LNG: a new school of thought for
the University of the West Indies

LNG CASE STUDY

A new school
of thought

Providing electricity, heating, and cooling for 15,000 high-energy students was resulting in high energy costs for the Mona Campus of the University of the West Indies (UWI)⁽¹⁾ public university system in Kingston, Jamaica. When the university was ready to make a change in how it supplied energy to the campus, New Fortress Energy (NFE) was there to make the grade with liquefied natural gas (LNG).

UWI Orientation

UWI had two primary motivations to find a new way to supply energy to its bustling campus:

Economics: UWI pulled more than 25,000 megawatt-hours each year from the Jamaican power grid, and consumed 700,000 gallons of liquefied petroleum gas (LPG) a year for its absorption chillers. With a single power distributor supplying the Jamaican grid, UWI had no leverage to negotiate for lower electricity rates.
Environment: As a thought leader, UWI sought to spearhead the transition to a lower-carbon, cleaner energy source to create a “green, progressive campus.”

As a university serving thousands of students and staff, UWI also needed to ensure a timely and seamless transition, minimal impact and no safety issues during both initial construction and ongoing supply activities, reliability of the new supply, and a reduced environmental footprint.

Course Selection

UWI decided to move to using onsite power generation. After considering oil-based fuels such as LPG, which it was already using, and heavy fuel oil (HFO), the university decided the carbon footprint of those options was still too big. NFE engaged with members of UWI’s senior staff to create a solution using liquefied natural gas (LNG) to reduce costs and decrease carbon emissions significantly more than alternatives, while creating a cleaner, healthier campus environment. Through this full-service solution, NFE managed every step of the process, easing any concerns about switching to a new fuel.

The Answer’s as Easy as Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG)

To allow the university to test the solution and the partnership before committing to a full transition, NFE led a two-phase approach:

Phase 1: Transitioning Chillers from LPG to LNG
In just four months, NFE funded and completed a pilot project to convert UWI’s absorption chillers from LPG to LNG, earning UWI’s approval to proceed to the second phase.⁽²⁾
Phase 2: Onsite Power Generation via Combined Heat and Power
UWI financed the construction of an onsite combined heat and power (CHP) plant. NFE identified suitable land to minimize any impact on students and staff, and also provided financial modeling, as well as cost-saving and lifecycle cost analysis. Today, NFE supplies the CHP plant with liquefied natural gas (LNG).

A Straight-A Report Card

Liquefied natural gas (LNG) may be colorless, but NFE’s liquefied natural gas (LNG) solution passed with flying colors at UWI. Check out these numbers:

The new CHP plant has reduced total electricity and cooling costs by more than 40 percent, saving over $2MM per year.⁽³⁾
The conversion resulted in a 22 percent reduction in CO₂ emissions–the equivalent of planting over 95,000 trees per year.⁽⁴⁾
UWI has also reported reduced downtime for maintenance, which in turn increases reliability for students and staff in pursuit of higher education goals.⁽⁵⁾

In partnership with NFE, the university is now providing a healthier campus while setting an example to other local institutions. It’s a test NFE was proud to ace, both for UWI and for the start of a brighter future for energy delivery worldwide.

Certain logos, trade names, trademarks and copyrights included on this webpage are strictly for identification and informational purposes only. Such logos, trade names, trademarks and copyrights may be owned by companies or persons not affiliated with New Fortress Energy or any affiliate of New Fortress Energy, and no claim is made that any such company or person has sponsored or endorsed the use of such logos, trade names, trademarks and copyrights on this webpage.
There can be no assurance that other customers or future customers will achieve similar schedules for project implementation and actual results could differ materially. The results of any particular customer are not representative of the results of customers as a whole, and as our operating history is limited, past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results and should not be relied upon for any reason.
Based on UWI’s reported estimates of savings in US dollars. There can be no assurance that other customers or future customers will achieve similar results and actual results could differ materially. The results of any particular customer are not representative of the results of customers as a whole, and as our operating history is limited, past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results and should not be relied upon for any reason.
Emissions are based on management’s assumptions and percentage calculations regarding previous LPG consumption and current and future natural gas consumption along with data from IEA, CO2 Emissions from Fuel Combustion Highlights - 2018, p. 147. Equivalent trees planted are based on management’s estimate of emissions reduction based on the above, along with a calculator from the US Environmental Protection Agency.
Based on UWI’s reported downtime before and after the completion of both New Fortress Energy projects. There can be no assurance that other customers or future customers will achieve similar results and actual results could differ materially. The results of any particular customer are not representative of the results of customers as a whole, and as our operating history is limited, past performance is not a reliable indicator of future results and should not be relied upon for any reason.

LNG: a new school of thought for the University of the West Indies

LNG CASE STUDY

A new school of thought

LNG: a new school of thought for
the University of the West Indies

A new school
of thought