December 19, 2003—Comfort Link and the City of Baltimore have formed an agreement to provide cooling systems for eight downtown city-owned office buildings. Comfort Link is a partnership between Monumental Investment Company and Baltimore Gas and Electric (BGE), which is a subsidiary of Baltimore-based Constellation Energy Group.
“Comfort Link will provide the City with reliable, cost-effective and environmentally safer cooling systems,” said George Winfield, director of the Department of Public Works. “This agreement also relieves the City of the costs associated with replacing outdated systems used to cool these buildings and brings these building systems into full compliance with the Clean Air Act Amendment of 1990 as it relates to chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs).”
“We’re pleased to provide chilled water service for Baltimore City and are confident that Comfort Link district cooling will meet the City’s needs in an energy efficient and environmentally friendly manner,” said Thomas F. Brady, senior vice president of Corporate Strategy and Development for Constellation Energy. “This agreement is an extension of a longstanding relationship between Constellation Energy and the City of Baltimore and our collective commitment to the environment.”
Since its inception in 1996, Comfort Link has helped eliminate more than 60,000 pounds of CFCs in downtown Baltimore buildings. This latest agreement will help Baltimore City eliminate another 8,000 pounds of CFCs.
The 10-year contract has a 10-year renewal option and will provide Comfort Link cooling systems for the following buildings:
- City Hall, 100 N. Holliday Street
- Clarence M. Mitchell Courthouse, 100 N. Calvert Street
- Courthouse East, 111 N. Calvert Street
- People’s Court, 501 E. Fayette Street
- Central District Police Station, 500 East Baltimore Street
- Benton Building, 417 E. Fayette Street
- Abel Wolman Building, 200 N. Holliday Street
- Guilford Building, 210 Guilford Avenue
Comfort Link uses ice storage technology to cost effectively provide cooling service. Similar to a large battery, ice storage allows Comfort Link to make up to 6 million pounds of ice daily when electricity is less costly and store the ice in large, insulated tanks. During times when electricity prices are at their peak, the ice chills the water running through underground pipes to provide cooling to customers’ facilities.
Currently, Comfort Link operates three plants and more than 32,000 feet of pipe serving 35 customers and 9,000,000 square feet of space. The eight City-owned buildings being served as of April 2004 will add an additional 1.7 million square feet to the total. With the addition of these buildings, Comfort Link becomes the fourth largest district cooling system in the United States.
