Energy Efficiency Blog
Investing in Clean Energy through STEM education in NJ
February 8th, 2012This week, Lime Energy announced a $2,500 scholarship to be awarded for the 2012-2013 academic year through the Independent College Fund of New Jersey (ICFNJ). This scholarship will be awarded to a student enrolled in a science, technology, engineering or math (STEM) program. It is designed to reward a high achiever who is preparing for a career that will impact the development and implementation of clean energy.
“The Lime Energy Scholarship directly supports our commitment to a clean energy future by encouraging the next generation to contribute to the innovation that will address community and global energy problems,” said Al DiGuilio, PE, Lime’s Public Sector Vice President. “Lime is very actively engaged in energy efficiency and renewable solutions throughout the state and we are dedicated to helping New Jersey achieve their aggressive energy reduction goals.”
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Al DiGuilio, PE, Lime’s Public Sector Vice President, (center),
shared the news with ICFNJ staff, MaryAlice Breuninger and Gerry Bellotti.
The Independent College Fund of New Jersey was founded over 50 years ago and consists of 14 member institutions that the fund supports through strategic investments in programs, scholarships and education. “ICFNJ’s member colleges and universities are well poised to educate our future leaders in the development and advancement of clean energy,” said Mary Alice Breuninger, Development Officer for ICFNJ. “Lime Energy’s scholarship will directly support the goal of New Jersey’s independent colleges and universities to play a critical role in educating the next generation of scientists, engineers and mathematicians.”
As the ICFNJ told us, “a scholarship is so much more than the financial support. It is confirmation by a representative of an industry of a student’s achievements and career choice. ICFNJ is excited to have Lime Energy join its distinguished list of scholarship sponsors.”
Lime Energy and sOccket at Community School of Davidson
January 27th, 2012On January 27th, Chad Solomonson, Vice President of Marketing at Lime Energy, spoke to a group of 8th graders at the Community School of Davidson.
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Chad Solomonson demonstrating the sOccket
Chad discussed sources of energy as they relate the world’s growing population and opportunities that exist to create renewable energy. To demonstrate new technologies that are emerging, Chad brought along a sOccket ball to demonstrate how kinetic energy can be harnessed and used to power small electrical devices.
“The kids had a fantastic time bouncing and kicking the ball and then watching it actually provide power to a reading lamp,” said Chad. “This just reinforces how powerful the sOccket truly is in its ability to better understand our global community and to encourage innovation. These 8th graders are our future leaders and to have them see, feel and hold the future of energy in their hands was a great experience.”
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8th Grade Students at Community School of Davidson and the sOccket
Missouri can save billions in energy costs & produce jobs
January 25th, 2012Energy efficiency in the United States continues to receive policy support mainly at the state rather than federal level. An August 2011 study from American Council for an Energy-Efficiency Economy (ACEEE), entitled “Missouri’s Energy Efficiency Potential: Opportunities for Economic Growth and Energy Sustainability,” once again illustrates the big benefits from state-level energy efficiency support, including reduced energy costs, increased grid reliability, and more jobs.
ACEEE believes that its energy efficiency policy prescriptions could save Missouri consumers and businesses $6.1 billion in energy costs, produce 8,512 new jobs, and provide $224 million in wages for those employees by 2025. ACEEE says that these jobs would be well-paying trade and professional jobs needed to design, install, and operate energy efficiency measures. This job creation would be the equivalent of opening about 50 small manufacturing plants in the state.
Missourians currently spend about $12 billion on their energy bills to heat, cool, and power their homes and businesses. While Missouri has comparatively low energy prices, the state wastes huge amounts of energy as illustrated by the fact that it ranks a very poor 45th in the nation in terms of per capita energy usage. ACEEE believes that with the right policies Missouri could reduce its electricity needs by 10% by 2020 and by 17% by 2025.
The ACEEE policy recommendations cover policy areas such as energy efficiency targets for utilities, building energy codes, sector-specific policies for manufacturing and agriculture, state and local public building energy retrofits, demand response, and combined heat and power (CHP).
Regarding utility programs, the report points out that in 2009, Missouri took an important step by approving the Missouri Energy Efficiency Investment Act (MEEIA), which declares that the state’s energy policy is that customer investments such as energy efficiency shall be equal to traditional investments in energy supply and transmission infrastructure. In April 2011, The Missouri Public Service Commission (PSC) published its final rulemaking to implement MEEIA. Those rules specify how utilities can recover costs and earn performance incentives from energy efficiency programs.
However, ACEEE believes that the new rules have not been fully effective in aligning utility financial returns with energy efficiency because utilities have recently reduced the size of their energy efficiency programs. ACEEE recommends a revised rule framework and specific energy efficiency targets for utilities to deliver energy savings of about 1% by 2016. Utilities in Missouri spent about $27 million on energy efficiency programs in 2009 and that figure rose to about $40 million in 2010. However, recent trends indicate energy efficiency program spending will decline under the new Missouri PSC rule-making.
One particularly successful energy efficiency program in Missouri is the “Energy Revolving Fund,” which provides low-interest loans to public schools, universities, colleges, cities and counties to help reduce their energy costs. The program has so far loaned more than $80 million for completed energy efficiency projects since 1989, producing more than $146 million in cumulative energy savings.
While Missouri has significantly stepped up its energy efficiency efforts in the past several years, the ACEEE report suggests that there is much more that the state can do to fully capture the benefits from energy efficiency.
ACEEE’s policy report for Missouri was produced as part of the ACEEE’s “State Clean Energy Resource Project,” which is funded in part by the U.S. Department of Energy and Environmental Protection Agency. ACEEE’s report on Missouri adds to the collection of reports that have already been issued for eleven other states. ACEEE says that many of the recommendations made in these reports have resulted in legislation and/or executive orders establishing energy efficiency and renewable energy portfolio standards, better building codes, and effective climate policies.
Dom Lempereur, Lime’s Director of Engineering East Coast, shares experience with students of Pine Lake Prep School
November 22nd, 2011On November 18, 2011 Dom Lempereur, Lime Energy’s Director of Engineering East Coast, was invited to share his experience as an Energy Engineer during the Career Day event at Pine Lake Preparatory School in Mooresville, NC.

Dom Lempereur presenting at Pine Lake Preparatory School
“Talking about what you do every day may sound like a trivial exercise until you realize that within the half hour of your presentation you may have helped shaping one of these young people’s future”, said Dom.
His presentation covered the daily tasks and challenges of an energy engineer, but topics such as the recent turn in the energy efficiency markets or education and career opportunities in the energy field were discussed.
“When you ask a 10th grader to give you examples of renewable energy technologies or ask what LED lighting is about and you get the right answers, you really feel positive about how the upcoming generations are already preparing for the energy challenges ahead.”
Value of a P4P – AtlantiCare Testimonial
July 18th, 2011Pay for Performance (P4P) is a comprehensive energy efficiency program that provides incentives towards whole-building energy improvements. Existing commercial, industrial, and institutional buildings with a peak demand over 100 kW for any of the preceding twelve months are eligible to participate. P4P is not a financing offer, but a state-administered grant designed to help states meet their ambitious energy reduction goals.
Bill Kissinger, Director of Facility Service at AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center, explains the value of a Pay for Performance (P4P) Partnership.
To learn more about the value of a Lime P4P Partnership visit limep4p.com or review the AtlantiCare success story.
Value of a Lime P4P Partnership – AtlantiCare Testimonial
July 18th, 2011Pay for Performance (P4P) is a comprehensive energy efficiency program that provides incentives towards whole-building energy improvements. Existing commercial, industrial, and institutional buildings with a peak demand over 100 kW for any of the preceding twelve months are eligible to participate. P4P is not a financing offer, but a state-administered grant designed to help states meet their ambitious energy reduction goals.
Bill Kissinger, Director of Facility Service at AtlantiCare Regional Medical Center, explains the value of a Lime Pay for Performance (P4P) Partnership.
To learn more about the value of a Lime P4P Partnership for your business or institution, visit limep4p.com. Or review our the AtlantiCare success story.

