Honeywell outlines $5.5 million ESIP for Vernon schools, projects $316,000 annual energy savings

Honeywell representatives told the Vernon Township Board of Education on April 10 that an Energy Savings Improvement Program, or ESIP, could pay for roughly $5.5 million in energy and building-system upgrades across district schools while producing an estimated $316,000 in annual utility savings.

The ESIP presentation focused on how the Energy Savings Improvement Program authorized by the New Jersey Board of Public Utilities allows school districts to finance upgrades with the savings those upgrades produce. Honeywell project lead John Bonavist said the district’s audited utility spend totaled about $1.1 million for calendar year 2024 and that the proposed measures would reduce that budget by roughly 28.5 percent.

Why it matters: The ESIP framework can make large mechanical, lighting and solar projects “budget neutral” by covering debt service with energy savings, officials said. If the district proceeds, the work could modernize heating, ventilation and controls while locking in predictable energy costs and adding solar generation at the high…