LANSING – The Michigan Agency for Energy is putting money toward energy efficiency improvements including solar panels at its Lansing offices, the agency said in a statement Monday.
In doing so, the agency will become the first energy agency in the nation to make improvements using Property Assessed Clean Energy financing. Using the financing method overcomes the problem of a “split incentive,” the agency said in a statement, where a property owner with an inefficient building has little incentive to improve it because the tenant pays the utility bills. Under PACE, energy efficiency projects are financed through property tax payments rather than regular bank loan payments.
“Michigan’s government is leading by example by actively seeking cost-effective ways to cut energy waste,” Executive Director Valerie Brader said. “It is only fitting that the state’s energy experts demonstrate the effective use of multiple innovative tools to reduce our energy waste. The improvements made are expected to yield $800,000 in savings to the state.”
The improvements cost about $437,000 to install and include LED lights inside the office building and in the parking lot, occupancy light sensors, additional roof insulation, a 20-kilowatt solar array, electric vehicle charging stations and variable speed motors for heating and cooling.
The solar panels were made in Michigan at the Suniva facility in Saginaw, and Ameresco – a national energy service contractor with Michigan offices – oversaw the engineering, procurement, design and installation, using Michigan contractors. It is also providing an energy savings guarantee for its work.
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