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Energy-as-a-Service (EaaS / ESCO performance contract)
Private — Energy Service Companies (ESCOs), third-party ownedSee programDeadline: Rolling — negotiated per project.
Third-party owns, installs, and maintains the energy equipment; the customer pays a monthly service fee and shares in the savings, with no/minimal upfront capital. Frequently delivered as a Guaranteed Energy Savings Performance Contract (GESPC/ESPC) through an ESCO that guarantees savings which fund the payments. Differs from a lease (EaaS bundles equipment + O&M + performance guarantee) and from a PPA (EaaS can wrap multiple measures under one outcome-based fee, not just kWh). The taxable provider typically monetizes the 48E ITC + depreciation and prices the benefit into the fee — making EaaS an alternative to tax-exempt clients pursuing Direct Pay themselves. For IL public bodies, savings-funded performance contracting is an established procurement path; confirm governing statute + prevailing-wage obligations with the client's counsel before structuring.
Program details
- Agency
- Private — Energy Service Companies (ESCOs), third-party owned
- Level
- Private
- Category
- Energy-as-a-Service / Performance Contract
- Eligibility
- Customers (especially MUSH market: municipal, university, school, hospital) seeking whole-building or multi-measure upgrades with no capital outlay. Provider carries technology + performance risk.
- Funding Amount
- No/minimal upfront customer capital. Customer pays a monthly service fee; savings fund the project. Often structured as a Guaranteed Energy Savings Performance Contract (GESPC) with a savings guarantee.
- Deadline
- Rolling — negotiated per project.
- Status
- open
- Project Types
- lighting_led, solar, storage, microgrid, hvac, commercial_efficiency
- Client Types
- commercial, municipal, educational, nonprofit, healthcare
- Notes
- Best for large lighting, solar+storage, microgrids, deep retrofits. Strongest in MUSH market. Same tax-ownership logic as Solar PPA — provider captures ITC. Utility incentives (ComEd Smart Ideas / DG Storage) flow to provider and reduce the fee. IL public-sector GESPC statutory specifics flagged for verification, not asserted to client.
Source: Grantya research. Confirm current terms with the administering agency before applying.