Louisiana’s energy efficiency potential remains untapped and the policies recommended in this paper could met 5% of state wide energy needs by 2020, reaching a cumulative 12% by 2030. The recommended set of efficiency policies could reduce Louisiana’s energy costs by 4.2 billion over the life of the energy saving measures. Macroeconomic assessments state that in 2030 greater energy efficiency will result in approximately $3 billion annually in economic output including $1 billion in wages and $663 million in business income to smaller business owners, and $114 state and local tax revenue.
Despite these possible gains the state has yet to embrace the policies due to market barriers in the form of high upfront costs and lack of experience or expertise. Business interests remain fundamentally misaligned with energy efficiency however, the policies and procedures outlined in this report will help forge a path of energy efficiency and greater economic growth for Louisiana.
