College Energy Costs to Increase by at Least $1 Million
Carly McFerren
Issue date: 12/10/09 Section: News
Beginning in January 2010, the "energy caps" that regulate energy pricing will be removed in Pennsylvania.
Kathie Shafter, Vice President of Operations at Messiah College, says that ten years ago the Pennsylvania goverment enforced regulations on how much an energy provider could charge for its services.
Brad Markley, Director of Facilities, says that the college uses 27 million kilowatt hours (kWh) a year. "The average home uses 750 kilowatts a month," he says, which adds up to 9000 kWh per year. "That's a huge difference," he says. Messiah College uses enough energy to power 3000 homes a year.
Shafer says that Messiah College spends about two to three million dollars a year on energy. "We originally thought there would be a 60% increase in fees," Shafer says. Now the increase is projected at 20%.
Lois Voght, Vice President for Finance, says that "Even a 20% increase is significant in terms of dollars."
A 20% increase amounts to 3.8 million dollars per year, an increase of 1 million dollars.
"For us, even 1% of 3 million is a big deal," Shafer says. "It's equal to one semester [for a student] here without financial aid."
Shafer says the Department of Operations is very serious about preparing for the price increase. "We want to reduce usage so bills are never higher than" the three million dollars budgeted for this school year's energy bill, she says.
Using money budgeted to a different are, Shafer says the college replaced energy systems in Eisenhower in preparation for the rise in energy costs. She says that the heat and air conditioning in Eisenhower is now powered by a mixture of electric and propane.
Markley says that "Propane is more efficient: there's less carbon, and it's less money. We've converted the [Climenhaga]Fine Arts Center, Frey academic, Jordan [academic] and Fry residential." By using both electricity and propane, Markley explains that the college will have more control over its energy bill because it can switch to the fuel that costs less.
Kathie Shafter, Vice President of Operations at Messiah College, says that ten years ago the Pennsylvania goverment enforced regulations on how much an energy provider could charge for its services.
Brad Markley, Director of Facilities, says that the college uses 27 million kilowatt hours (kWh) a year. "The average home uses 750 kilowatts a month," he says, which adds up to 9000 kWh per year. "That's a huge difference," he says. Messiah College uses enough energy to power 3000 homes a year.
Shafer says that Messiah College spends about two to three million dollars a year on energy. "We originally thought there would be a 60% increase in fees," Shafer says. Now the increase is projected at 20%.
Lois Voght, Vice President for Finance, says that "Even a 20% increase is significant in terms of dollars."
A 20% increase amounts to 3.8 million dollars per year, an increase of 1 million dollars.
"For us, even 1% of 3 million is a big deal," Shafer says. "It's equal to one semester [for a student] here without financial aid."
Shafer says the Department of Operations is very serious about preparing for the price increase. "We want to reduce usage so bills are never higher than" the three million dollars budgeted for this school year's energy bill, she says.
Using money budgeted to a different are, Shafer says the college replaced energy systems in Eisenhower in preparation for the rise in energy costs. She says that the heat and air conditioning in Eisenhower is now powered by a mixture of electric and propane.
Markley says that "Propane is more efficient: there's less carbon, and it's less money. We've converted the [Climenhaga]Fine Arts Center, Frey academic, Jordan [academic] and Fry residential." By using both electricity and propane, Markley explains that the college will have more control over its energy bill because it can switch to the fuel that costs less.
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