Schneider Electric presents HVAC audit and energy‑savings plan to Eagle Pass ISD board
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Summary
Schneider Electric presented a short‑ and long‑term audit of HVAC, electrical and envelope needs; the company proposed phased work, projected utility savings and options including solar and battery storage to soften a future bond's impact.
Schneider Electric on Feb. 11 presented results of an energy and deferred‑maintenance audit for Eagle Pass Independent School District and proposed a phased plan to address immediate HVAC and electrical needs while building toward larger bond‑scale projects.
Aaron Garcia, Schneider Electric account manager for South Texas, said the company performed site walk‑throughs and an inventory of mechanical, electrical and building automation systems. Garcia said the goals were to modernize buildings, maximize utility savings, address mechanical needs and “bring a softer landing to the bond” by using energy‑savings measures and phased work to offset costs.
Paige Bleakley, Schneider Electric project development manager, reviewed a scope matrix of observed needs across district campuses and identified the highest priorities as Eagle Pass High School, C.C. Wynne High School and Eagle Pass Junior High. She said some equipment is more than 20 years old and that district teams reported heating, zoning and automation challenges at older campuses.
Schneider Electric provided high‑level cost and benefit estimates. The consultant said energy efficiency and deferred‑maintenance work could yield roughly $400,000 in annual utility savings and more than $13 million in life‑cycle savings over time, depending on final scope; the presenter emphasized these are preliminary estimates. Proposed work was organized into a near‑term phase (design in 2025 and construction beginning in fall 2025) and a second phase that could align with a future bond.
The presentation included possible renewable‑energy options. Garcia said solar systems are being incentivized under the federal investment tax credit (ITC) and that a solar project paired with battery storage and backup generators could supply short‑ and long‑term outage resilience, but the company cautioned batteries and microgrids materially increase project cost. In response to trustee questions, Schneider Electric said standard solar installations without battery storage do not make a campus fully off‑grid and that full backup for prolonged outages typically requires a combination of solar, battery storage and diesel or natural‑gas generators.
Trustees asked about practical tradeoffs. Trustee Morris Lipson asked whether installed solar panels would provide power during outages; Schneider Electric said not without battery storage or generators. Board members discussed whether LED field lighting for the new track might be considered as an additional energy item in future design work; Schneider said field LED upgrades were not included in the track contract but could be evaluated.
Why it matters: The audit identifies capital‑intensive deferred maintenance across older campuses and outlines a pathway for district leaders to use guaranteed or projected energy savings and potential federal incentives to partially offset bond costs. The district will have to decide on phasing, funding and whether to pursue renewable projects with battery backup based on cost and resilience priorities.
Quoted from the meeting: Schneider Electric said preliminary modeling showed “a big chunk an additional large reduction in utility savings that could be over $400,000 annually” and that the life‑cycle savings projection could be “something $13,000,000 maybe more in life cycle savings.”
Next steps presented to the board included detailed design work, developing a phased plan and a capital‑asset inventory to support long‑range budgeting.
