Dedicated and knowledgeable utility partners are critical to ensuring utility energy service contract (UESC) projects result in energy and cost savings while upgrading infrastructure, improving energy and water efficiency, and reducing carbon emissions. This training will focus on the utility's role and responsibilities from the preliminary assessment through construction and post-acceptance performance. The discussion will focus on strategies that utilities can use to mitigate project risks and manage implementation through an energy service company (ESCO). Best practices and lessons learned will be shared by Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) experts and utility representatives with extensive experience developing UESCs for federal customers.
Instructors
Deb Vasquez, Senior Program Leader, National Renewable Energy Laboratory Read Bio
Deb Vasquez is the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL) technical lead for the Federal Energy Management Program's (FEMP) utility energy service contract team (UESC). She provides technical support, training, and resource development for federal government energy projects that leverage utility industry capabilities and private financing to improve federal government facilities infrastructure.
Jeff Gingrich, Project Manager, National Renewable Energy Laboratory Read Bio
Jeff Gingrich manages program and training development for the Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) Utility Team at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). He is an advisor in supporting development of utility energy service contract (UESC) projects and develops resources and curriculum for the internationally accredited UESC training courses for federal agencies and regulated utilities. In addition, Jeff supports a portfolio of projects at NREL that include energy savings performance contracts and Integrated Urban Services in the ASEAN region.
John Myhre, MBA, Project Manager, National Renewable Energy Laboratory Read Bio
John works for the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL), providing training, technical analysis, and support for the Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) in the areas of performance contracting and distributed energy procurement. Prior to joining NREL, John served as a construction manager and public works operations manager in the U.S. Navy Civil Engineer Corps and as a mechanical engineer for the General Services Administration's Region 9 in San Francisco.
Chandra Shah, Senior Project Leader, National Renewable Energy Laboratory Read Bio
Chandra Shah is a senior project leader at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory (NREL). She has been supporting the Federal Energy Management Program (FEMP) since 1998--helping agencies purchase off-site renewable energy, implement distributed energy projects, and achieve energy/water goals through utility energy service contracts (UESC) and other utility partnerships. She is a CEM and holds an M.B.A. from the University of Washington and a B.S. in mechanical engineering from the University of Michigan.
Learning Objectives
Upon completion of this training, attendees will be able to:
- Identify key milestones in the UESC project implementation process;
- Define roles and responsibilities for utilities, agencies, and ESCOs;
- Develop strategies for mitigating project implementation risks from the utility perspective; and
- Utilize FEMP resources—tools, templates, training, and expertise—available for developing a UESC.
