From time to time, Focus on Energy offers special competitive incentives and opportunity grants for customers. This allows customers to request what they feel is needed for them to complete a project. Financial need must be documented and proposals are selected on a competitive basis. Read the specific project application for more details.

Current competitive incentives include:

• Staffing Grant for Energy Efficiency Project Manager
  Focus on Energy is committed to help businesses overcome barriers preventing the implementation of energy efficiency projects. If you have energy efficiency projects that can not be completed due to lack of staff time, Focus on Energy is now offering up to $100,000 to fund a project manager to see projects to completion. This competitive incentive is designed to fund a new or existing full-or part-time employee or consultant for 2010 to manage, engineer, and/or supervise the implementation of energy efficiency projects that otherwise would not be implemented due to lack of human resources. Applications must be received by December 4, 2009.
  
  
• Performance Verification & Optimization Compressed Air Pilot Program
  The Focus on Energy PVO pilot program offers $15 per horsepower (hp) towards the cost of a compressed air study (maximum incentive of $30,000). In return, the customer will spend up to $15/hp implementing any measures identified with a 1.5 year payback or less. If the study can be completed for less than $15/hp, the customer may use the remaining incentive towards the cost of implementing measures.
  
  
• Large Industrial Competitive Energy Efficiency Grant
  This grant will fund up to $500,000 or 50 percent of project costs per company for large energy efficiency projects that have been stalled due to lack of available internal capital. Applicants must document a need for funding to overcome the financial barrier to be selected. Approved projects must be completed December 15, 2010 and offer savings of 200,000 kilowatt-hours of electricity or 20,000 therms of natural gas annually. Applications are due December 4, 2009.

Five Steps to Success

1. Read application instructions to make sure you are eligible. Note the deadline on the proposal.
2. Contact an energy advisor or call Focus at 800.762.7077 to find an energy advisor to help you develop your proposal if needed.
3. Submit application and required project and company information. This may include energy savings calculations, documentation of financial need and vendor proposals.
4. Focus will contact you on the status of your proposal. If your proposal is awarded a grant, you will receive a grant approval notice which needs to be signed and returned to Focus. Once the grant approval is signed and returned, the project may begin.
5. When your project is finished, your energy advisor will provide a completion notice for you to sign. Once the completion notice is submitted to Focus on Energy your check will be processed and mailed to you.

For a complete list of business and residential request for proposals, visit Focus on Energy's RFP site.