California American Water and Rentricity to Work on Clean Energy Project in San Diego

West Coast-based water supplier California American Water announced that the company has started its Highland Tank Conduit-Hydro Clean Energy Project, a clean energy recovery infrastructure project in partnership New York City-based with innovative in-conduit hydropower clean energy company Rentricity. 

Sponsored by the California Public Utilities Commission, the Highland Tank Project is a unique, high-capacity clean energy project intended to modernize pressure regulation infrastructure. The system will generate between 75 and 125 kilowatts of clean energy once completed.

The company’s San Diego Highland Tank will be retrofitted with two different sized NSF 61/372 low lead turbines and has received certification for safe-drinking water, to maximize annual power generation over the diurnal and seasonal cycles

"We are excited to work with Rentricity to complete this important infrastructure project to determine how California American Water might leverage this technology in the future to reduce our carbon footprint and reduce costs to customers," said Kevin Tilden, President, California American Water. "With in-conduit hydropower we have another option to reduce our carbon footprint and energy costs. ESG is core to our business and integral to our success. California American Water is dedicated to finding effective new technologies that increase efficiencies in our systems.”

California American Water will supply this unique, high-capacity clean energy to one of the Community Choice Aggregators operating in the San Diego Gas & Electric region.

"As our population and industry grows in the United States, more water will be piped to people, farm fields and industrial processors," says Frank Zammataro, CEO and Co-founder, Rentricity. "We need to embrace in-conduit hydropower as a consistent and predictable form of clean energy that can be harnessed to support emerging microgrids adopting solar, wind and thermal resources," he added. Rentricity is the sole source provider for safe drinking water NSF certified pumps-as-turbines for energy recovery applications in water infrastructure. The NSF 61 & 372 safe drinking water certified equipment is currently required in 48 states.