ESCO project report: Goose Creek CISD says annual energy savings meet guarantee

Goose Creek CISD received its year‑3 verification report for a districtwide energy‑savings agreement (ESCO) signed in 2019 and completed in 2022. ABM, the ESCO contractor, and district maintenance staff reported the project has achieved verified savings and exceeded the year‑3 guaranteed target.

Michael Rasmussen, Goose Creek director of maintenance, introduced ABM Measurement & Verification Manager Brian Walker, who presented the year‑3 outcomes. Walker said the project — originally a $45 million ESCO — projects about $2.1 million in annual savings overall, with roughly $1.1 million attributable to energy and nearly $1 million tied to operational savings. For year 3 ABM reported it exceeded the energy guarantee by about $36,000 and cited cumulative energy savings of about $1.6 million to date (installation period through year 3).

Why it matters: The ESCO upgrades (lighting, water conservation, control systems and other energy conservation measures) are intended to lower operating costs and reduce greenhouse gas equivalents; the board receives annual verification to confirm the guaranteed savings are being realized.

Details from the report

- Savings: ABM reported it exceeded the guaranteed figure by approximately $36,000 in year 3 and has delivered cumulative energy savings of about $1.6 million since project start.

- Measures: Nearly half of the savings were attributed to lighting upgrades; other measures included water conservation, building controls and improvements to cooling‑tower controls. ABM noted work remains to optimize some chiller and cooling‑tower systems and that a modest increase in savings is expected in year 4 after power‑factor corrections at two campuses were addressed.

- Sustainability framing: The report converted energy savings into illustrative metrics such as avoided CO2 equivalents and gasoline‑vehicle emissions as descriptive context for community audiences.

Board discussion and clarification

Trustees asked for clarification on greenhouse‑gas and CO2 equivalencies and whether figures represented savings or usage; ABM clarified the numbers illustrated avoided emissions relative to a pre‑project baseline. No action was required; the board accepted the annual report and had no further questions.

Ending note: ABM said continued monitoring and optimization will target incremental improvements, and district staff will follow up on the remaining control‑system items noted in the verification report.