RENEWABLE ENERGY
A Bedford Tradition for Over 100 Years
SNOWDEN HYDROELECTRIC PLANT
The Snowden Hydroelectric Dam has been located on the James River for over a century. As the first source of renewable energy purchased by the Town of Bedford, Snowden alone was responsible for supplying nearly 10% of all renewable energy in the greater Town of Bedford area before the commissioning of the solar farm seen below. Snowden represents the history of Bedford as a trailblazer in clean energy and a public partner in conserving our environment.
(Photo by Bedford Electric Department)
BEDFORD SOLAR FARM
In late 2017, the Bedford Solar Farm was commissioned as the first public/private municipal solar partnership in the Commonwealth of Virginia. O2 EMC, of North Carolina, operates the 3 MW AC farm that generates around 6,000,000 kilowatt-hours of energy per year, equivalent to the amount of electricity that more than 500 average American homes consume on an annual basis. The Bedford Solar Farm represents the cutting edge innovation that will power Bedford's future in green energy and new technology.
(Photo courtesy of Kendall Shelton)
Are you interested in obtaining a Renewable Energy Credit for your business? Contact Bedford Electric with the Get in Touch button below.
BEDFORD UTILITIES
Infrastructure You Can Rely On
PUBLIC WATER
Affordable, Reliable
The Bedford Regional Water Authority provides industries located within the town limits water from the Stoney Creek Reservoir located at the base of the Peaks of Otter mountains blended with water from a newly constructed water treatment facility sourced from Virginia's largest reservoir, Smith Mountain Lake.
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Industry Compatible: The primary water supplied to Bedford is categorized as being “soft” having relatively low mineral content resulting in maintenance savings related to industrial water handling equipment such as boilers, and permitting more effective use of cleaning protocols.
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Abundant/Redundant Supply: Bedford’s redundant water supply is capable of providing businesses up to 15,000,000 gallons/day of water. This coupled with its sub-tropical climate that provides an average of 42 inches of annual rain fall results in an industrial water supply that is highly reliable, plentiful, pure and exceedingly drought tolerant.
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Palatable: The Stoney Creek Reservoir is fed by numerous granite mountain springs sourced mostly from National Park Service land resulting in a very palatable and clean water supply suitable for food/beverage manufacturing purposes.
INTERNET
Fast, Dependable
Internet service is provided throughout Town by several reliable commercial providers.
These include Shentel, Lumos, Verizon and B2X.
Shentel – 1-800-743-6835 (800-SHENTEL)
Lumos – 1-855-866-0996
Verizon – 1-888-680-7266
B2X Online – 540-389-7924
Bedford is serviced by Mid-Atlantic Broadband, which has laid out one of the most advanced fiber optic networks in the world right here in the southern portion of Virginia. The reliability and speed of the fiber cables make Bedford a prime location for data centers or other technology-based businesses.
POWER
Bright, Clean
The Town of Bedford is one of 16 Virginia municipal utilities that provides its citizens and industrial customers with electrical power.
Renewable: Bedford Electric is a leader in providing “green” renewable electricity where 20-25% of all provided power will be generated from both hydroelectric (i.e., Bedford Hydropower Project) and solar sources (Bedford Solar Project) by 2018. Bedford’s unique power portfolio provides the ideal location for environmentally conscious businesses providing justification for LEED certification (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) points or other positive environmental impact certifications and product labels useful in product marketing.
Reliable: Bedford Electric operates 5.5 MW of diesel backup generation capacity for industrial customers located in and around the Bedford Center for Business Park. Coupled with redundant interconnection locations with American Electric Power and its dedicated staff, Bedford Electric provides a very high level of reliable power to its power sensitive industrial customers.
Affordable: Bedford Electric can provide special off-peak electric rates that can substantially reduced power costs for high consumption customers as well as provide options for customer specific infrastructure requirements.