HESP Solar: Powering a Sustainable Future Through Clean Energy Investments and Community Engagement

HESP Solar is an industry-leading solar developer and community solar financier specializing in commercial, industrial, and municipal clean energy investments. The company focuses on turning underutilized spaces into long-term energy assets, offering tailored high-performance solar installations for commercial and industrial properties.

HESP Solar's Mission: Providing Clean, Renewable Energy

HESP Solar is dedicated to making sustainable energy accessible and impactful for organizations. The company's mission is to provide clean, renewable energy solutions that reduce costs, promote sustainability, and maximize the use of underutilized spaces.

Strategic Shift in the Educational Sector

HESP Solar recently completed a 620 kW solar installation at the Princeton Day School. This project provides the campus with long-term fiscal stability in a market where utility costs are increasingly unpredictable.

Municipal and Educational Clean Energy Investments

HESP Solar has successfully completed a comprehensive solar energy initiative for the Dumont Board of Education, demonstrating the potential of aligning municipal leadership with renewable energy expertise. HESP Solar continues to expand its portfolio of municipal and educational clean energy investments across the region.

Transforming Parking Facilities into Energy Assets

HESP Solar specializes in transforming underutilized spaces into powerful long-term energy assets. If you own or manage a parking facility, imagine the impact solar could have on your property.

Read also: Using SOLAR for Registration

High-Performance Solar Installations for Commercial and Industrial Properties

HESP Solar specializes in high-performance solar installations tailored for commercial and industrial properties. These systems maximize energy efficiency, reduce reliance on the grid, and position businesses as leaders in the clean energy movement. The company completed a project for the Watchung Regional High School in Warren, NJ, blending innovation, cost savings, and environmental impact.

Minneapolis's Commitment to Sustainability

Minneapolis has set ambitious goals in its Climate Action Plan to reduce community-wide greenhouse gas emissions by 30% under 2006 levels by 2025 and 80% under 2006 levels by 2050. The city has released comprehensive greenhouse gas inventories for the years of 2013, 2014, and 2015. The city’s Climate Action Plan set goals of increasing the energy efficiency of commercial and industrial buildings by 20% and residential buildings by 15% by 2025.

Minneapolis Green Zones Initiative

The city created the Minneapolis Green Zones Initiative. The Initiative is a place-based policy that puts greater emphasis on improving health and spurring economic development using environmentally conscious efforts in communities that face the cumulative effects of environmental pollution, as well as social, political and economic vulnerability in low-income communities, indigenous communities, and communities of color. There are currently two Green Zones: the Northern Green Zone and the Southside Green Zone. Green Zones are community driven. The racial equity impact analysis (REIA) helps City of Minneapolis staff, departments and elected policymakers consider racial equity outcomes when shaping policies, practices, programs and budgets.

Sustainable Building Policy

In 2020, the city passed a suite of policies collectively called the Sustainable Building Policy. We were unable to determine the amount of staff effort dedicated to energy code enforcement. The city requires progress inspections to ensure energy-code compliance during development, plan reviews, and performance testing. The city requires homeowners to disclose their energy consumption at the time of sale. In 2020, the city is requiring a pilot group of low-performing commercial properties to receive energy audits at no cost.

Financial Incentives for Solar and Energy Efficiency

Minneapolis offers PACE financing to commercial buildings for solar and energy efficiency improvements. The city’s Green Business Cost Share program provides financial incentives for solar incentives. The City pays for free Home Energy Squad visit to homeowners anywhere in the City with incomes below 100% AMI.

Sustainable Transportation Strategies

Minneapolis's Transportation Action Plan was adopted in 2020 and contains sustainable transportation strategies. According to the city's Climate Equity Plan, the city has a goal of reducing GHG emissions from transportation 30% by 2025 from 2006 levels. The city’s target requires a 5.4% average per-capita annual decrease from its target baseline. The city incentivizes affordable housing near transit by giving preference to these developments when administering Low Income Housing Tax Credits. According to data provided by the City, Minneapolis's average bike mode share increased from 3.9% in the span of 2011 - 2013 to 4.2% in the span of 2015 - 2017.

Electric Vehicle Infrastructure

As of May 2021, Minneapolis requires that all buildings with up to nine residential units provide at least one EV-ready space with 208/240v outlets, and all remaining spaces must support charging on 120v outlets. Hotels, offices, any building with over ten residential units, or any non-residential building with at least twenty off-street parking spaces is required to provide a percentage of EV-ready spaces in addition to its required EV charging spaces.

Clean Energy Partnership

In 2014, the City of Minneapolis entered a unique partnership with Xcel Energy and CenterPoint Energy, the city's two largest utilities. The Memorandum of Understanding, referred to as the Clean Energy Partnership, expanded the conditions of the franchise agreement to include an active role for the utilities in the city's achievement of its energy goals. This agreement follows the city's adoption of its Climate Action Plan which seeks to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 15% by 2015, 30% by 2025, and 80% by 2050.

Utility Programs for Low-Income Customers

Xcel Energy offers a portfolio of programs for low-income customers, including the Home Energy Savings Program (HESP), Low Income Home Energy Savings Program (LIHES), Multi-Family Energy Savings Program (MESP), and Affordable Efficient New Home Construction program. HESP offers free home energy education and improvement services to income-qualifying customers. HESP starts with a home assessment and installation of LED lighting. Additional measures offered are refrigerator, freezer, room air conditioner replacement and recycling. For natural gas customers, the program offers replacement of furnace, boiler or water heater. HESP will also provide weatherization services for homes heated with natural gas or electricity from Xcel Energy, and the program coordinates with the Weatherization Assistance Program (WAP). The LIHES Program offers installation services to electric and gas customers who seek to improve their homes’ comfort and lower their utility bills. MESP offers free education and electric saving measures to income-qualifying multi-family buildings. Services are provided in the resident’s units and include installation of LED bulbs, replacement and recycling of refrigerators, freezers, and room air conditioners. The Affordable Efficient New Home Construction program is a new, income-qualified program introduced in 2021. It helps local, affordable housing builders and qualified market-rate builders construct energy efficient, affordable homes for residential customers. Income eligible participants may leverage funding through the Weatherization Assistant Program or other external sources-such as City funded and administered grant programs-while participating in utility-managed programs. Beyond funding for efficiency projects, some communities support the program outreach through their staff, community members and city specific communications resources.

CenterPoint Energy offers a variety of low-income programs, including a Low-income Weatherization program, Low-Income Rental Efficiency program, Low-Income Free Heating System Tune-Up program, Non-Profit Affordable Housing Rebate program, and Low-Income Multifamily Housing Rebate program. These programs provide a variety of measures, such as insulation, furnaces, boilers, water heaters, water efficiency measures, thermostats, and health and safety measures. The Multifamily program provides a 25% bonus to building owners on any equipment eligible for a commercial rebate in an affordable housing building. The utility works with WAP service providers to leverage funds from the Department of Energy for the implementation of no-cost weatherization measures in low-income residences. CenterPoint Energy programs leverage Weatherization Assistance Program, Low Income Home Energy Assistance Program, and non-profit funding. In addition, the City of Minneapolis funding to cover the $100 customer co-pay for the utility home energy audit and direct install progress, Home Energy Squad.

Multi-Family Building Efficiency Programs

Both Xcel Energy and CenterPoint Energy offer the Multi-Family Building Efficiency (MFBE) program and the Multi-Family Energy Savings Program. The MFBE provides a free whole-building energy audit, whole-building energy usage, free installation of screw-in LEDs, energy saving faucet aerators and showerheads, water heater blanket and LED signs in the resident’s units and common areas of the buildings. If the building has sufficient cost-effective savings opportunities to reach a minimum of 15% energy savings, they can achieve an incentive of at least 25% of the project cost-the incentive increase with higher savings achievement potential. If the building qualifies as low income, the incentives are doubled. Xcel Energy and CenterPoint Energy also provides a dedicated low-income multifamily program, Multi-Family Energy Savings Program. In 2021, according to Xcel Energy, it achieved 3,706 MWh of savings, while spending $2,292300 and serving 586 multifamily properties and 22,579 multifamily housing units.

Data Transparency and Benchmarking

Both Xcel Energy and CenterPoint Energy provide whole-building data to customers. Xcel Energy provides a direct feed of whole-building energy usage data from their metered data repository into ENERGY STAR Portfolio Manager. Beginning in 2020, Xcel’s MFBE program offers benchmarking services to those customers who are interested. CenterPoint Energy launched a data access and benchmarking portal that offers a secure, online solution to request and receive whole-building natural gas energy use data that automatically transfers data to ENERGY STAR portfolio Manager. The city of Minneapolis provides community wide energy usage information for planning and evaluation purposes through their annual Clean Energy Partnership reports. The 2021 Annual Report has the most recent aggregate energy use data. CenterPoint Energy provides aggregated community-wide energy usage information upon requests. Since 2013, CenterPoint Energy has released annual community-wide usage data by sector (i.e., residential, commercial, industrial) to the City of Minneapolis.

Renewable Energy Goals and Initiatives

In December 2018, Xcel Energy set a goal to provide customers with 100% carbon-free electricity by 2050. They also include an interim goal of reducing carbon emissions 80% by 2030 compared to 2005 levels. The City is actively involved in almost a dozen dockets before the Public Utility Commission. The City Council has authorized the formal intervention of the City of Minneapolis, through the Sustainability Division staff, as a party of the Xcel Energy 2020-2034 Integrated Resource Plan Docket before the Minnesota PUC. In addition, City staff have directly engaged with Xcel Energy in their Integrated Resource Plan (IRP) planning process by advocating for increases in renewable electricity generation at the utility-scale, community-scale, and building-scale. Xcel Energy hosted a series of in-depth stakeholder meetings/workshops in advance of releasing their preferred IRP plan, and City staff actively participated in all of these meetings. The City is also classified as an intervenor in the IRP and thus a party to any settlements or agreements. The City is currently supporting (via participation and funding) an Integrated Utility Hub feasibility study for the Upper Harbor Terminal redevelopment project. Minneapolis has installed onsite renewable systems on municipal facilities and purchases renewable energy through Renewable Connect and solar gardens.

Water Efficiency Measures

While the City of Minneapolis does not run a program with deep water savings measures and energy savings measures, CenterPoint Energy offers water efficiency measures, including low-flow showerheads and faucet aerators, as part of its Home Energy Squad direct installs and DIY program, and Xcel offers several efficiency measures that also save water, such as efficient showerheads, faucet aerators, ENERGY STAR clothes washers, and efficient commercial dishwashers. The City is currently subsidizing Home Energy Squad visits (free for Green Zone residents) and 0% financing on weatherization improvements (for all Minneapolis residents). The City’s Waterworks is focusing their water efficiency efforts on non-revenue water at a system level using the American Water Works Association’s Water Audit Software and methodology. Their goal is reducing the unaccounted-for water portion of the non-revenue water to 10% or less. WTDS recently completed a leak detection study of most of the water distribution system that searched for and identified leaks. In addition, the City’s residential meters are at the end of their useful life and are due for replacement. As a result, new meters will be installed over the next five years. Minneapolis’s Water Works (a city water park) is included in the 1.5% annual goal to reduce energy use in city facilities.

Greenhouse Gas Emission Reduction

Minneapolis aims to achieve a 1.5% annual reduction in greenhouse gas emissions from city facilities. Minneapolis does not have formal fuel efficiency requirements for its vehicles or energy-efficient vehicle procurement policies in place. However, the Green Fleet Policy requires the city to make every effort to reduce GHG emissions from the fleet by 1.5% annually, purchase vehicles with highest available emissions reduction, and inventory fleet GHG emissions. Minneapolis has adopted a Street Light Policy standard that requires full cuto…

Solar Installation

This exciting initiative involves a 335.88 kW solar installation, including 228.42 kW of canopy-mounted solar.

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