Performance contracts, including both Energy Savings Performance Contracts (ESPCs) and Utility Energy Service Contracts (UESCs), enable agencies to obtain energy efficiency investments in buildings and deploy on-site renewable energy through long-term contracts with the private sector, which are in turn paid through savings derived from those investments.
The NIH uses performace contracts to install life-cycle cost effective Energy Conservation Measures (ECM)s, including: lighting upgrades, boiler upgrades, and installing renewable energy.
Performance Contracting Requirements
Section 1002 of the Energy Act of 2020, to improve efficiency and resilience of Federal facilities, deploy clean and innovative technologies, and reduce greenhouse gas emissions from building operations. This requires the NIH to report:
energy savings performance contracts, including their investment value,
initial guaranteed savings compared to actual energy savings from the previous year,
the plan for entering into new contracts in the coming year, and
information explaining why any previously submitted plans for contracts were not implemented.
aIn accordance with Section 203 of EPACT 2005 (42 U.S.C. § 15852), each fiscal year the federal government must consume at least 7.5% of its total electricity from renewable sources. The NIH uses performance contract to install renewable energy systems, such as photovoltaic arrays.
EISA 2007 requires that federal agencies inspect covered facilities every four years to identify ECMs. The Energy Act of 2020 than requires federal agencies implement all life-cycle cost-effective (ECM)s identified in the EISA 2007 evaluations within two years of the evaluation's completion. Additionally, the Act requires agencies to use performance contracting to address at least 50% of the ECMs identified, and to report on forecasted savings from ESPCs and UESCs.