As of January 4, 65 manufacturing plants have been selected to receive expert assistance in finding new opportunities to save energy. They are the first of 200 slated to receive Energy Saving Assessments through the Department of Energy's "Easy Ways to Save Energy" campaign announced by Secretary Samuel W. Bodman in early October.
The plants being visited by DOE-certified energy experts are among the largest energy users in the nation, consuming a total of nearly 527 trillion Btu annually, including 327 trillion Btu from natural gas.
Collectively, the selected plants and other facilities under the same corporate ownership represent 5.0% of all natural gas consumed by the manufacturing sector. The amount of natural gas used by these plants is roughly equivalent to that used in over 4 million American homes.
The facilities are spread across 31 states. The facilities include more than 12 manufacturing sectors including: aerospace, aluminum, chemicals, electronics, food processing, forest products, glass, metal casting, and steel.
DOE says that the application will be reopened in February, if needed, to meet the target of 200 assessments. Information on the application process and other DOE-sponsored activities to identify energy saving opportunities in industry are available at www.eere.energy.gov/industry/saveenergynow/
