Sempra wins $98 million GSA contract

SAN DIEGO — Sempra Energy Solutions, the retail-marketing arm of Sempra Energy, has been awarded a $98 million, 20-year energy-services contract by the General Services Administration, which is building a campus for the Food and Drug Administration headquarters in Silver Spring, Md.

Sempra Energy Solutions will provide energy services for the GSA’s construction of a 2.3 million-sq.-ft. campus. Sempra Energy Solutions is supplying electricity as well as the heating and cooling infrastructure.

Because the FDA needs a reliable supply of electricity, Sempra also will construct a central utility plant using energy-saving combined heat and power technology. The project incorporates photovoltaic panels as well.

The plant will generate electricity primarily through natural gas-powered reciprocating engines. The heat from the exhaust will be recovered to produce hot water for heating, and chilled water from an absorption chiller will create air conditioning. The plant will be built in a historic fire station and vehicle maintenance shop facade to maintain a consistent architecture for the campus. Sempra is financing the plant and recovering costs through an energy-savings performance contract.

The overall campus ultimately will be composed of five groups of interconnected buildings.