Tools and Resources

Use this 14-page PDF to learn how to integrate publicly available, no-cost ENERGY STAR tools into the energy performance contracting process in order to make performance contracting projects more actionable and understandable for building owners, tenants, policy makers, and the public.

Topic: Financial

Learn how Des Moines Public Schools, a school district with more than 32,000 students and 70 facilities encompassing almost six million square feet of space, was able to improve its facilities and maximize energy savings by financing energy efficiency improvements through revenue bonds.

Topic: Financial

Resource Type: Success stories

Market Sector: Higher education, K12 schools, State & local government

Use this directory to find utilities and statewide program sponsors who run ratepayer-funded regional or sector-based programs to promote energy efficiency. The directory lists programs and organizations that are incorporating benchmarking and other ENERGY STAR tools and resources into their energy efficiency programs. These programs can include financial incentives, technical assistance, facility assessments, and more to improve the energy efficiency of your business. The directory offers a quick way to find out which program sponsors are offering services that will help you improve the energy performance of your commercial buildings using ENERGY STAR.

Topic: Financial

Market Sector: Utilities/ Energy efficiency program administrators

This 19-page primer is designed to establish best practices for energy service companies (ESCOs) that are implementing energy performance contract (EPC) projects by integrating several publicly available Web-based ENERGY STAR tools that the U.S. EPA has designed and provides free-of-charge through ENERGY STAR. EPA believes that the use of these tools will help make the results of EPC projects more actionable and understandable to building owners, tenants, policy makers, and the general public.

Topic: Financial

Market Sector: State & local government, K12 schools, Higher education

Do you have energy efficiency projects that have been postponed or rejected due to capital budget limitations, other projects with better returns, or lack of expertise? Yet, from your perspective the project should be a “no brainer” due to the immediate positive cash flows generated by the energy savings. Understanding your organization’s decision-making process, being able to effectively speak to the benefit of improved cash flow, and improving your financial literacy can greatly increase your probability of receiving approval for a project. The self-funding aspect of energy efficiency is often under-appreciated by senior management, and you want to be able to clearly address any questions, concerns, and benefits.

Topic: Energy management guidance, Financial

Resource Type: Research and reports, Financial value of energy efficiency

Market Sector: Restaurants, Retail, Senior living, Multifamily housing, Small business, State & local government, K12 schools, Corporate real estate, Congregations, Auto dealers, Commercial real estate, Federal agencies, Higher education, Hospitality, Healthcare, Grocery & convenience stores, General industrial/manufacturing

This 14-page paper describes how performance contracts and tax-exempt lease-purchase agreements may offer you a practical solution when no money is available in the current budget for further improvements. It equips you to persuade the decision-makers within your school district, city, county, community college, university, or state that implementing energy efficiency upgrades is a good business decision and should be done as soon as possible.

Topic: Financial

Market Sector: State & local government, K12 schools, Federal agencies

This interactive, self-guided presentation shows how to use operating budgets as a potential "source of revenue" to pay for energy efficiency projects. The Cash Flow Opportunity (CFO) Calculator is an interactive calculator that helps quantify the cost of delaying investment in upgrades by addressing three critical questions: How much new energy efficiency equipment can be purchased from the anticipated savings; should this equipment purchase be financed now, or is it better to wait and use cash from a future budget; and is money being lost by waiting for a lower interest rate? The CFO Calculator is designed so that managers who are not financial specialists can use it to make informed decisions, yet it is sophisticated enough to satisfy financial decision-makers.

Topic: Financial

Market Sector: Service and product provider (SPP), Guidance & requirements

The Cash Flow Opportunity Calculator helps inform strategic decisions about financing energy efficiency projects. This document provides an explanation of the calculations and methodology at work behind the calculator.

Topic: Energy management guidance, Financial

Resource Type: Research and reports, Financial value of energy efficiency

The Cash Flow Opportunity Calculator helps inform strategic decisions about financing energy efficiency projects. Using the tool, you will be able to estimate how much new equipment you can finance using anticipated savings, as well whether you should finance now or wait for a lower interest rate. Use the CFO Calculator to get answers to critical questions, such as:

Topic: Energy management guidance, Financial

This two-page primer provides an overview of two of the most popular mechanisms for financing energy efficiency projects in the public sector: performance contracts and tax-exempt lease-purchase agreements. Both mechanisms provide effective alternatives to traditional debt financing, and both may allow you to pay for energy efficiency upgrades by using money that is already set aside in your utility operating budget – allowing you to draw on dollars saved from future energy bills to pay for new, energy-efficient equipment and projects today.

Topic: Financial

Market Sector: State & local government