Trane, Inc. (Trane), a wholly owned subsidiary of Ingersoll-Rand Company Limited (Ingersoll-Rand), has received an indefinite delivery indefinite quantity (IDIQ) energy savings performance contract (ESPC) of worth around $5 billion from the US Department of Energy (DOE). These contracts will allow government agencies worldwide to decrease costs, reduce energy use and minimize their carbon footprints and increase operational efficiency.
The work may be extended through 2019 if the government elects to exercise all contract options. The new contract also has the potential to improve the economy’s outlook by creating thousands of much-needed jobs.
Trane has received one of 16 new IDIQ ESPCs awarded to qualified energy contractors. The contracts are worth around $80 billion for energy efficiency, renewable energy and water conservation projects at federally owned facilities worldwide. ESPCs enable the federal government to create high-performance buildings and sites by funding systems upgrades through energy and energy related savings.
‘This set of awards will ensure that federal agencies have access to powerful tools for alternative financing at a scale that is needed to meet our challenge of reducing energy intensity, for increasing the use of renewable energy and for decreasing water consumption,’ said DOE secretary Samuel W. Bodman.
‘These energy savings performance contracts will potentially create thousands of new jobs, including opportunities within our company and for our suppliers,’ said John W. Conover IV, president of Trane’s commercial systems business in the Americas. ‘There will be an increased need for engineers, for project and program managers and for positions at the various stages of the manufacturing process.’
The improved energy usage at federal agencies will benefit the environment. The federal government is the largest single user of energy in US. It accounts for 1% of all energy used nationwide and is ranked among the largest energy users in the world. The energy use in buildings has been identified as the greatest contributor to global warming.
These DOE contracts are designed to gude federal agencies in partnering with the private sector to achieve mandated targets stipulated by the Energy Policy Act of 2005 and the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007, including:
Reducing energy use by 30% between 2005 and 2015, or 3% annually.
Increasing renewable energy to 7.5% of electricity needs by 2013.