Providence-based Rhode Island College announced on March 29 that it had signed a $5 million energy savings performance contract (ESPC), which is expected to save the institution more than $340,000 annually for the next 15 years.
RIC has entered into an agreement with Ameresco to renew and upgrade campus energy infrastructure, and to implement energy efficiency and water conservation measures at the college.
In a formal statement, RIC’s Facilities and Operations team said the initiative “could allow the college to upgrade its energy infrastructure without any initial capital costs, address and achieve long-term cost savings; and improve the environment for students, faculty and staff.”
Specifically, under the terms of the contract, Ameresco will perform energy efficiency and infrastructure upgrades at 33 buildings and across 1.2 million square feet on campus.
The improvements are likely to include: energy management system advancements, central plant improvements, building weatherization, energy efficiency motors, demand-control ventilation, transformer replacements, window air conditioner timers, air handling unit/rooftop unit replacements, vending machine controls, kitchen hood controls, repair of heat recovery units, and water conservation measures.
“Employing an ESPC provides a financially responsible, budget-neutral solution to support the college’s energy infrastructure upgrade requirements, enhance the campus environment and supports the college in helping to achieve its sustainability goals,” commented Ameresco EVP David Anderson.
The two-year construction project already is underway and is scheduled to be completed in September 2018.
This is one of several ESPCs that Ameresco has signed with the nation’s colleges and universities. Arizona State University began working with the company in 1999. Since the beginning of the partnership, Ameresco’s responsibilities have included detailed facility and energy analyses, and the design and construction management of facility and infrastructure upgrades that have resulted in more than $8 million of annual savings at over 11 million square feet of university infrastructure, Ameresco claims.
Among the other schools at which Ameresco has implemented ESPCs are the University of Alaska-Anchorage, the Medical University of South Carolina, Washington & Lee University, and New Mexico State University.
