at Plain Green Conference 2009

1. Michael Twedt, PE
Tax Incentives, Grants and Low Interest
Loan Programs for Energy Efficiency
and Sustainable Facility Projects
Presentation for the
Plain Green Energy Efficiency Workshop
April 17, 2009

2. Speaker Introduction
Michael Twedt, P.E., C.E.M.
Mechanical Engineer,
Energy Analysis and Efficiency Focus
Director, Wind Application Center, SDSU
WAC.sdwind.org
Director, Energy Analysis Lab, SDSU
Co-PI, CBRD & Biomass/Bioenergy Research
Email: Michael.Twedt@SDSTATE.EDU
Phone: 605.688.4303

3. Energy Saving Benefits
Overview
Reduction in reliance on foreign energy sources
Reduction in energy use = reduction in
greenhouse gas
Energy cost savings reduce facility expenses
Promotes good practices; use less, save more
Energy Efficiency Grant and/or Tax Deduction

4. Energy Issues
Energy issues in South Dakota
• An extreme climate leads to extreme heating and
cooling requirements
• Limited and fixed budgets for most facilities
• Rising energy costs
• Limited information available for making better
choices
Addressing these issues
• Focus on life cycle costs instead of solely on first
costs
• Purchase better materials, equipment, systems that
will save money and energy

5. Bio & Renewable Energy Benefits
Overview
Rising Energy Costs
Global Warming / Pollution
Dependency on Foreign Energy
What can we do?
Decrease our energy use (increase efficiency)
Increase ‘home-grown’ energy
Increase cost-effective, renewable energy

7. How to Implement Energy Efficiency
Utilize savings to pay for investments
• Perform simple payback or life-cycle cost analysis
• Consider:
• Energy cost savings
• Productivity/labor cost savings
• Resource cost savings
Utilize incentives to pay for investments
• REAP/9007 Grants & Loans
• Commercial building tax deductions (EPACT 2005)
• Business Energy Investment Tax Credit (ITC)

8. Energy Grants – REAP/9007
Rural Energy for America Program (REAP)
Section 9007:
• Designed to assist farmers, ranchers and
rural small businesses with energy projects
• Rural SD = not Sioux Falls or Rapid City
• This program provides grants and
guaranteed loans for renewable energy
systems and energy efficiency improvement
projects

9. Energy Grants – REAP/9007
Rural Energy for America Program (REAP)
Section 9007:
• Energy Efficiency Improvements
• Improvements to a facility or process that reduces energy
consumption. Typically projects must show a 20%
savings in energy audit to receive funding.
• Renewable Energy - energy from:
• wind, solar, biomass, or geothermal source, hydro or
• hydrogen derived from biomass or water using one of the
above energy sources

10. Energy Grants – REAP/9007
Rural Energy for America Program (REAP)
Section 9007:
• Energy Efficiency Upgrades
• Drying Systems
• Motor Systems
• Heating/Refrigeration
• Renewable Energy Projects
• Wind
• Solar
• Geothermal
• 25% Eligible Cost Grant ($250K-$500K max)
• 50% Eligible Cost Guaranteed Loan
• ($25 million max)

11. Resources – REAP/9007
Contact you local USDA
Rural Development Office
More Energy Efficiency Upgrades
• Lighting
• Refrigeration/Freezer Systems
• Insulation (addition)
• Automated Controls
• Windows, Doors

12. Energy Grants – REAP/9007
Rural Energy for America Program (REAP)
Section 9007:
• Competitive grant application
• Applicants are scored on a variety of
parameters
• Energy replaced, generated or saved
• 20% minimum, 35%+ excellent
• Simple payback period (~ 11 yr max)
• Technical merit
• Environmental benefits
• Grant only or Loan/Grant combination

13. Energy Grants – REAP/9007
3rd Party Verification – Energy Efficiency:
• Requires energy audit or energy assessment
• $50,000 project cost (over or under)
• Documents the energy savings
• Documents the cost savings
• Establishes the return on investment
• Requires technical report and/or evaluation
• $200,000 project cost (3rd Party if over)
• Documents and evaluates the technical merit

14. Energy Grants – REAP/9007
3rd Party Verification – Renewable Energy:
• Requires business-level feasibility study
• If over $200,000 total project cost
• Documents and evaluates the feasibility
• Documents the energy generation
• Documents the cost savings
• Establishes the return on investment
• Requires technical report and/or evaluation
• $200,000 project cost (over or under)
• Documents and evaluates the technical feasibility

15. Energy Grants – REAP/9007
3rd Party Verification – Renewable Energy:
• Requires business-level feasibility study
• If over $200,000 total project cost
• Documents and evaluates the feasibility
• Documents the energy generation
• Documents the cost savings
• Establishes the return on investment
• Requires technical report and/or evaluation
• $200,000 project cost (over or under)
• Documents and evaluates the technical feasibility

16. Energy Audit Objective
The overall goal of an energy audit is to
evaluate an individual facility for economically
feasible, energy cost saving opportunities.
Additionally:
• Quantify the amount of energy waste
• Translate energy waste into wasted dollars
• Assist in good decision making
• Required for some Federal Grants

17. Energy Audit
Steps
• Analyze utility usage and costs
• Perform site visit, collect data
• Identify potential energy saving measures
• Calculate energy and cost savings
• Calculate cost of measures
• Evaluate economic feasibility of each measure
• Formulate an action plan for implementation
• IMPLEMENT FEASIBLE MEASURES!

18. Energy Conservation
How Much Can You Save??????????
• How much are you currently spending?
• Example: a school spends $9,000/yr on propane
for heating. Can a new heating system save
$20,000/yr in propane energy costs?
• A grain handling system uses $600/yr in energy
costs. Can you save $2,000/yr in energy costs by
buying a new, ‘energy efficient’ system?

19. Energy Use Summary
Sample
Phase I Energy Use
M M Btu/yr
electricity natural gas

20. Energy Audit – On Site
On site
• Confirm utility usage and costs
• Site visit
• Inspect equipment and systems
• Identify potential energy saving measures
• Collect detailed information on these systems
• Operating parameters
• Operating hours
• Building occupancy
• Temperatures

21. Energy Audit – Identify
On site – what to look for:
• Equipment/systems that can be shut off
• How? How often?
• Equipment/systems that can be turned down
• How? How often?
• Old/inefficient equipment
• What is current efficiency? How much is it used?
• Heating/cooling systems
• Can you recover energy? How? How often?

22. Energy Audit – Energy Use
Calculate current energy use and cost:
• How much energy is each equipment/system
consuming? (energy/year)
• What is the current cost? (energy/yr x energy cost)
Calculate new energy use and cost:
• How much energy would the new systems
consume? (energy/yr)
• What is the new cost? (energy/yr x energy cost)

23. Computer Simulations
Provide a tool for investigating physical systems
• Uses:
• Forecasting/prediction
• Energy use
• Comparing alternatives
• HVAC systems
• Examples include:
• Indoor Air Quality
• Airflow
• Thermal comfort
• Equipment performance
• Building energy modeling

24. Building Energy Modeling
Used to evaluate the performance of buildings
• Evaluates energy, cost, and comfort
• Performance monitored for full year
• Includes most building systems
• Envelope
• HVAC
• Lighting
• Service hot water
• Scheduling
• Controls

25. Building Energy Modeling
Some examples of software include:
• EnergyPlus, BLAST, DOE-2, many others
Typical modeling environment:
• Consists of interaction between several ‘modules’
• Complex computational environment

26. Building Energy Modeling
Why is it important?
• Buildings use approximately 1/3 of all energy
• Simulation can and has helped reduce building
energy consumption
• Allows energy alternatives to be investigated
• Leads to an energy- and cost-optimized building
• Can help isolate operational problems in existing
buildings
• Necessary for many incentive programs
• Required for LEED
• Compare proposed building to ASHRAE
Standard 90.1-2004

27. Energy Modeling
Sample Facility Energy Usage
$82,201/yr

28. Energy Audit – Savings
Calculate energy and cost savings for each
measure:
• Energy Savings = Current Energy Use – Proposed
Energy Use (energy/year)
• Cost Savings = Current Energy Cost – Proposed
Energy Cost ($/year)
Compare savings to implementation cost:
• Simple Payback Period = cost / $ savings per yr
• Evaluate the feasibility for your facility
• Generally 3 year payback or less is very good

29. Energy Modeling
Energy Savings – Increase Envelope Insulation
$77,749/yr
$4,452/yr savings

30. Energy Modeling
Energy Savings – Geothermal
$63,761/yr
$18,440/yr savings

31. Energy Modeling
Energy Savings – Thermostat Setbacks
$69,947/yr
$12,254/yr savings

32. Energy Modeling
Energy Savings – Heat Recovery
$65,006/yr
$17,195/yr savings

33. Energy Modeling
Energy Savings – Lighting & Equipment
$76,419/yr
$5,782/yr savings

34. Energy Modeling
Energy Savings – High Efficiency (All Systems)
$31,506/yr
$50,695/yr savings

35. Sample Energy Savings
Sample Building 1 Summary
8.5% reduction in annual energy use
• $42,956/yr total energy cost reduction
• 8.1% reduction in annual energy costs
• 4.7 year total simple payback period for all
recommendations combined
Sample Building 2 Summary
• 7.0% reduction in annual energy use
• $34,894/yr total energy cost reduction
• 6.9% reduction in annual energy costs
• 1.6 year total simple payback period for all
recommendations combined

36. Energy Savings Summary
Sample Building 1
Phase I Energy Savings
M M Btu/yr
energy savings

37. Energy Conservation – Measures
Additional Examples of Energy Efficiency:
• High efficiency heating & cooling systems
• Heat recovery
• Modulation controls (turn down/shut off)
• Lighting
• Replace incandescent with HE fluorescent
• Replace mercury vapor with HPS/MH/HE fluor.
• Heating systems
• Temperature setbacks – freeze protection
• Plug leaks / prevent infiltration
• Turn Down
• Shut off

38. Incentive Programs
EPAct 2005 Federal Tax Deduction
• Commercial Building Tax Deduction: Provides a
tax deduction for exceeding ASHRAE/IES
Standard 90.1-2001 to the property owner for
which the energy efficient expenditures are made
• New construction or renovations

39. Incentive Programs
Commercial Building Tax Deduction
• Allows for up to $1.80/sf tax deduction
• Fully qualifying property
• Saves at least 50% in energy costs through
improvements in the following
• Envelope
• Lighting
• HVAC/SWH

40. Incentive Programs
Commercial Building Tax Deduction -
Subsystems
• Partially qualifying property up to $0.60/sf in each
• Saves at least 10% in envelope
• 20% in lighting
• 20% in HVAC/SWH

41. Incentive Programs
Commercial Building Tax Deduction –
Lighting Subsystem Details
• Interior Lighting Tax Deduction: Lighting energy
consumption is estimated to represent
approximately 1/3rd of commercial building energy
use
• Outperform the ASHRAE/IESNA Standard 90.1-
2001 lighting requirements by 25-40% . Eligible
tax deduction per sqft will be between $0.30-
$0.60

42. Incentive Programs
Commercial Building Tax Deduction
Provides a tax credit AND energy savings!
• Client qualified for $1.07/sqft tax credit
• Installed high-performance insulation
• Qualified for full $0.60/sqft
• Installed efficient lighting technologies
• Qualified for $0.47/sqft
Required energy model and comparison of ASHRAE
90.1-2001 baseline and actual installation
Example Provided by Derek Hengeveld, PE
BTU Engineering, Inc.
hengeveld@BTU-Engineering.com

43. Incentive Programs
Business Energy Investment Tax Credit (ITC)
• U.S. Dept. of Treasury
• Commercial, Industrial, Agricultural
• Only tax paying entities are eligible
• 30% (Solar, Wind) or 10% (Geothermal) of system
cost tax credit
• May take tax credit as a cash grant from the U.S.
Department of Treasury
• The U.S. Department of Treasury has not released
guidelines and is not accepting applications
currently for this grant (expected late spring’09)

44. Incentive Programs
Business Energy Investment Tax Credit (ITC)
• U.S. Dept. of Treasury
• Categories (partial)
• Solar water or space heat
• Wind
• Photovoltaic
• Hydroelectric
• Biomass
• Landfill gas
• Geothermal electric
• Geothermal hp
• Fuel cells

45. Energy Conservation – Summary
Best Solution:
• No single magic bullet for total energy savings
• Best solution: make informed decisions and
integrate a combination of many items
• Consider utilizing Federal incentives to leverage
resources

46. Energy Help
Resources
• Your utility company
• Building Energy Codes – request that your builders
follow applicable energy codes
• Read energy labels, compare Wattage, consider
Energy Star models
• REAP/9007 - Contact you local USDA Rural
Development Office
Energy Audits
• Self audit worksheets – available from State and
Federal sources
• Your utility company may offer assistance
• 3rd Party energy audits

47. Thank You
Questions?
Michael Twedt, Mechanical Engineering Dept.
South Dakota State University
(605) 688-4303
Email: Michael.Twedt@SDState.edu