Spices and seasoning company McCormick & Company and Constellation Energy, a subsidiary of energy provider Exelon, have announced that McCormick’s 363,000-square-foot distribution center in Belcamp, Md., now generates more electricity than it uses.
“Net-zero” status was achieved through energy conservation measures implemented by McCormick and the 2011 installation of a 1.8 MW rooftop solar power system by Constellation (pictured).
During a five-year period McCormick was able to reduce electricity use at the Belcamp site by 55 percent through the installation of energy-efficient interior and exterior lighting, occupancy sensors, HVAC upgrades, and energy efficient pallet conveyors, the company said. Following the addition of the solar array, the facility generated a surplus of more than 16,000 kWh of electricity in a one-year period.
Constellation built the solar power system, which it owns and maintains, as well as a nearly 1 MW solar installation at McCormick’s Spice Mill in Hunt Valley, Md., and a smaller solar installation at McCormick’s corporate headquarters building in Sparks, Md. McCormick purchases all of the electricity generated by the solar panels.
Constellation Energy owns more than 100 MW of completed and under-construction solar installations for commercial and government customers throughout the United States. In September last year, the company broke ground on a 16.1 MW DC grid-connected photovoltaic solar installation in Emmitsburg, Md. At the time Constellation said it was the largest solar power plant under construction in Maryland.