WASHINGTON — The U.S. Department of Energy’s (DOE’s) Building Technologies Program is requesting submissions from groups that would like to become members of its High-Performance Green Building Partnership Consortia. DOE will recognize formally those groups from the public and private sectors that meet specific qualifications and that promote high-performance green buildings and net-zero-energy commercial buildings.

The Partnership Consortia are part of DOE’s Net-Zero Energy Commercial Building Initiative (CBI), the Building Technologies Program’s umbrella initiative which aims to achieve marketable net-zero-energy commercial buildings by 2025 to meet requirements of the Energy Independence and Security Act of 2007 (EISA). DOE will post the name, contact information, and membership of each formally recognized Partnership Consortia member on its Website and use information provided by each consortia to develop a report to Congress on the status of CBI.

In accordance with section 421 of EISA, DOE is seeking groups that include representation in the following areas:

• Manufacturers and providers of equipment and techniques used in high-performance green buildings

• Design professions and national associations of architects and engineers

• Development, construction, financial, and real estate industries

• Building owners and operators from the public and private sectors

• Experts in indoor air quality, intelligent buildings and integrated building information systems

• Building code agencies and organizations, including model energy code setting organizations

• Independent high-performance green building associations and councils

• Academic and research organizations

• Utility energy efficiency programs

• Non-governmental energy efficiency organizations.

According to DOE, the 4.7 million commercial buildings in the Unites States have a collective footprint of approximately 74 billion square feet. The energy demand from commercial buildings, including heating, cooling, water heating, ventilation, lighting, and electronics, consumes 18 percent of the nation’s primary energy and 35 percent of its electricity. Commercial buildings in the United States consume 18 quads annually — a total annual “utility bill” of more than $155 billion.

The CBI is designed to overcome the technical challenges, market barriers, and institutional constraints inhibiting rapid and broad adoption of the technologies, tools, processes, and practices required to achieve net-zero-energy commercial buildings. To the extent resources are made available, DOE’s CBI will engage in cost-shared research, development, and demonstration activities, engaging and leveraging the capabilities in the private sector through national energy alliances, national accounts with significant building portfolios, and partnerships with standards and code setting bodies, as well as with state and local governments.

For more information, visit www.eere.energy.gov/buildings/highperformance.html.

Publication date: 12/22/2008