The energy company CenTrio has paid Eastern Michigan University $115 million as part of an agreement to manage the schools energy infrastructure for the next 50 years.
Critics of the plan have expressed concerns it will lead to less transparency and ultimately hurt students. But EMU President James Smith says it will allow the university to do things it couldn’t take care of on its own.
“I don’t know that we’ll ever mitigate all the fears people have, but we’re going to be certainly out on the leading edge of what you’re going to see in green and green technology, and I think that’s where our students want to be, and I know the members of the Sustainability Commission want to be there.”
Smith says the deal will improve EMU’s energy efficiency, reduce operating costs, and generate additional income for the school over the length of the agreement.
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