source of electricity is renewable.