Powering AdventHealth Hospitals with Clean and Renewable Energy

AdventHealth recently signed its first virtual power purchase agreement (VPPA) in partnership with Colorado-based renewable energy developer Scout Clean Energy (Scout) and is now receiving electricity from it.

The VPPA supports the health system by matching electricity usage from a portion of Scout’s 14,000-acre [around 6,665-hectare] wind farm located in north-central Texas, United States.

“VPPAs are a powerful opportunity to address a leading cause of climate change quickly and positively — greenhouse gas emissions from electricity generation. Reduced emissions improve the health of our team members and the communities we serve,” Rob Roy, senior vice president and chief investment officer for AdventHealth, said.

The 180-megawatt (MW) project, called Heart of Texas, is owned and operated by Scout Clean Energy, a portfolio company managed by Brookfield Asset Management, a global leader of renewable power and decarbonization solutions. The wind farm consists of 64 individual 300-foot-tall wind turbines and supports 18 different landowners. Heart of Texas is part of Scout’s 1,000 MW of operational renewable energy projects. Scout has an additional 19,000 MW of wind, solar, and energy storage projects in its pipeline across 22 U.S states.

“Scout’s Heart of Texas Wind Farm is a wonderful example of how to harness the massive potential for wind energy in Texas,” Michael Rucker, chief executive officer and founder of Scout, said. “We’re happy to help deliver on AdventHealth’s impressive effort toward achieving 100 percent renewable electricity by 2026, which was key to driving this sizable investment in the renewable economy.”

As a signatory of the U.S. Health and Human Services Health Sector Climate Pledge, AdventHealth is committed to reducing Scope 1 and 2 greenhouse gas emissions — emissions from on-site operations and purchased electricity — by 50 percent by 2030. The Heart of Texas VPPA is a major step toward that goal and places AdventHealth on the path to utilize 100 percent renewable electricity by 2026.

“AdventHealth is committed to extending its mission through sustainability initiatives that foster wholeness for our team members and the people we serve,” Marisa Farabaugh, senior vice president and chief supply chain officer for AdventHealth, said. “This agreement, one of the largest among all U.S. health systems, will help us reduce our environmental impact and is the rational next step for our organization to achieve our goals.”

The VPPA is one of many energy and sustainability initiatives underway at AdventHealth, institutional leaders said. The health care system is breaking ground on a 3 MW on-site solar array at its Altamonte Springs, Florida, corporate headquarters early this year, evaluating additional on-site solar energy opportunities, and already is participating in community energy projects with local utility providers.

The original version of this story was posted on the AdventHealth news site.