Drexel University to Utilize Wind Energy for Nearly 10 Percent of Its Electricity — the Nation's Best in Higher Ed

Business Wire, July 29, 2002

Business Editors & Energy/Environment Writers

PHILADELPHIA--(BUSINESS WIRE)--July 29, 2002

With nearly 10 percent of its total energy usage being generated by wind energy, Drexel University leads the country's universities in the percentage of its total electricity supply provided by wind energy. Drexel President Constantine Papadakis and the CEO of Community Energy, Inc. will make a joint announcement on Drexel's campus on Monday.

Through the agreement with Community Energy, Inc., a Delaware County, Pa.-based green electricity marketer, Drexel will purchase the entire energy output of a 220-foot tall wind turbine, approximately the energy required to power 500 Pennsylvania homes for a year.

"Drexel University is committed to a balanced energy acquisition strategy and our purchase from Community Energy, Inc. will complement our energy purchases from traditional sources," said Drexel President Constantine Papadakis. "We are excited to be in the vanguard of alternative energy users, because our university takes pride in applying tomorrow's technologies today."

"Drexel takes the lead with this purchase of close to ten percent of its total energy use from wind power. These purchases bring energy independence to the mid-Atlantic region by demanding power with no fuel and no pollution. The more customers like Drexel that step up to buy New Wind Energy, the more wind farms we bring on line and the better the future looks for everyone," said Brent Alderfer, CEO of Community Energy, Inc.

Drexel's wind energy will be generated at the new 60MW Pocono Wind Farm, to be located outside Scranton.

Drexel's wind purchase compared to the average energy mix in the mid-Atlantic region will eliminate the approximate equivalent of:

-- 11,000 lbs. of nitrogen oxides per year, a precursor of ozone smog;

-- 36,000 lbs. of sulfur dioxide, which leads to acid rain;

-- 4.5 million lbs. of carbon dioxide, the primary contributor to global warming;

-- .14 pounds of mercury, a toxic pollutant harmful even in small doses.

The reduction in carbon dioxide emissions is equivalent to planting nearly 652 acres of trees or taking more than 342 cars off the road each year.

With the purchase, Drexel joins 25 Pennsylvania colleges and universities, including Penn, Penn State and Carnegie Mellon, using wind power. The Commonwealth uses more wind power than any other state in the country.

Wind energy is the world's fastest growing form of electricity generation, meeting the growing demand for clean renewable energy. Wind turbines generate electricity with no emissions and no fuel at prices 2 to 3 cents per kWh above current generation costs. In addition to the environmental benefits, wind generation offers stable 20-year prices because it is not subject to fuel price risks.