McKinstry Wins $5 Billion Department of Energy Contract

SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--McKinstry became one of sixteen service companies to receive a United States Department of Energy Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) Energy Savings Performance Contract (ESPC) that could result in up to $80 billion in energy efficiency, renewable energy, and water conservation projects at federally-owned buildings and facilities. As the single largest user of energy in the United States, the federal government hopes to attain important sustainability goals by concentrating on energy efficiency, water conservation, and renewable energy. Disbursement of these awards demonstrates the government’s commitment to sound environmental stewardship – a commitment McKinstry also shares and has been recognized nationally for championing. Doug Moore, McKinstry President notes, “We’ve built a reputation on delivering energy efficiency and renewable projects, and we recognize the important role energy has in the new economy. We believe this award to be an important first step in the greening of America through energy efficiency, and we are pleased to be part of this effort.”

The contract, which has a maximum value of $5 billion to McKinstry over the 10-year life of the contract, eliminates technology specific restrictions, and allows federal agencies to use these contracts in federal buildings, nationally and internationally. In addition, ESPCs now include a greater emphasis on renewable energy and water conservation projects.

These awards are a culmination of Secretary Bodman’s TEAM (Transformational Energy Action Management) initiative, which is aimed at reducing energy use by 30 percent nationwide across the Department of Energy complex. TEAM’s objective is to meet or exceed aggressive goals for increasing energy efficiency throughout the federal government as established by Executive Order 13423, which calls for substantial reductions in energy intensity and greenhouse emissions, significant increases in efficient, renewable energy, adoption of sustainable design practices, and reductions in the petroleum use of federal fleets.

“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, increasing the use of renewable energy, and decreasing water consumption,” says U.S. Department of Energy Secretary, Samuel W. Bodman.

ESPCs enable agencies to undertake energy savings projects without paying up-front capital costs. Typically, task orders for an ESPC are placed competitively and can be used for energy and water efficiency and renewable energy projects. McKinstry has assumed a number of projects, regionally and nationally, with agencies seeking to improve the infrastructure of their existing facilities through a performance-based contract.

Under an ESPC, a contractor such as McKinstry designs, constructs, and obtains all necessary financing for a project, and the agency pays for the work over time from the savings reduction in the utility bills which are then paid by the agency’s appropriated funds over time. The contractor guarantees the energy improvements will generate savings. Additionally, the aggregate annual amount of payments to the contractor and payments for utilities cannot exceed the amount that the agency would have paid for utilities without an ESPC. After the contract ends, all continuing cost savings accrue to the agency.

The IDIQ Award comes on the heels of McKinstry’s moment in the national spotlight precipitated by comments from President-elect Barack Obama’s citing the company as a “model for the nation” for our leadership in energy efficiency. With offices in several states across the country McKinstry projects have eliminated 247,025 metric tons of CO2 emissions since 2001, which is equivalent to removing 45,243 cars from US highways or offsetting the energy use of 21, 803 homes or conserving 28,039,163 gallons of gasoline or saving 1,723 acres of forest from destruction or recycling 85,181 tons of waste instead of sending it to the landfill. “With over 250 billion square feet of facilities in the United States consuming over 70% of all the electricity we generate, and producing almost 40% of the nation’s greenhouse gas emissions, a meaningful improvement in efficiency clearly will have a profound impact,” said Dean Allen, McKinstry Chief Executive Officer.

About McKinstry

Established in 1960, McKinstry is full service Design, Build, Operate and Maintain (DBOM) firm. McKinstry’s professional staff and trades people deliver a variety of services including engineering, construction (HVAC, plumbing, fire protection, electrical), architectural metals, 24/7 service and maintenance, energy/LEED services and onsite facility management to our many clients. Headquartered in Seattle we also offer our high performance design, build, energy and facility management services throughout the Pacific Northwest, Rocky Mountain, Midwest and Southwest regions with operations in over 15 states. As an early adopter of the DBOM process, McKinstry advocates collaborative and sustainable solutions that are designed to ensure occupant comfort, improve systems efficiency, reduce facility operational costs and ultimately optimize client profitability for the life of their building. For more information, visit www.mckinstry.com.