Dive Brief:
- Schneider Electric and energy-as-a-service company Budderfly will modernize the infrastructure of seven municipal facilities in Cadillac, Michigan, with energy efficiency upgrades and distributed energy technologies, the companies announced Wednesday.
- The facilities, which include city hall and a wastewater treatment plant, will get a mix of solar power, battery energy storage, electric vehicle charging, and upgraded HVAC and lighting, among other things, according to the announcement.
- Schneider says the project is an early example of how its Accelerating Resilient Infrastructure Initiative is being used to accelerate community infrastructure projects by connecting developers, capital providers and technology partners. The city expects the project will stabilize long-term operating costs while strengthening the reliability of essential services, said Cadillac City Manager Marcus Peccia.
Dive Insight:
When electricity systems fail, they can disrupt services when they’re needed most, hurting the public and organizations that rely on the services, according to the Rocky Mountain Institute. “Businesses close, transportation systems and supply chains stall, refrigerated goods and medicines spoil, and residents’ health, safety, and wellbeing suffer,” says RMI, an energy efficiency nonprofit.
Disruption is likely to increase, according to Schneider; by 2028, the U.S. power grid is expected to reach an inflection point where peak electricity supply might no longer meet peak demand, highlighting the need for resilient, local energy systems, the company says.
The Cadillac project will have no up-front costs for the city, which will repay Budderfly’s $4.4 million investment through the operational savings the work achieves. Schneider will provide integrated energy management and automation technologies for the project.
Approved by the Cadillac City Council July 20, the project is an early municipal deployment under the Accelerating Resilient Infrastructure Initiative, a $7.5 billion program Schneider and other organizations created in 2025. The initiative brings together developers, capital providers and technology partners to devise projects that can take advantage of federal incentives for infrastructure resilience before they expire, which many are set to do under provisions in the 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill.
By rapidly scoping, financing and deploying resilient energy infrastructure like solar panels, battery energy storage and geothermal heat pumps, Schneider says, the initiative can help communities strengthen resilience by reducing their reliance on grid electricity. A Schneider spokesperson said the initiative is seeing a lot of interest.
“The City of Cadillac project is one example of that approach in action, moving from initial engagement to council approval in roughly six months. As the initiative scales, we see strong opportunity among smaller communities that often have limited resources to deploy complex energy solutions,” the spokesperson said in an email.
The agreement with Cadillac demonstrates how the model can be applied to real-world community infrastructure, said Michele Hix, vice president of strategic customers and segment for Schneider Electric’s North America operations.
“Communities across the U.S. are looking for faster, more flexible ways to modernize infrastructure and strengthen resilience without taking on additional financial and operational risk,” said Hix. “Through … collaboration with partners like Budderfly, we’re advancing energy technology and helping cities like Cadillac deploy critical solutions at speed, unlocking access to cleaner, more reliable and more affordable energy systems.”
