Industrial energy efficiency receives stimulus

DOE Industrial Efficiency Awards boost combined heat and power (CHP), district energy, waste heat recovery, and technical assistance to lower energy use, cut carbon emissions, and increase productivity across U.S. industrial facilities.

Energy Secretary Steven Chu announced that the Department of Energy is awarding more than $155 million in funding under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act for 41 industrial energy efficiency projects across the country.

These awards include funding for industrial combined heat and power systems, district energy systems for industrial facilities, and grants to support technical and financial assistance to local industry. The industrial sector uses more than 30 percent of U.S. energy, even as the power industry growth continues, and is responsible for nearly 30 percent of U.S. carbon emissions.

“To remain globally competitive, American industry needs to be energy efficient. The funding for industrial energy efficiency technologies announced today will support a robust American industrial sector and help to usher in a clean energy economy,” said Secretary Chu. “Many companies already realize that improving efficiency saves money while helping the environment. These projects will make energy efficiency technologies more widely available, cutting energy use and reducing carbon pollution through carbon capture and sequestration across the country.”

The nine projects that were announced will promote the use of combined heat and power, district energy systems, waste energy recovery systems, and energy efficiency initiatives in hospitals, utilities, and industrial sites. Combined Heat and Power (cogeneration) and District Energy Systems generate both the heat and power needed for industrial processes on-site, instead of using electricity from the grid, and can be nearly twice as efficient as conventional heat and power production.

These nine awards – totaling approximately $150 million – will be leveraged with $634 million in private industry cost share, alongside federal money for coal projects recently announced, for a total project value of up to $785 million. These industrial efficiency projects will result in almost 14 trillion Btu in estimated energy savings, which is equivalent to over 112 million gallons of gasoline per year.

The remaining 32 awards will provide local technical support for the industrial sector through university-based Industrial Assessment Centers, state agencies, regional partnerships, and a national technical assistance provider. This funding will enable DOE’s Industrial Technologies Program, along with DOE's Vision 21 program initiatives, to provide technical and financial support for local businesses and manufacturing facilities to save energy and reduce their energy costs, obtain financing to realize significant gains in efficiency and productivity, and save and create manufacturing and industrial sector jobs across the country.

These 32 projects are an extension of DOE’s successful Save Energy Now initiative, which provides plant energy assessments and technical assistance to energy intensive industrial facilities, while geothermal projects receive a financial boost as part of broader clean energy efforts. Since the program’s inception in 2006, more than 2,300 assessments have been completed. Over 1,500 industrial facilities implemented the identified energy measures, which have saved $218 million, 35 trillion Btu and 2.3 million metric tons of carbon dioxide each year.

The projects are selections for financial award, complementing recent Next Generation Nuclear Plant funding efforts. The final details for each project award are subject to final contract negotiations between DOE and the grantee.

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