FROM THE EDITOR

One of the more interesting developments in the high-performance buildings field in the last few years has been the advent of a variety of new and innovative financing options for energy efficiency upgrades.  

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There are many reasons why this is happening, but perhaps chief among them is, as Charles Goulding, president of Energy Tax Savers, says, “Lenders are getting more familiar with and more confident regarding the economic payback of energy related projects.” But why is that just now the case? Hasn’t energy efficiency always been a good investment – for lenders, but also for facility managers?

Well, for one, facility managers are much more savvy these days at leveraging technology for accurate and detailed ongoing analytics in regards to energy use. Simple payback for energy efficiency upgrades has always been, well, a simple calculation. But with submeters and specialized BAS modules, and the expertise to take advantage of them, facility managers can now show exactly how money spent on upgrades will affect bottom lines. This has given lenders more confidence that money spent will truly result in real-world savings.

Indeed, these financing vehicles – like energy operating leases, on-bill financing, and energy service agreements — typically include very specific contract language regarding the parameters by which equipment can be operated. The idea, of course, is to ensure that the intent of the upgrade is borne out in operations, and therefore, the money has been invested wisely.

But the point is this: Facility managers have many more options for free or cheap money than ever before. And of course, incentives and rebates from utilities as well as local and federal governments are readily available as well. Check out the Database for State Incentives for Renewables and Efficiency for more information.

As always, I’m interested to hear from you: Have you tried a new or innovative financing vehicle for an energy efficiency upgrade? What was your experience like? Are you getting the results you expected? 

 

Cheers,

Greg Zimmerman, editor  

 

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