Fresno State and officials from the Bulldog Infrastructure Group , the project company owned by Meridiam , gathered recently for a public ribbon-cutting ceremony to mark the substantial completion of the project to replace and modernize the university ’ s Central Utility Plant . The project is a 33-year publicprivate partnership ( P3 ) between Meridiam , a leading infrastructure investment firm and sole owner of Bulldog Infrastructure Group ( the project company ), and Fresno State to design , build , finance and maintain Fresno State ’ s central utility infrastructure system , replacing the Central Utility Plant with 3,700 tons of chilled water capacity , 35,000 MBH ( millions of British thermal units per hour ) of hot water generation , 700 tons of heat recovery chillers and thermal energy storage . The project is funded through a 30-year green |
bond and equity provided by Meridiam . This project was the first P3 for major utility infrastructure in the CSU system . This delivery method will ensure that after the 30-year service period , the major equipment is well maintained and will not be an ongoing deferred maintenance risk for the university . The project consists of replacing and modernizing the campus ’ Central Utility Plant , hot- and cold-water distribution network , and other energy conservation measures . The project installed a cost-effective mix of building efficiency and infrastructure improvements , including heating , ventilation , and air conditioning controls , energy management systems with reliable HVAC delivery , and lighting and domestic hot water upgrades to reduce energy consumption and the university ’ s carbon footprint . |
MAN Energy Solutions Switzerland and ETH Zurich , the public research university , have launched a strategic partnership to advance research in sector coupling and energysystem modelling . The collaboration aims to address one of the biggest challenges of the energy transition , namely the seamless integration of electricity , heating , and cooling networks . The core of the partnership comprises funding for six postdoctoral researchers at the ETH Foundation to develop AI-powered energy-system models that will enable deeper technical and economic analysis of European energy markets and infrastructure . The research will also focus on optimising existing models by reducing computational demands , ultimately leading to more efficient and sustainable solutions . A key aspect of the work will involve combining hardware and software innovations to enhance energysystem |
performance . Research activities will be coordinated by ETH ’ s AI Center and Energy Science Center . ETH Zurich plays a key role in shaping national and international energy strategies . Researchers at the Energy Science Center and ETH AI Center combine cutting-edge interdisciplinary research with practical applications . MAN Energy Solutions is contributing its expertise as a technology solutions-provider in the energy sector to the partnership , particularly within the areas of industrial-scale heat pumps and electrothermal energy-storage systems . Looking ahead , the company plans to integrate AI-based energymanagement solutions for industrial infrastructure into its portfolio , with a strong emphasis on leveraging digital services to maximise the potential of sector coupling . |