Website: promise.energyprojects.net

The PROMISE project, funded by the European Commission under the ALTENER programme, is a 2-year project concluded at the end of 2003. It focusses on the opportunities to integrate renewable energy sources (RES) and rational use of energy (RUE) technologies and equipment managed by local authorities through improved procurement processes.

The objective is to remove barriers for the utilisation of RES and RUE in municipalities by elaborating tools and advice to local authorities staff and by identifying concrete solutions to integrate RES/RUE in public procurement processes. One main aspect to achieve this aim is the implementation of pilot projects to follow the applied tendering and selection procedures of equipment and services in the municipalities and to provide local actors with appropriate information, as well as a set of tools designed to assist them in decision-making and the management of contracts.

PROMISE has the following main objectives:

• to find ways of reducing energy costs for municipalities and thus reducing the negative environmental impacts of energy consumption;
• to develop approaches and tools for local municipality staff to integrate Renewable Energy Sources (RES) and the Rational Use of Energy (RUE) into public procurement processes;
• to train local staff and carry out pilot projects that demonstrate procurement of RES and RUE.

PROMISE deals with the following types of procurement:

• Product purchasing (e.g. office supplies and equipment);
• Award of service contracts (e.g. ESCOs, insurance, maintenance);
• Award of work contracts, e.g. related to building construction;
• Award of utilities contracts, e.g. green electricity