TEXAS A&M Rellis Campus Success Story

“As we continue development of the RELLIS Campus to serve the educational, research and training needs of the State of Texas, the need for backup electrical power was an integral step,” said Kevin McGinnis, A&M System Executive Director of Risk Management & Benefits Administration. “Through partnering with Enchanted Rock, the A&M System was able to obtain this backup capacity with minimal capital outlay compared to financing its own generation system.”

The Client

Founded in 2016, the Texas A&M RELLIS Campus (RELLIS) located in Bryan, TX is a facility that fosters cutting-edge research, technology development, education, and workforce training. Texas A&M, along with academic, corporate, and private partners, conducts valuable research for worldchanging technologies, processes and products with state-of-the-art labs, testing and proving grounds.

The Challenge

The RELLIS Campus will boast several multimillion dollar state-of-the-art national research facilities, test beds and proving grounds that primarily focus on robotics, driverless and connected vehicles, advanced manufacturing, large-scale testing, as well as smart power grids and water systems. The RELLIS Campus needed a reliable power supply for their mission to be successful. The facility was served only by a single radial transmission service and was vulnerable to power disruptions. They needed a reliableelectrical resiliency backup power solution with minimal capital outlay.

The Solution

Texas A&M University selected Enchanted Rock’s Electrical Resiliency-as-a-Service solution. Enchanted Rock will provide Texas A&M a 10 MW medium voltage system. The dual-purpose microgrid will provide back up power to the Taxes A&M Transportation Institute, the Texas A&M Experiment Station, the Blinn College education center and many other research extension facilities. In the case of a power outage, Enchanted Rock’s dual-purpose microgrids powered by natural gas will provide full electrical resiliency for the RELLIS Campus, ensuring critical service is available at all times for all their facilities. Enchanted Rock delivers resilient backup power, often at half the price of diesel, by financing, operating, and maintaining the systems.

The Result

Construction on the RELLIS site began in the first quarter of 2018 and the system was fully commissioned in the summer of 2018 to provide full electrical resiliency to the entire campus. The RELLIS Campus is on track to be a premier, hightech research, technology development and education campus. The Enchanted Rock solution was very cost effective in both upfront capital and ongoing O&M costs as compared to traditional back up systems. Enchanted Rock’s dual-purpose microgrids are being managed and optimized 24/7/365, providing worry-free protection from extended electrical outages. Enchanted Rock’s Resiliency-as-a-Service solution, with its dualpurpose microgrids, enables companies to stay powered and communities to be resilient.

About Enchanted Rock

Founded in 2006, Enchanted Rock is a leader in electrical resiliency-as-a-service, powering companies, critical infrastructure, and communities to ensure operational continuity during unexpected power outages from extreme weather, infrastructure failures, cyberattacks and other grid disruptions. Enchanted Rock’s dual-purpose microgrids use natural gas and renewable natural gas (RNG) offsets to produce significantly lower carbon emissions and air pollutants than diesel generators, capable of achieving resiliency with net-zero emissions. Additionally, the company’s end-to-end microgrid software platform, GraniteEcosystem™, provides realtime 24/7/365 system monitoring and optimization, including forecasting of electricity market conditions to ensure worryfree reliable power to customers.

About Texas A&M University RELLIS

Founded in 2016, the RELLIS Campus is one of The Texas A&M University System’s privatepublic partnerships. Located in Bryan, TX, the RELLIS Campus serves as an ecosystem that fosters cutting-edge research, higher education, and workforce training. The Texas A&M Transportation Institute (TTI) and the Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station(TEES), along with corporate and private partners, conduct valuable research for worldchanging technologies, processes, and products with state-of-the- art research laboratories, testing and proving grounds. The RELLIS Campus offers post-secondary degree education and training with programs through Blinn College, multiple universities within the Texas A&M System and the Texas A&M Engineering Extension Service (TEEX). For more information, visit RELLIS.TAMUS.EDU