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NORESCO Engaged by State of Maryland for $36 Million in Energy Savings at Spring Grove Hospital Center

Business Wire, November 1, 2007 – WESTBOROUGH, Mass.--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The Maryland Department of General Services has engaged NORESCO, a global leader in guaranteed energy savings programs and on-site energy management, to implement an energy efficiency performance contract that will save Spring Grove Hospital Center more than $36 million over 13 years. The project, calculated to reduce Spring Grove Hospital Center’s annual utility costs by 47.9 percent and its annual energy consumption by 60.0 percent, will also reduce greenhouse gas emissions.

Emissions and resource utilization will improve as the project is implemented. Carbon dioxide emissions, a widely recognized contributor to global climate change, are calculated to drop by 26,274,628 pounds annually. This equates to planting 3,600 acres of trees. Water use is calculated at 20,279,000 fewer gallons annually, an equivalent volume of 1,675 average in-ground swimming pools.

The Spring Grove Hospital Center project, developed from an audit of 38 facilities on campus, is expected to reduce utility and operating costs by $2.7 million per year. These savings will fund facility improvements at no upfront cost to taxpayers, because savings realized from reduced energy consumption will pay for equipment investment, installation, and related financing. NORESCO contractually guarantees project savings over the 13-year term. The amount of the construction and maintenance contract awarded to NORESCO is $27.6 million.

“By using energy performance contracting, Maryland agencies can conserve power, save money and reduce our impact on the environment,” said Maryland Department of General Services (DGS) Secretary Alvin C. Collins. “These contracts help government maximize energy efficiency and are a critical part of Governor O’Malley’s EmPOWER Maryland initiative. As a bonus, the environment will benefit through reduced emissions and significantly lower water consumption."

Randy Clark, Vice President and General Manager at NORESCO, said, “This is another example of how the Maryland DGS energy performance contracting program produces value for taxpayers in the state of Maryland. Energy efficiency programs like this one are critical to how agencies can reach governmental goals and mandates for reduced energy consumption and carbon emissions in the United States. We at NORESCO are honored to be a part of the EmPOWER Maryland initiative to reduce Maryland’s power consumption by 15 percent by 2015.”

The core energy conservation measure for the project is complete replacement of the existing main heating plant and steam heating system with 33 new efficient boilers located directly within the buildings across campus. The project also includes other heating and air conditioning equipment in 38 buildings, a new energy management system, replacement or retrofit of more than 1,100 existing lighting fixtures and 23,000 lamps, and gas-fired domestic hot water heaters for select campus buildings. It replaces 346 toilets and 116 faucets with low-flow devices and provides for the maintenance of all newly installed equipment for the 13-year payback period. The project will utilize daylighting controls and geothermal energy in appropriate buildings.

NORESCO is one of the largest U.S. energy services companies specializing in the development, design, construction, financing, and operation of energy and environmental efficiency projects, performance contracting, and central energy plants. Its clients include various departments of the U.S. government, school districts, universities, state and local governments, and industrial and commercial businesses. Over the past two decades, NORESCO has implemented more than $2 billion in energy projects at more than 2,000 sites throughout the U.S. and abroad.

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