Salas O’Brien honored by IGSHPA with Commercial Innovator Award for Princeton University Geothermal Energy System

Salas O’Brien received the Commercial Innovator Award from the International Ground Source Heat Pump Association (IGSHPA) for its work on Princeton University’s Central Energy Plant and Geo-Exchange System. The award was presented during IGSHPA’s annual conference, held March 11–13 in Champaign, Illinois.

The Commercial Innovator Award honors a completed and operational project that moves the industry forward through creativity, imagination, innovation, and engineering excellence. Salas O’Brien’s geothermal design for Princeton exemplifies these values—supporting the university’s carbon reduction goals with scalable, forward-thinking energy infrastructure.

The project scope included infrastructure analysis, predictive modeling, and alignment with university energy, environmental, and economic policies. The result: a robust foundation for long-term campus-wide decarbonization.

Photo: Megan Oelze, Mechanical Engineer & Project Manager, accepting the Commercial Innovator Award on behalf of Salas O’Brien.

At the heart of this transformation is the new TIGER (Thermally Integrated Geo-Exchange Resource) energy facility on Princeton’s east campus.

When fully equipped with four CYK heat pump chillers , the system will deliver 7,000 tons of cooling and 113,960 MBH of heating—powered by a 583-bore geothermal field at 850 feet deep and two 2.25-million-gallon thermal energy storage tanks.
Distribution piping is designed to accommodate future expansion to 2,310 bores, ensuring capacity and flexibility for decades ahead.
These measures will substantially advance Princeton toward its 2046 carbon neutrality target date, coinciding with the school’s 300th anniversary.

Team members Brian Urlaub, SVP, Director of Geothermal Operations; Megan Oelze, Mechanical Engineer & Project Manager; Brian Beatty, P.ENG, VP, Senior Geothermal Engineer; Rose Sears, EIT, Sustainable Systems Analyst; and Adam Clarkson, Mechanical Engineer each delivered workshops at this annual conference, offering practical strategies for designing and implementing geothermal systems that support decarbonization at scale.

Salas O’Brien continues to be recognized as a leader in geothermal and renewable energy engineering, delivering bold solutions for a sustainable future.

Learn more about our work in Geothermal and Renewables.