Under its Energy Savings Improvement Program (ESIP), Jersey City is set to become the first in the country to create a self-sustainable municipal microgrid. Using the 1.23 MW solar panel array installed at Department of Public Works in 2020, the city is working to ensure continuity of vital service operations using the municipal electric vehicle (EV) fleet operations, specifically EV garbage trucks. As the first city on the East Coast to have EV garbage trucks in its municipal fleet, the microgrid takes the city’s efforts a significant step further by proactively preparing to provide power so operations can continue through any type of power outages and emergencies with a 100% reduction in greenhouse gas emissions.

Mayor Steven M. Fulop announced a new partnership with Schneider Electric to implement the program to reduce operational costs, improve energy resiliency, and leverage energy savings to minimize cost on urgent capital infrastructure projects. The plan will save taxpayers $21 million in energy and operational costs over 20 years while funding over $19 million in urgent capital needs.

Mayor Fulop also enacted a policy in 2020 to transition the municipal fleet to 100% electric where available by 2030. Jersey City will also incorporate electric garbage trucks to replace five, 30-year-old diesel emission vehicles. The city purchased the first EV municipal fleet vehicles at the beginning of 2019 and installed the first EV municipal fleet chargers in the spring of 2019.