This audio is generated automatically. Please let me know if you have any comments.
Diving overview:
- General Mills signs 25-year energy services agreement with Unison Energy On-site combined heat and power generation system Unison announced Tuesday that it expects to save more than $30 million over the life of the contract at the global food giant’s manufacturing plant in Hannibal, Missouri.
- The system is designed to provide approximately 90% of the facility’s annual electric load and approximately 70% of its steam load, with Unison Energy financing, designing, building, owning, operating and maintaining the facility, the company said.
- “By aligning our long-term energy services contract with General Mills’ utility needs and sustainability goals and working with the Hannibal Public Utility Commission to develop a mutually beneficial business solution, we have created a blueprint for a reliable, cost-effective, low-carbon energy solution,” Unison Energy CEO Mariko Meier said in a statement.
Dive Insights:
The plant is one of General Mills’ largest manufacturing sites. The on-site CHP system will supply low-emission power and greenhouse gas-free steam to the plant’s power and steam networks, reducing utility costs while reducing emissions, Unison Energy said in a release.
The agreement provides General Mills with a predictable, long-term energy supply and rate increases are fixed at 2.5% per year. This is well below expected utility increases, Unison Energy said. The project is expected to result in energy savings of more than $300,000 in the first year.
CHP is also expected to reduce the facility’s Scope 1 emissions by approximately 57% and total site emissions by approximately 28% annually, according to the press release. This reduction represents approximately 5% of Scope 1 emissions across General Mills’ global supply chain.
The agreement is the result of a collaboration between General Mills, Unison Energy and the Hannibal Board of Public Works, which worked together to develop a dedicated standby framework for on-site power generation, according to a press release.
The deal will compensate HBPW for maintaining capacity and will include performance and outage provisions that help make “a strong case for a public-private partnership that secures long-term cost and environmental benefits for General Mills while ensuring local utilities and city governments remain financially sound,” Unison Energy said.
“This project demonstrates the strength of like-minded public-private partnerships to create sustainable solutions that will provide reliable and efficient energy,” Daren Kaiser, global energy strategy leader at General Mills, said in a statement. “These forward-thinking organizations have developed plans to balance the challenges of reducing emissions and adding needed power to the grid.”
