Commercial kitchens in restaurants, hotels, hospital and
institutional facilities use more energy per square foot than almost any
other commercial facilities. In these locations, energy used for refrigeration,
food preparation and water heating can amount to almost 60 percent of total
energy use. Savings from installation of high efficiency equipment can range
between 10 and 30 percent.
BPA offers incentive reimbursements to customer utilities for installation
of an expanded suite of high efficiency kitchen and food service measures
to commercial customers. Measures include refrigerators, freezers, ice makers,
steamers, high-efficiency electric fryers, hot food holding cabinets and pre-rinse spray wash valves.
BPA plans to add additional measures to the commercial kitchen offer as
energy savings are validated. Final program development is also in process
for combination ovens, convection ovens and commercial dishwashers.
The development of reimbursements for a comprehensive suite of measures
for kitchen and foodservice equipment is designed to support utilities in
their administration of targeted efficiency programs for an energy-intensive
set of end users.
About commercial kitchens
The capital cost of commercial kitchen equipment is significant, and the
best opportunity for cost-effective energy savings occurs when a facility
is buying new equipment or replacing units that have exceeded their useful
life. The opportunity for electric energy efficiency varies with choice
of fuel source. While refrigeration equipment is inherently electrically
powered, natural gas has significant market share with some cooking equipment
(such as fryers) as well as with water heating. This means that program
implementation is more straightforward in all-electric service territories
where the opportunity is greater. Partnerships with natural gas utilities
can be fruitful for water saving measures such as pre-rinse spray valves.
Measures and reimbursements
A full list of deemed commercial kitchen equipment measures and BPA reimbursements
is available on the Planning, Tracking and Reporting (PTR) system. Measures
include:
- Refrigerators and freezers. BPA reimburses up to
$200 per refrigerator and up to $700 per freezer for installation of
premium efficiency equipment meeting the Consortium for Energy Efficiency
(CEE) Tier 2 standard. Payback for these measures is very short, typically
less than one year. For example, a Tier 2 freezer costs $490 more than
a comparable baseline model. However, the BPA reimbursement available
to utilities can cover $400 of this cost, for a net cost of $90. This
investment is very small relative to annual energy savings of 2,863
kWh, worth $172 at $0.06 per kWh.
- Ice Makers. BPA reimburses between $100 and $300
per unit for installation of premium efficiency air-cooled ice makers.
Units must conform to CEE Tier 2 standards, and higher reimbursements
are available for the highest efficiency Tier 3 units. Energy savings
can be worth up to $100 annually at $0.06 per kWh.
- Steamers. BPA reimburses up to $200 for premium
efficiency steamers that meet Regional Technical Forum (RTF) Tier 2
specifications. These reimbursement rates cover most of the incremental
cost of these measures. For example, a qualifying six-pan steamer will
have a net cost after rebate of only $9 and will yield $132 in annual
energy savings (at $0.06 per kWh). These strong economics make steamers
a keystone measure for any comprehensive commercial kitchen efficiency
program.
- Hot Food Holding Cabinets. BPA reimburses $200 to
$400 for premium efficiency hot food holding cabinets. Cabinets that
meet CEE Tier 2 efficiency standards can deliver savings worth up to
$115 annually. The incremental cost of these measures can be significant
so measure paybacks may be five or more years.
- Pre-Rinse Spray Valves. Efficient pre-rinse spray
valves have the potential to save energy worth $250 annually in facilities
with electrically heated water. BPA offers a strong reimbursement of
$150 that will cover the full cost of installation in most cases, making
this measure an attractive direct install option that can complement
marketing of other commercial kitchen rebates. Water savings are another
benefit of this measure. Several BPA customer utilities have managed
successful joint programs with local gas utilities, increasing delivery
efficiencies through a fuel-blind approach.
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