The City of Cadillac, Michigan, has selected a energy technology provider Schneider Electric and Energy-as-a-Service (EaaS) provider Budderfly to modernize critical municipal infrastructure, lower energy costs and improve resilience against power disruptions.
Budderfly will invest approximately $4.4 million in the project, enabling infrastructure upgrades with no upfront cost to the city.
Approved by the Cadillac City Council in late July, the project will deploy energy efficiency upgrades and distributed energy technologies across seven municipal facilities, including city hall and the wastewater treatment plant. Through Budderfly’s EaaS model, the city will fund these upgrades through ongoing operational savings, improving long-term cost predictability and efficiency.
The project will include solar power, battery energy storage, upgraded HVAC and lighting systems, electric vehicle charging infrastructure and integrated microgrid capabilities designed to help maintain essential services during grid outages.
Schneider Electric will provide integrated energy management and automation technologies to support the project, including systems to monitor, control and optimize performance across the city’s facilities, improving reliability, efficiency and long-term asset performance.
According to the Department of Energy, U.S. communities are facing increasing strain on utilities and critical infrastructure, driving the need for modernization. Power outages alone cost the U.S. economy an estimated $150 billion annually, underscoring the need for resilient, local energy systems.
Cadillac’s project will help stabilize long-term operating costs and improve budget predictability, supporting energy affordability while strengthening reliability for essential services such as water treatment, municipal operations and emergency response.
“This project is about taking a smarter, more resilient approach to serving our community,” said Marcus Peccia, city manager, City of Cadillac. “We’re able to modernize critical infrastructure, strengthen the reliability of essential services that residents rely on every day and bring greater predictability to our energy costs, all without requiring upfront taxpayer investment.”
Accelerating Resilient Infrastructure Initiative
The Cadillac project was enabled through Schneider Electric’s Accelerating Resilient Infrastructure Initiative, a nationwide effort launched last fall to help communities rapidly deploy clean, resilient energy systems through innovative financing and ecosystem collaboration. The project represents an early municipal deployment under the initiative, demonstrating how the model can be applied to real-world community.
The initiative brings together project developers, capital providers and technology partners to help customers accelerate energy projects without requiring upfront capital. At launch, it included more than 20 partners and $7.5 billion in available financing, with participants such as Microsoft, Arcadis, Sunrock Distributed Generation and Zurich Resilience Solutions. Today, the ecosystem has grown to more than 40 members, including Budderfly, reflecting continued momentum to scale clean energy infrastructure across the U.S.
“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 Michele Hix, Vice President, Strategic Customers & Segments, North America Operations, Schneider Electric. “Through our Accelerating Resilient Infrastructure Initiative and 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.”
Source: Schneider Electric
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