Delaware has recently issued the first-ever statewide bonds for $73 million to pay for energy efficiency improvements in public buildings. The moves initiated by the state’s Sustainable Energy Utility would help the state by reducing consumer electricity bills, helping check inflation, and adding at least 980 new jobs.

State Senator Harris McDowell told the media that “It is a significant new source of money and economic development. In this process we have created approximately 980 new jobs.”

The Senator claims that there would be lowering of electricity rates, too. “Right now it’s a small reduction, if you don’t do anything, but if you take advantage of some of these programs that the SEU has, like energy efficiency or that, you can reduce your bill by as much as a third or even more.”

John Byrne, co-chair of the SEU said that a second program which would allow transactions of renewable energy credits would also create jobs. We have over 900 jobs coming from the bond program, it is somewhere between, depending on how fast and how significant we move forward on the solar renewable energy credits market, we could be adding roughly 90 to 100 jobs, just directly for construction. There’s a whole lot of other jobs besides that” he added.

The SEU said that they are pursuing 20-year contracts to provide price stability and avoidance of the boom-and-bust development cycles.

Meanwhile the Delaware SREC program has announced on its website that the pilot procurement program would remain open for all tiers on Monday, April 2^nd. Tier 1 and Tier 2A will close upon being filled or on Friday, April 6^th, whichever is earlier. Contractors and service providers of alternative energy who meet the eligibility requirements would be bidding for the contracts.