WASHINGTON , DC – The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) announced today that a three-day Industrial Energy Saving Assessment will take place at the Wise Alloys facility in Muscle Shoals, Alabama, as part of the comprehensive national energy efficiency effort undertaken by the Bush Administration.  Through no-cost assessments, DOE is working with major manufacturing facilities to identify energy- and money-saving opportunities, primarily by focusing on steam and process heating systems.

 

“President Bush has called on all Americans to be more energy efficient.  Private industry is joining the federal government in taking a leading role in this effort,” Secretary of Energy Samuel W. Bodman said.  “DOE’s Energy Saving Teams will play a key role in assessing and recommending energy efficiency strategies for some of the largest industrial facilities across the nation.”

 

Wise Alloys, part of Wise Metals Group, is the world’s third-leading producer of aluminum can stock for the beverage and food industries and an environmentally friendly company using recycled aluminum in the production of its can stock.  Other Wise Metals Group subsidiaries include Wise Recycling, one of the largest, direct-from-the-public collectors of aluminum beverage containers in the United States, operating shipping and processing locations throughout the United States that support a network of neighborhood collection centers; and Listerhill Total Maintenance Center, specializing in providing maintenance, repairs and fabrication to manufacturing and industrial plants worldwide ranging from small on-site repairs to complete turn-key maintenance.

 

DOE’s Energy Saving Teams have completed visits to 33 large federal facilities and are in the process of visiting 200 of the most energy-intensive manufacturing facilities in the United States as part of the national “Easy Ways to Save Energy” campaign launched by Secretary Bodman on October 3, 2005. 

 

The first 44 industrial ESAs have identified, in aggregate, more than $149.3 million per year in potential energy cost savings and could reduce natural gas consumption by nearly 14.8 trillion Btu per year, equivalent to the natural gas consumed by more than 200,000 homes annually.

 

Companies interested in accessing DOE energy saving resources can get more details at http://www1.eere.energy.gov/industry/saveenergynow/ and request brochures detailing “15 Tips to Help Your Plant Save Energy.” 

 

For tips on easy, inexpensive steps consumers can take to lower their energy bills this winter, please visit http://www.energysavers.gov/ or call DOE’s Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy Hotline at 1-877-337-3463.