Follow the Government's Energy Efficiency Contracts By David Sterman About this article: Although wind, solar and geothermal are likely to constitute an increasing amount of our energy supply, moves to boost our efficiency promise a more immediate bang for the buck. As part of the Energy Independence and Security Act (EISA), the government has begun awarding a series of $5 billion contracts to a range of firms, under another handy acronym, ESPC, which stands for Energy Savings Performance Contract. In all, the government intends to award 16 ESPCs, for a total of $80 billion. There is no formal commitment to spend that money, as these are Indefinite Delivery Indefinite Quantity (IDIQ) deals. Had enough acronyms? Me too. Even though these contracts are open-ended, they could be completed and renewed for another $5 billion to $6 billion if the government finds them to be beneficial. And a lot of that depends on the price of fossil fuels over the... Or, call us at 1-866-321-TSCM (8726) Monday-Friday, 8 a.m.-6 p.m. ET. Outside the U.S. and in Canada, call 1-212-321-5200. More Stories From RealMoney Durable Goods Up Move Down the Tech Food Chain Jobless Claims Still High Bulls' Tenacity Is the Big Question Mark Should You Buy It? Pharmaceutical Product Development Bad News Trumps All Support for Banks Holds, For Now Bummer, Yields Are on the Rise Money on the Line Makes a Big Difference Structured Products: Unsafe at Any Price MORE STORIES FROM REALMONEY

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