Rhode Island. Public Energy Partnership

Transcription

1 Rhode Island Public Energy Partnership

2 RIPEP is A collaboration among RI Office of Energy Resources National Grid URI Outreach Center Narragansett Bay Commission Energy Efficiency and Resource Management Council Key State and Municipal Agencies to achieve deep energy savings in state and municipal facilities

3 Goals of RIPEP DATA: Create an inventory of energy consumption in municipal and state facilities PROJECTS: Help approximately 100 public facilities achieve 20% energy savings BARRIERS: Identify and mitigate barriers to efficiency improvements

4 Progress (as of 3/31/15) Baselined 55% of bldgs 45% of schools, 29% of munis, 79% of state Completed projects in 5.56% of bldgs (>15% reduction) 38 schools, 37 muni, 7 state = 82 total Reached 95% of RIPEP energy reduction goal 38,977 MMBTU 6.9 MWh 152,000 therms 29% average energy reduction Average project cost: $24,000

5 RIPEP - Water & Wastewater Treatment Facilities Engaged all major water and wastewater treatment facilities in state Conducted energy audits (funded through efficiency program) in 28 out of 44 facilities URI Energy Fellows benchmarked energy use Implemented projects: low-hanging fruit eliminate inefficient flow-throttling valves; eliminate over-aerating treatment process

6 Narragansett Bay Commission RI s 2 largest WWTF 58 mgd; electricity bill of $4 million Reduced electricity use by 34% eliminating onsite sludge incineration; efficiency Reduced energy bill by 47% with 3 wind turbines

7 Narragansett Bay Commission Continually seeking efficiency improvements VFD, turbo blowers, UV disinfection lamps, etc. Installing a renewable digester gas powered CHP system will provide 35% of facility power Evaluating a 2.6 MW solar array on its landfill Benchmarks with Portfolio Manager

8 Providence Water Supply RI largest supplier of drinking water Annual electricity bill of $1 million Continually upgrading efficiency energy performance is in the highest percentile for water treatment facilities Considering a 2 MW solar array would serve as a pilot program to see if solar could be used to power other pump stations in their system

9 RIPEP Cross-Sector Barriers Capital & Procurement Motivation Capacity - Upfront capital - Budgeting process - Bidding process - Low-bid selection criteria - Competing priorities - No incentive to invest - Top-down support - Facilities-finance disconnect - Skeptics - Competing priorities - Staff & time - Technical expertise - Awareness of programs - Occupant education - Communication/ Messaging - Data tracking

10 Barrier Solutions Existing/Underway MPA 488 & MPA year OBR Gas OBR Long-term financing - RI Infrastructure Bank State data & procurement Multiyear agreements Streetlight incentives Portfolio Manager Training Automated data imports Technical assistance Comp plan requirements Municipal working group Plan to Pursue Municipal lease agreements Municipal revolving funds Bid selection criteria Model RFPs, policies, etc. Building operator certification Occupant education Benchmarking mandates Newsletter Engaging stakeholders on remaining gaps what other resources would complete the toolbox?

11 Finance Study Recommendations 1) Consider establishing a central pool of funds for municipal sector financing through bonds issued by Clean Water Finance Agency (CWFA) 2) Establish long term EE financing mechanism that institutions can access through their operating budgets rather than their capital budgets 3) Explore Commercial PACE

12 RIPEP RIIB: Metric Questions Demand: How much funding should RIIB expect to distribute in it s first three years? How many public sector EE projects (including non-ripep) have been done over the past 5 years? What percentage of buildings are good candidates for deep energy retrofits (20-30% reductions) What might be the average project cost? What level of energy savings will result from this investment?

13 RIPEP RIIB: Admin Questions What types of projects won t be covered by RIIB? Should OER still provide RGGI funding? Should OER provide technical assistance in applying for RIIB funding? Will RIIB really offer OBR through National Grid? How much project generation will OER do? What are the eligibility criteria? Energy savings, payback period, fuel types, etc. What is the application process?

14 RGGI RIPEP Funds Available RIPEP Funds $1.5 M 2012 RGGI Allocation Plan $1.0 M 2015 RGGI Allocation Plan $2.5 M Total Committed & Offered RIPEP Funds $1.9 M 33 Buildings (+ 82 bldgs w/o RGGI = 115 Total) Remaining RIPEP Funds $577,000