Kohler gets $1.7 million energy grant

Gov. Jim Doyle has announced more than $14.5 million in funding to nine industrial companies in Wisconsin to help complete energy efficiency projects and create and retain more than 400 jobs in the state.

Among them is the Kohler Co., which will receive $1,717,666. The governor made the announcement Thursday at the Kohler Company in Kohler.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is providing the awards under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA). The $14.5 million in funding will be administered through Focus on Energy, Wisconsin’s statewide resource for energy efficiency and renewable energy.

Doyle has laid out an ambitious strategy to achieve energy independence by calling on the state to generate 25 percent of our electricity and 25 percent of our transportation fuels from renewable resources by 2025. Under the plan, Wisconsin will also capture 10 percent of the market share for renewable energy by 2015 and utilize the state’s tremendous research capability to become the country’s leader in making alternative energy more affordable and available.

The projects announced Thursday will save an estimated 1.21 trillion BTUs annually — enough energy to power 15,000 Wisconsin homes for a year, increasing overall energy efficiency by 45 percent and helping retain and create more than 400 jobs in Wisconsin.

Wisconsin’s Focus on Energy program is a national leader in efforts to promote energy efficiency and renewable energy. Focus on Energy has received four consecutive Sustained Excellence Awards from U.S. EPA’s Energy Star program. For more information, call (800) 762-7077 or visit focusonenergy.com.