President Obama Launches Homestar for Energy-Efficient Homes

In a speech on Friday, March 5 at energy-efficiency software company OPOWER, President Barack Obama offered additional information about his newly introduced Homestar program

“The jobs of tomorrow will be jobs in the clean energy sector […] That's why my administration is taking steps to support a thriving clean energy industry across this country -- an industry that's making solar panels, and building wind turbines, producing cutting-edge batteries for fuel-efficient cars and trucks, and helping consumers get more control over their energy bills.”

“And that's also why earlier this week I urged Congress to enact a new initiative we're calling Homestar that would offer homeowners rebates for making their homes more energy-efficient -- rebates worth up to $1,500 for individual home upgrades and up to $3,000 for retrofitting their entire home. So if they're getting this good information from OPOWER and they see that, boy, that drafty window is costing me a couple of hundred bucks a year, they're now going to have an incentive to go to Home Depots or go to Lowes to hire a certified contractor and make the changes that will ultimately pay for themselves, improve our environment, and improve our economy.” Full speech and Fact Sheet Homestar Energy Efficiency Retrofit Program.

The Energy Agency for South East Sweden in Cooperation with Michigan

The Energy Agency for South East Sweden and Linnaeus University are collaborating with the Northern Michigan University, Marquette, Michigan in the development of a district heating plant using biomass for heat and power. Both the NMU campus and a nearby hospital will rely on the plant for heat and electricity. The partnership includes information exchange, systems and technologies. Technical visits and training programs for NMU staff have been held in Växjö at the Linneus University and at the agency.