Decarbonization Finance and Climate Utility Strategy Consultancy Services

The vendor is required to provide decarbonization finance and climate utility strategy consultancy services to create universal access to long-term decarbonization financing that accelerates building and community climate transformation by providing access to:
•    Affordable electricity and improved energy reliability and resilience to support the electrification of buildings and transportation via the installation of solar and energy storage systems on homes and businesses, as well as microgrids. 
•    Electrification and thermal energy networks for sustainable heating and cooling. 
•    Robust energy waste reduction and appliance replacement programs that save residents and businesses money while improving comfort, safety, health and indoor and local air quality. 
•    Community solar programs, energy justice initiatives and community-owned assets to ensure that everyone in the community has the benefit of the clean energy economy. 
•    Building energy use disclosure ordinance (BEUDO) alternative carbon credits and other resources like local carbon credits for financing community greenhouse gas (GHG) reduction actions. 
•    State and federal incentives available for decarbonization of buildings.
- The strategy should address the many challenges of universal decarbonization, including:
•    Multiple and competing investment priorities and timelines for building investments. 
•    Landlord and tenant split incentives. 
•    Upfront cost borne by one owner, at one point in time, not spread out over the lifetime of equipment operation. 
•    Slow uptake resulting from each owner having to be motivated to invest significant time into understanding newer technology, how various building systems will interact, in which order to tackle retrofits and then find qualified contractors, compare quotes, and coordinate contractors. 
•    O&M service gap that makes it challenging to maintain solar and battery systems at smaller residential scale. 
•    Uneven access to financing because some property types can’t easily access or qualify for financing (condominiums, small businesses, small non-profits, renters, moderate-income homeowners). 
•    uncertainty about future operating costs. 
•    Lack of system-wide coordination since every building is evaluated and retrofitted as a standalone node, and retrofits don’t currently contemplate microgrids, thermal energy networks, or how buildings can create resilience together. 
•    No universal access to affordable clean energy and decarbonization technologies, which often excludes lower-income families and tenants. 
•    Complex incentives that can be hard to qualify for or navigate with rebate-based incentives that still require upfront capital before reimbursement. 
•    Multiple decision makers for many buildings that slow or stall retrofit progress, including sometimes the utility when it comes to the timing, cost and process for distribution upgrades.

- Questions/Inquires Deadline: September 10, 2025