MicroLink Data Centers · Boston Generation Strategy
Prepared 18 May 2026 / Under Exploration / Working Document

Generating our own electricityat the site

A working summary of the on-site electricity generation configurations MicroLink is currently exploring across our Boston host site categories. Posture is open and evolving. This document records the field of options under consideration alongside the host site reviews.

Configuration A
Biogas SOFC
Wastewater sites
Configuration B
Behind the meter cogen
District energy sites
Configuration C
Solar plus battery
All site types
Strategic posture
Open
Grid-tied to primary generation
Status
Under exploration
No configuration committed
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MicroLink is exploring how to generate, source, and stack electricity at our Boston host sites. The architecture is open, ranging from grid-tied with renewables layered on top, to behind the meter co-generation arrangements with a district energy partner, to on-site primary generation using fuel cells and biogas. Each configuration changes the BERDO compliance story, the Energy Reuse Effectiveness reported alongside Power Usage Effectiveness, and the offtake premium our customers will pay. This document captures the configurations we are exploring, not a chosen path.
Section 01 · The three configurations

Three primary generation configurationsunder exploration

Three architectural patterns are under active exploration, one matched to each host category. None is committed. Each reflects what the site type makes possible and what the host's existing infrastructure invites. All three are compatible with grid as a backstop.

Configuration A · Wastewater
Biogas to solid oxide fuel cellat the wastewater plant
Deer Island MWRA · Greater Lawrence GLSD

Take digester biogas, clean it, route it to a solid oxide fuel cell on the MicroLink pad, generate electricity at 60 percent electrical efficiency, and use the fuel cell waste heat at 65 to 80 °C [149 to 176 °F] as Loop 3 input. One fuel stream becomes both electricity and heat for the data center.

Electrical efficiency
55 to 65%
Heat output
65 to 80°C
Operating regime
Baseload24/7
Sized for
2 to 5MW pilot

SOFC technology is mature. FuelCell Energy and Bloom Energy both have wastewater-coupled product references. FuelCell Energy is already on our San José working group.

The triple play. Biogas becomes electricity for compute, the SOFC waste heat enters Loop 3 to the host, and the host gets its biogas monetised at a higher value per cubic metre than reciprocating CHP delivers. Co-digestion expansion (food waste at GLSD's Organics to Energy programme) increases the biogas pool further.

What this configuration unlocks
  • One fuel stream for electricity and heat together
  • Higher biogas yield per dollar than reciprocating CHP
  • ERE under 0.5 with combined heat plus power offtake
  • Microgrid posture with the wastewater plant as critical infrastructure
  • Section 48 ITC and Section 45 PTC alignment for fuel cells
Configuration B · District energy
Behind the meter co-generationat the district energy plant
Vicinity Kendall · Harvard Allston DEF

Co-locate inside the district energy fence line and source electricity behind the host's meter. Transmission and distribution charges fall away. The host monetises spare cogeneration capacity. Our compute waste heat enters the district loop in return.

Kendall cogen
~256MW gross
T&D charges avoided
~50%
Operating regime
Baseload24/7
Sized for
5 to 20MW deployment

Behind the meter arrangements are standard practice at large district energy systems. The Kendall Cogeneration Station has gross output well above current district demand.

The economic gravity. Boston retail commercial electricity sits in the range of $0.18 per kWh; behind the meter cogen output, on a fair sharing basis, can land closer to $0.08 to $0.10. At 10 MW continuous, the spread is meaningful. The structure converts our heat offtake from a sustainability story into a paired commercial transaction.

What this configuration unlocks
  • Lowest delivered electricity cost of the three configurations
  • Paired commercial transaction with the host on both heat and power
  • BERDO compliance value shared with the host on Scope 2
  • Mass DPU pathway shared with the heat injection regulatory work
  • Lowest capital exposure on the MicroLink balance sheet
Configuration C · All site types
Solar plus batterystacked on grid tie
Deer Island · GLSD · Vicinity · Harvard · MIT · BU · Eastie Farm

Standard grid interconnection with photovoltaic generation across host site footprints, battery storage on the MicroLink pad, and participation in ISO New England capacity and demand response markets. The configuration that fits every host category.

Deer Island PV potential
8 to 15MWdc
GLSD PV potential
2 to 4MWdc
Battery sizing
2 / 8MW / MWh per 5 MW
DR revenue stack
$200 to 400/kW-yr

The capital-light configuration. Solar capacity exists in the site footprint across both wastewater plants. Deer Island has existing solar PV plus wind plus outfall hydro that can be expanded. Battery storage on the MicroLink pad smooths the compute load profile from the host's perspective and participates in ISO-NE Forward Capacity Market and Eversource ConnectedSolutions.

Where this fits. Stacked alongside either Configuration A or Configuration B as an additional layer. Also the default for the 50 kW research pilot footprint at MIT, BU, or Eastie Farm.

What this configuration unlocks
  • Fastest to deploy at every host site type
  • Stackable on top of the other two configurations
  • SMART tariff and ITC alignment for solar and storage
  • ISO-NE FCM and DR revenue stack on the battery
  • Resilience posture for the wastewater hosts as critical infrastructure
Section 02 · The fuel cell architecture

How biogas, electricity, and heat connectthrough a solid oxide fuel cell

Configuration A is the most distinctive of the three because the fuel cell waste heat enters Loop 3 at the temperature MicroLink already exports. One stack, one fuel stream, two product streams.

Figure 01 · Biogas SOFC integration
One fuel stream, two outputselectricity and Loop 3 heat
Biogas from the host's anaerobic digesters runs the fuel cell. Electricity feeds the compute load. Fuel cell waste heat at 65 to 80 °C joins compute waste heat in Loop 3 to the host.
ANAEROBIC DIGESTERS ~35 °C MESOPHILIC BIOGAS cleaned and conditioned SOLID OXIDE FUEL CELL ~700 °C stack 55 TO 65% ELEC ELECTRICITY to compute load HEAT · 65 to 80 °C recovered to Loop 3 MICROLINK 2 to 5 MW CONTAINERISED PUE 1.12 ERE under 0.5 LOOP 3 · 65 °C SOFC heat + compute heat DRY COOLER 100% rejection always HOST THERMAL LOOP CONFIGURATION A · BIOGAS TO ELECTRICITY AND LOOP 3 HEAT one fuel stream, paired electricity and heat outputs
Architecture · Solid oxide fuel cell on biogas, electricity to compute, fuel cell heat plus compute heat both into Loop 3 Dry cooler rejection path always live
Section 03 · The stacking layers

Other generation and revenue layersunder exploration alongside

Beyond the three primary configurations, several supplementary layers fit across host site types. These are stackable, not exclusive. Each carries its own diligence and capital path.

Layer 01 · Storage and grid services
ISO-NE capacity, ancillary services, demand response
Battery storage on the MicroLink pad smooths load profile and stacks ISO-NE Forward Capacity Market, ancillary services, and Eversource ConnectedSolutions demand response. Revenue stack on the order of $200 to $400 per kW-year across the three categories at typical configurations.
Layer 02 · Solar on host footprint
Photovoltaic on digester covers, roofs, parking, ground mount
Solar capacity across Deer Island and GLSD is meaningful. Deer Island already operates 736 kWp solar plus 2 MW outfall hydro plus 2 wind turbines. Substantial expansion is feasible across digester covers, parking carport solar, and the 60 acre [24 hectare] footprint.
Layer 03 · Co-digestion expansion
Food waste tipping at GLSD Organics to Energy
GLSD already operates source separated organics co-digestion. Food waste roughly triples digester gas yield per tonne of organic input. MicroLink underwriting co-digestion expansion grows the host's biogas pool, increases tipping fee revenue, and increases on-site fuel supply for Configuration A.
Layer 04 · BERDO ACP avoidance for the host
Compliance value transferred to the host's books
Every kWh of grid power we displace through on-site generation is an avoided emission for the host. At ISO-NE grid emission factors and Boston's $234 per tonne CO2-equivalent ACP, the displaced compliance value moves with the host's Scope 2 reporting. The host receives BERDO compliance benefit on the MWh we generate together.
Layer 05 · Microgrid and resilience posture
Wastewater plant as resilient critical infrastructure
A microgrid configuration combining fuel cell, solar, battery, and grid interconnection lets the site operate islanded during grid outages. Both wastewater plants are designated critical infrastructure. The political coalition for deployment improves substantially when the project anchors resilience for municipal water services.
Layer 06 · Federal and state credits
ITC, PTC, 45Q, SMART, Mass Leads Act
Section 48 ITC on energy storage and fuel cells. Section 45 PTC on qualifying generation. Section 45Q on carbon capture configurations at the wastewater plant. Massachusetts SMART tariff on solar with location-based adders. The Mass Leads Act capital programme for AI infrastructure investment.
Section 04 · The work in flight

What we are currently exploringand on what timelines

No generation configuration is committed. The exploration is parallel across the three primary configurations and the supplementary layers. Some decisions depend on host engagement outcomes and on interconnection queue positioning.

Generation posture under exploration
Open architectureconfigurations evolving alongside host engagement
MicroLink is currently exploring on-site generation across all three host site categories. The strategic posture sits along a spectrum: grid-tied with renewables stacked on top is fast to deploy and capital-light, while on-site primary generation through fuel cells and biogas is capital-heavier with a defensible operating moat. We are not committed to either pole. The choice is shaped by host engagement outcomes, interconnection queue positioning at Eversource and National Grid, and the offtake premium our customers will pay for verified low-carbon compute. The configurations in this document are the field we are exploring, not a chosen path.
Configurations under review
  • Biogas SOFC at wastewater sites, with FuelCell Energy and Bloom as candidate stack vendors
  • Behind the meter cogen at district energy sites, with Vicinity Kendall as the primary architecture
  • Solar plus battery as a stacking layer across every site
  • Co-digestion expansion at GLSD as a biogas pool growth lever
Workstreams in flight
  • Interconnection pre-engagement with Eversource and National Grid
  • ISO-NE Forward Capacity Market participation modelling
  • BERDO ACP compliance value modelling alongside the host
  • Federal and state credit eligibility review across configurations
Decisions ahead
  • Strategic posture on grid-tied versus on-site primary generation
  • Fuel cell vendor selection at the wastewater sites
  • Behind the meter PPA framework at the district energy sites
  • Battery sizing and the ISO-NE participation pathway