The investors, which include LA-based Arden Realty, San Jose-based Divco West Properties, Detroit Edison and CS First Boston, have agreed to provide immediate $20 million B-round funding for the installation of the distributed generation technology and an additional $30 million in C-round funding as the new energy systems are deployed. LA-based Chadwick, Saylor & Co. Inc. represented RealEnergy in the transaction.

The first of the 20 on-site power plants is expected to be up and running within four to six weeks, says Daniel M. Cashdan, chairman and CEO of LA-based RealEnergy. The remainder of the 20 installations, which will use clean, natural gas-burning internal combustion engines, will go online within the next few months. The energy systems will produce about 40% to 50% of each building's energy needs, according to Cashdan.

The $50-million investment comes on the heels of an announcement by propert owners and janitors to cut electricity in office buildings by 10% statewide. The Lights Out plan, which was unveiled at a Monday news conference in Downtown, calls for the implementation of building-wide conservation programs, energy-efficient cleaning practices, conservation-training seminars for janitors and engineers and other measures to encourage energy conservation in major office buildings across the state.