Glen Burnie-based University of Maryland Baltimore Washington Medical Center installed a power plant in its basement to power the facility and conserve energy, according to WJZ-13 News.
Officials said the plant is about the size of a car motor and has the capacity to power all of the medical center's operating rooms. It also can power the entire building if an outage occurs, according to the report.
The power plant generates steam and hot water in addition to electricity. Officials said the medical center uses the steam to sterilize medical instruments, while the hot water provides heat to the facility during the winter.
The power plant reportedly runs on natural gas, as heat from the motor is captured and reused to power the system, making it a much cheaper alternative energy source. Andrew Brumfield, engineering director for UMBWMC, told WJZ-13 the system is projected to save the medical center roughly $750,000 a year.